Fake Smile in the laughter Box

Suppose you are watching ‘Friends,’ a very popular TV show of the 90’s. Chandler said a joke, great sarcasm, excellent punch line. You’re smiling; Monica, Joey, Rachel, Ross, Phoebe are all smiling in the scene. But that is not enough. You can hear the laughter and applause of the audience from inside the scene. Not only Friends, but other popular TV shows, such as Big Bang Theory, The Seventies Show, How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Halfman – are also popular sitcom comedy TV shows. 

What is the reason for this laughter? 

There are many names for such laughter. In the film world, its name is Canned Laugh Track. In some shows, such jump tracks are pre-recorded, while in some places, they are just sound design games. But why the need for such a jump track? Criticism of this is not less in the current film industry. But before we go into the details of the discussion, let us first know its history. 

History 

Long ago, TV shows became popular in the United States. At that time, such shows were shot with a single camera. That is, the actors would perform on a stage, a huge line of spectators in front would enjoy the show live, and then the show would be recorded on a still camera and broadcast on TV. But then the show hosts had to face a big problem with the comedy show. Naturally, the audience is most involved with the shows. After each punch line, the spectators would clap loudly and laugh out loud. The problem, however, is that sometimes the laughter lasts a long time, and the director did not get the kind of laughter he was hoping for after a particular punch line in many places. 

Many in Hollywood accepted this natural truth. However, many who enjoyed the show live did not like the long applause in this wrong place. They argued that the smiles and applause of the audience in the wrong place spoil the beauty of the television show, and many do not laugh after the actual punchline. Another big problem was that it was impossible to control how long the audience would clap. If the audience had reacted for a long time, the next dialogue on the punchline would not have been heard in the end. Many in the silver world were concerned about these problems. 

One such person was American sound designer Charlie Douglas. He was then working for the famous television broadcasting company CBS. In the TV shows he worked on, he used to cut or add laughter directly to the viewers as required in the editing. In other words, the laughter of the real viewers could not be heard in his edited TV shows.

In the 1950’s, he revolutionized the film industry by making a special instrument. The name of that device is ‘Laugh Box.’ As soon as the button is pressed from this device, various artificial smiles and claps are heard. Each button had a different set of applause and laughter. Douglas used it to edit. Overnight this laugh box became quite popular. From America to Britain, Laughs Box has been used in some of the world’s greatest comedy TV shows ever since.

The effect of the jumping track on the human psyche 

But the days were changing, now the era of a single camera is no more. Comedy shows are now also shot with multiple cameras in their own productions. The era of live viewers is no more. As a result, the need for jump boxes has increased. The directors noticed that when people used to sit in the theater and enjoy comedy shows, everyone laughed together, and it was very lively. When a viewer watches the same show alone on TV, those comedy scenes are not getting so lively. If the sound of laughter comes from the TV, the viewer will think that he is laughing with everyone. As a result, the jump box can directly affect the audience psychologically. 

But the jump box was also used for many bad purposes, adding a laughing sound to a boring scene and forcing it into a laughing scene. If you watch some scenes of ‘Friends’ TV show on YouTube without a jump track, you will find it quite uncomfortable. If you watch the same scene that you laughed at, except for the canned jump track, that smile will not come again like before. That is to say, adding a jump track to a scene that was ‘comedy,’ the same scene becomes uncomfortable and severe when the jump track is lifted.

Sophie Scott, a British neuroscientist, said : 

” What this study shows is that adding laughter to a joke, increases the humor value, no matter how funny or unfunny the joke is.” 

That is,

“Studies have shown that adding humor enhances the humor of a joke, whether it’s a laugh or not.”

Criticism 

Laugh Box was criticized from the beginning. Many American visitors did not want to be taught where to smile and where to clap. Later, new genres began to appear in the comedy genre. As a result, we saw some popular comedy shows, such as The Office Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Silicon Valley, without the use of canned jump tracks.

Last word

This jump box by Charlie Douglas was invented in 1950, a concept that is still used in the current film industry. However, the use of jump tracks in live comedy shows has decreased. We last saw the jump track in 2016, in the season finale of Big Bang Theory. 

Despite much criticism of this jump track, many viewers still like it. Think about it, when you get tired of spending all day and go home alone and start watching your favorite TV show alone, don’t you want to get the feeling that someone else is laughing with you? Charlie Douglas and his famous instrument ‘Laugh Box.’