Mary Tyler Moore and Betty White from the Mary Tyler Moore Show
Just over 50 years ago, The Mary Tyler Moore Show changed television with the episode"Chuckles Bites the Dust." The Season 6 episode completely redefined what a sitcom could be, seemingly without even realizing it.
The episode is the point at which a darker type of humor started to infiltrate network television, paving the way for later generations of sitcoms. In"Chuckles Bites the Dust," the Mary Tyler Moore Show cast deal with the demise of their TV station's resident clown. Mary is aghast when her colleagues cope using gallows humor, and the comedic climax of the episode ends with her bursting into tears. In 1975, it was unlike any sitcom that came before. In retrospect, it feels even more groundbreaking. How The Mary Tyler Moore Show Killed Off A Minor Character & Made A Major Impact On Television History "Chuckles Bites The Dust"; Season 6, Episode 7; Written By David Lloyd; First Aired October 25, 1975 True to its name, the sitcom started out with the staging of comedic situations. The situation itself was meant to be funny. Yet as the form developed in its early decades, some intrepid TV writers realized that there was another way to do it: take a serious situation, and make it funny. Find the comedy in tragedy, even. "Chuckles Bites the Dust" is an early, pivotal example. Chuckles was a minor Mary Tyler Moore Show character dating back to Season 1, though he was seldom seen on-screen. Aside from a few appearances, Chuckles was mostly referenced as a punchline. That reached its apex with"Bites the Dust," which devotes 22 whole minutes of television to the clown's death. It doesn't help that Chuckles dies in a freak accident, the details of which are too strange and funny to spoil here. Throughout the episode, Mary Tyler Moore acts as the audience surrogate; she can't believe what she's hearing as her coworkers make seemingly callous jokes about a man who just lost his life. This culminates in a glorious final scene. Mary's Outburst At The End Of "Chuckles Bites The Dust" Is One Of Sitcom Acting's Greatest Performances Start To Finish, The Episode Set A Precedent For Future Sitcoms "Chuckles Bites the Dust" ends at Chuckles' funeral. Everyone has gotten the jokes out of their systems, and is ready to take the service seriously, except for Mary. She's wound so tight that when the priest giving the eulogy starts to recall some of Chuckles' most famous bits, Mary bursts out laughing.Which is exactly what Chuckles would want, the priest argues, prompting Mary's guffaws to turn into sobs. It's a great performance, in a brilliantly written scene that walks the thin line between levity and gravity. Few singular episodes of television have struck that balance as effectively as"Chuckles Bites the Dust." Screen Rant Report: Subscribe and never miss what matters Dive into the world of movies and TV shows with Screen Rant, your source for news, reviews, and exclusive content. Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime. This episode of The Mary Tyler Moore show opened the door to a different kind of sitcom writing. One in which the situations could be more grounded, more real, and even more outright sad. At the time, it was a groundbreaking episode, but in retrospect,"Chuckles Bites the Dust" is the episode that turned sitcoms upside down forever. 6.0/10 The Mary Tyler Moore Show 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed NR Comedy Release Date 1970 - 1977-00-00 Network CBS Showrunner James L. Brooks, Allan Burns Directors Jay Sandrich, Peter Baldwin, Alan Rafkin, James Burrows, Jerry Belson, Jerry Paris, Joan Darling, Nancy Walker, George Tyne, Herbert Kenwith, Jackie Cooper, Mary Tyler Moore, Mel Ferber, Peter Bonerz, Stuart Margolin, Bruce Bilson Writers David Lloyd, Treva Silverman, David Pollock, Dick Clair, Elias Davis, Jerry Mayer, Allan Katz, Arnold Margolin, Bob Ellison, Don Reo, Gail Parent, George Kirgo, Glen Charles, Jim Mulholland, Les Charles, Lloyd Turner, Mary Kay Place, Valerie Curtin, Jack Winter Cast See All Powered by Expand Collapse
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