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Five Secrets to Comedy

Posted Jan 29th 2006 5:30PM by TMZ Staff

For every 'Seinfeld,' there are 100 like 'Emily's Reasons Why Not.' Why do most shows go so wrong, and a select few become iconic? TMZ has the secret to five great comedy TV shows, courtesy of two truly iconic funny people: 'Saturday Night Live' legend Cheri Oteri, and writer Alan Zweibel ('SNL,' 'The Garry Shandling Show,' 'Curb Your Enthusiasm').

Homer: The Committed Imbecile
When the animated series about a yellow family with funny hair premiered on FOX in 1989, no one expected it to live through the millennium. Seventeen seasons later, it's clear there's something quite genius about 'The Simpsons.'

The secret here is that the characters, although animated, are completely relatable. "It's fun to watch Homer speak directly from the empty place in his mind," Oteri says. "Everyone wants to say their stupid thoughts, but stops themselves." To Zweibel, the people of Springfield makes no apologies for the bigoted beings that they are, and because it's a cartoon, laughing at the screen doesn't seem so dirty.

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Filed under: TV, The Biz