Directors TV Shows that have made you laugh out loud HARD (1 Viewer)

[Fredster]

Most Extreme Elimination Challenge

 

[Dome Vongvises]

Good call on Animaniacs, Patrick

The Simpsons
Seinfeld
Married with Children
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Mr. Bean
All in the Family
Sanford and Son
King of the Hill
Futurama
In Living Color
Family Guy
Animaniacs

 

[MartinTeller]

Surprised these haven't been mentioned yet:

The Young Ones
Mr. Show

 

[Scott Weinberg]

I read the thread topic and then immediately scanned all the way down, ignoring all the responses. This way I'm just going on my own recollections of what's most memorably funny without help from the earliers respondents. I look forward to reading the other lists once I'm done...

When I think of what programs could consistently and reliably make me laugh, a few titles pop into my head immediately.

Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Manna for movie geeks. I used to look forward to a new episode (Saturday nights on Comedy Central, followed by a repeat episode...if memory serves) with much enthusiasm. Such a simple idea and done so damn well. The humor ranged from silly to obscure and I don't think I've ever seen an episode that didn't make me laugh like a loon at least 2 or 3 times. Unlike many of the fans, I'm not such a big fan of the Bumper Skits, but when the "Movie Sign!" was on...I was laughing my ass off.

The Simpsons - Yes, even the current episodes. At its best, this is the finest comedy program ever to grace American television. At its worst, it's still usually quite good. There have been a few less-than-stellar episodes in recent seasons, yet the show has never come close to being consistently disappointing. I hope it runs for another 10+ seasons.

Futurama - Call me a Groening Geek, but this is one of my favorite programs of all-time. It helps if you're a die-hard sci-fi freak, but Futurama is (was!!) simply brilliant; easily too intelligent for Fox...which is why they treated it like a red-headed stepchild/NFL time-filler and then dumped it outright. It's goofy, it's satirical, it's ironic and sarcastic, it's adult and it's simply gorgeous to look at. With animation like this, the program looks like it was born for DVD, and I think the season sets are worth their weight in gold.

Cheers - Few things are better than an ensemble comedy in which you really do CARE for the characters. The show succeeded despite the requisite cast changes and stayed consistently excellent. (Coach was great, but so was Woody; Shelley Long was often hilarious, yet Kirstie Alley had some fine moments of her own.) The interplay between Sam and Diane, Norm and Cliff, Carla and Cliff, Frasier and Lilith... all priceless. Cheers had its peaks and valleys over the years, but I kept coming back until Last Call.

Laverne and Shirley - Obviously I loved it as a kid; it's broad and silly and theatrical. But as a cranky old man, I still think it's a great sitcom, and certainly more consistently funny than its source series Happy Days. Marshall and Williams were such lovable goofballs, and their knack for physical comedy was always good for some chuckles. Lenny and Squiggy? Just the best. Just their weekly entrance had me rolling.

Friends - I do think the series has waned a bit in quality over the years, but the first 2 or 3 seasons offered solid laughs on a weekly basis. The sextet is entirely likeable, despite the fact that in real life...you'd probably hate 'em. I wouldn't call any ONE of 'em a great comedian, yet there was (and still is, I suppose, if only to a lesser degree) a palpable chemistry and timing between the cast members that made the punch-lines zing just a little bit more. (I am quite enjoying this current season!)

Saturday Night Live - People have been calling this show dead for about 12 years now. And I'll be the first to admit that MUCH of the current incarnation leaves much to be desired. (But I love Amy Poehler!) Be it the Aykroyd/Belushi/Chase/Murray era or the Murphy/Crystal/Piscopo heyday or the Sandler/Myers days or the Ferrell/Shannon schtick, there's been some damn good laughs to be found over the years. Certainly NOT a paragon of consistency, but one never knows when something brilliant may pop up...so we keep watching.

Andy Richter Controls the Universe - It was odd and quirky and very, very funny. Logically it couldn't find a home on Fox.

The Cosby Show - Sure, much of it is ultra-dated and cringe-worthy these days (and the teleplays were not much more than thinly-veiled revisions of Cosby's stand-up material) but I remember laughing and laughing in the early days. My whole family just loved the show. Heck, even my grandmother recognized one episode as a segment from Bill Cosby: Himself, but as she cleverly put it: "So funny it deserved to be repeated."

Monty Python's Flying Circus - Finest comedy program ever. EVER! 'Nuff said.

Seinfeld - Brilliantly funny nothingness. Another testament to the power of a strong ensemble. Yes, the scripts were bizarrely hilarious, but if you don't like the four of 'em the show fails.

Scrubs - Just on his own, John McGinley makes this one of the funniest shows on TV. Throw in the rest of the great cast and some breezily odd humor and you have a show I'll watch every week. (And I watch VERY few shows on a never-miss-it basis!)

Late Night with Conan O'Brien - At risk of sounding like I want him for a boyfriend, I simply l-o-v-e Conan. The guy just knows how to make me laugh, and it's great to see his schtick every weeknight. I admire that the humor of the show usually takes center stage, often to the point of guests (there to plug a movie) having to wait through a long monologue and an even longer comedy routine. And there's something about Conesie that allows the celebrity guests to let their hair down a bit. Sly Stallone was on recently and the whole segment was a joy to watch. The guests know going in that O'Brien is a smart and clever interviewer who just may break into some schtick at any moment. Makes even the most potentially "dry" interview that much more entertaining.

Sportscenter - When Dan Patrick and Keith Olberman teamed up, that show was damn funny.

I know that the Looney Tunes, Little Rascals and Three Stooges material was originally produced for theatrical presentation, but they were "TV shows" to me. And they made me laugh a lot.

...Now I'm off to read the other responses, so I may be back with a few additions.

 

[Scott Weinberg]

Ack! I forgot NewsRadio, Three's Company, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Mr. Show, Malcolm in the Middle, Moonlighting and The Larry Sanders Show! And Kids in the Hall!

And MTV's The State! (Yeah baby, that's a lotta pudding, baby...)

 

[Mark Shannon]

-The Simpsons
-Futurama
-Family Guy
-Scrubs
-Seinfeld