Looking Back on Laugh-In

My dad was a big influence on me when it came to television. He was a big fan of wacky TV comedy shows. Some of his favorites were Hee Haw, The Muppet Show, The Red Green Show, The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts, and the show I will write about today, Laugh-In. When something made my dad laugh, it got my attention. He was also the person who got me interested in Johnny Carson. Laugh-In had something in common with Johnny Carson’s show. They were both taped at the NBC Burbank facility. The Laugh-In announcer, Gary Owens, would say the show originated from “Beautiful downtown Burbank.” The full name of the show was Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In. It was hosted by Dan Rowan and Dick Martin. The show aired from 1968-73, a tumultuous time for America, with lots of political strife due to the highly controversial Vietnam war. It was a time when people needed some levity to forget the issues of the day. Even President Richard Nixon had a cameo on the show where he uttered the catch phrase “Sock it to me.” He appeared on the show while running for office in 1968. His competitor, Hubert Humphrey, declined appearing on the show and later regretted that decision. The show was a big break for sketch comedy performers such as: Arte Johnson, JoAnne Worley, Goldie Hawn, Lily Tomlin, Ruth Buzzi, Henry Gibson, Dave Madden, Richard Dawson and more. During its entire run, due to high turnover, only four cast members stayed with the show, including Rowan, Martin, Gary Owens and Ruth Buzzi. It was known for its rapid fire pace, with quick cuts from one comedic gag to another. Editing the show was time consuming and tedious. The show won 7 Primetime Emmy Awards. As far as all awards, it won 11 and was nominated for 34. In 1969, one of the writers included Lorne Michaels. One has to wonder if he was influenced by Laugh-In to launch Saturday Night Live in 1975. Due to the popularity of the show, Laugh-In attracted many big name guest stars, including: John Wayne, Tiny Tim, Jack Benny, Sammy Davis Jr. (his catchphrase was “Here comes the judge”), Henny Youngman, Phyllis Diller, Rich Little, Tim Conway, Dinah Shore, Carl Reiner, Don Rickles and more. Late night TV icons like Johnny Carson, Dick Cavett and Steve Allen appeared on the show. A 1977 revival of the show was shot but was not renewed after one season. One of the stars was Robin Williams. This was just before he starred in Mork and Mindy (1978). 1969 was the first year of Hee Haw, which became a country version of Laugh-In, with wacky sketches and recurring characters. 1974’s The Muppet Show had some similarities to Laugh-In, with the structure of some of its jokes and skits. The 1968 Pontiac GTO muscle car was nicknamed “The Judge.” The ads used the phrase from Laugh In “Here comes the judge.” It is ranked #42 on TV Guide’s list of the 50 Greatest TV Shows of all Time. A staple of the show was the “joke wall” where cast members would stick their heads through holes in the multi-colored wall and recite quick jokes. Arte Johnson’s catchphrase, as Wolfgang the German soldier, was “Verrrry interesting!” Lily Tomlin’s telephone operator Ernestine was known for saying “One ringy dingy…two ringy dingy.” Also, “A gracious afternoon…is this the party to whom I am speaking?” The first season provided music videos by groups such as The Bee Gees, The Temptations, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and Strawberry Alarm Clock. The phrase “Sock it to me” was popular on Laugh-In, but had also been used in the 1967 song by Aretha Frankin called “Respect.” A chain of Laugh-In restaurants opened in 1968-69, but all were closed by the mid-1970s. In its second and third seasons, 1967-68 and 1968-69, Laugh-In was the #1 show on TV. For the 1968-69 season, 31.8 million people watched the show.