Why is it in all American Sitcoms.....

Why is it in just about all American Sitcoms, that the dad is some fat dumb loser, and the wife is smart and hot and somehow still has a tiny waist after pushing out three kids.

And with the kids, one is usually some kind of prodigy, even though educational stats for america seem to suggest this only occurs in 1 in every 100,000 households.

The second kid usually has ADHD, and the third kid is either the elder sister, hot and made out to be a hoe, or the younger brother thats a carbon copy of the dad.

There seems to be a base formula that has gone from the Flintstones onwards

 

Sitcoms are formulaic and research has shown that shows which portray the father as a dumb but likeable character does better than shows which feature a strong domineering control freak.


Hotwater

 

you mentioned the flintstones and that may be part of the answer.that show was very popular.i guess i'm that kind of dad.maybe it's a survival tactic for fatherhood.

 

How many people are going to want to watch Colonel dad, his fugly wife and the ever adorable transexual child?

No one, we want to laugh at the jolly fat man. Let us laugh at the jolly fat man goddammit!

 

that

 

t'up with that 70s show then?

 

because that is entertainment

 

There are exceptions to every rule


Hotwater

 

that mom is kinda sexy anyway.

the vast majority of american television producers and the american audience isn't interested in a fat mom unless she's the roseanne type and no one want to revisit that.

 

Amen


Hotwater

 

I've been wondering this for ages!!! I just can't relate to any of those shows. My dad IS Red Foreman and my mom is this cutie like Kitty.

In my world, that fat, doofy guy only gets those hot chicks if he's super rich. But, I guess that's why TV is for distraction. Even doofs can dream.

 

indeed.

 

Hello,

there's a picture in another thread on the forums that might hold the key to the underlaying mechanism:



Regards
Gyro

PS: And as always there is a counterexample. Do you remember Al Bundy? He is not a fat dumb loser, his wife is neither smart nor is she hot. Judging their kids is left as an excercise to the reader .

 

The Cosby Show, unarguably the greatest sit-com ever, had a smart husband and a hot wife.

The most consistent thing really, is that the husband is funny. The idiotic bumbling thing is just one form of funny.

 

Sounds like Full House...