What is a sitcom?
A sitcom, short for situation comedy, is a comedy TV series with recurring characters in a familiar setting, such as a home, workplace or group of friends. Episodes are usually about 20 to 30 minutes long.
Sitcoms began on radio in the 1920s and 1930s and moved to television in the late 1940s. I Love Lucy, which debuted in 1951, was one of the first huge TV sitcoms and helped invent the format of filming before a live audience with multiple cameras. Laughter from the audience, or recorded laugh tracks, became a sitcom trademark.
Classic sitcoms include The Honeymooners, M*A*S*H, Cheers, Seinfeld and Friends. Many are built around a home, like family sitcoms, or a workplace, like The Office. Single-camera sitcoms, filmed more like movies without a studio audience, became popular in the 2000s.
Why they last
Sitcoms often reset the situation at the end of each episode, so viewers can watch them in any order. This makes them ideal for reruns and streaming, where shows like Friends and The Office remain popular decades after they first aired.
Did You Know?
The Simpsons, often called an animated sitcom, has been running since 1989, making it the longest-running American sitcom.