canned laughter


canned laughter

Recorded laughter that is commonly played during a TV show's humorous moments, as to encourage the audience to laugh as well. Of course that corny show uses canned laughter to try to convince us that it’s funny.See also: canned, laughter

canned laughter

Also, canned music. Prerecorded sound effects that can be played repeatedly, as in That canned laughter doesn't make his jokes any funnier, or Canned music is greatly reducing the number of musical jobs available. O. Henry had the term in his story, Cabbages and Kings (1903): "We'll export canned music to the Latins." Canned laughter today is often used in broadcasting to simulate the reaction of a nonexistent live audience. [c. 1900] See also: canned, laughter