canned laughter

Idioms  

1. 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]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

canned laughter

Kimmel has replaced his live audience with canned laughter that sparkles forth in all the right spots.

From Salon ● Mar. 28, 2021

The supplied courtroom chuckling, a sort of dramatic canned laughter that accompanies Madeline's courtroom quips only goes so far.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2019

A test episode screened last week for reporters had no studio audience and no canned laughter.

From New York Times ● Apr. 12, 2018

"No one believes it, but with Porridge there's no canned laughter at all - what you hear is the real audience reaction. It's like being at the Young Vic."

From BBC ● Dec. 5, 2016

Some extremely advanced paranoiacs can’t even watch television because they think the canned laughter is about them.

From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel

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