Channel Chuckles
Encyclopedia
Channel Chuckles was a television-themed comic panel created by Bil Keane
which appeared in newspapers from 1954 through 1976. Keane received the National Cartoonists Society
's 1976 Special Features Award for his work on the strip.
In its daily form, Channel Chuckles was a single-panel gag on the general theme of television, or specifically relating to a popular television series or TV commercial. The Sunday version
of Channel Chuckles consisted of several unrelated spot gags in color.
Most of the Channel Chuckles gags were simple wordplay references to the titles of contemporary television programs. For example, one gag showed a small TV set on top of a larger TV set, each of them displaying on its screen the title of a current TV sitcom. While the upper TV set showed Love on a Rooftop
, the one underneath blared Hey, Landlord
!.
One Channel Chuckles gag was a caricature of Mr. Spock from Star Trek
receiving letters requesting advice on child-rearing (a reference to Doctor Benjamin Spock
). Another Channel Chuckles gag depicted a mad scientist working in his laboratory while a nearby television intoned the slogan of a current DuPont
ad campaign: "Better Living Through Chemistry
". Another familiar slogan was lampooned in a panel showing a little boy watching a General Electric
commercial while his father said, "And progress is our most important product. Do your homework!"
Keane would sometimes subdivide the narrow space allotted to his Channel Chuckles feature in order to squeeze in two panels. One two-panel gag was based on the titles of two current TV series. In the first panel, a man asks his wife "Why can't you be more like that show?" while pointing to a TV set as it displays the title Occasional Wife
. In the second panel, the wife points to the same TV while asking her husband "And why can't you be more like that show?". Her TV screen showed the title The Man Who Never Was.
Some gags featured "Aunt Tenna", a matronly woman with her hair done in the form of a TV antenna, who spent all her time watching television or engaged in TV-related activities. The other recurring character in Channel Chuckles was "Dim Viewer", a grumpy old man who always had something negative to say about television programming, commercials or reception.
A second comic series of the same title, without creator attribution, was started in 1988.
Bil Keane
William Aloysius Keane , better known as Bil Keane, was an American cartoonist. He is most notable for his work on the long-running newspaper comic The Family Circus, which began its run in 1960 and continues in syndication, drawn by his son Jeff Keane.-Biography:Born in Philadelphia,...
which appeared in newspapers from 1954 through 1976. Keane received the National Cartoonists Society
National Cartoonists Society
The National Cartoonists Society is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops...
's 1976 Special Features Award for his work on the strip.
In its daily form, Channel Chuckles was a single-panel gag on the general theme of television, or specifically relating to a popular television series or TV commercial. The Sunday version
Sunday strip
A Sunday strip is a newspaper comic strip format, where comic strips are printed in the Sunday newspaper, usually in a special section called the Sunday comics, and virtually always in color. Some readers called these sections the Sunday funnies...
of Channel Chuckles consisted of several unrelated spot gags in color.
Most of the Channel Chuckles gags were simple wordplay references to the titles of contemporary television programs. For example, one gag showed a small TV set on top of a larger TV set, each of them displaying on its screen the title of a current TV sitcom. While the upper TV set showed Love on a Rooftop
Love on a Rooftop
Love on a Rooftop is an American sitcom about a newlywed couple, Dave and Julie Willis, and their humorous struggles to survive in San Francisco on Dave's apprentice architect's salary of $85.37 a week...
, the one underneath blared Hey, Landlord
Hey, Landlord
Hey, Landlord is an American sitcom appearing on NBC during the 1966-1967 season, sponsored by Procter & Gamble in the 8:30-9pm Eastern time period on Sunday nights.-Plot, cast, and characters:...
!.
One Channel Chuckles gag was a caricature of Mr. Spock from Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
receiving letters requesting advice on child-rearing (a reference to Doctor Benjamin Spock
Benjamin Spock
Benjamin McLane Spock was an American pediatrician whose book Baby and Child Care, published in 1946, is one of the biggest best-sellers of all time. Its message to mothers is that "you know more than you think you do."Spock was the first pediatrician to study psychoanalysis to try to understand...
). Another Channel Chuckles gag depicted a mad scientist working in his laboratory while a nearby television intoned the slogan of a current DuPont
DuPont
E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company , commonly referred to as DuPont, is an American chemical company that was founded in July 1802 as a gunpowder mill by Eleuthère Irénée du Pont. DuPont was the world's third largest chemical company based on market capitalization and ninth based on revenue in 2009...
ad campaign: "Better Living Through Chemistry
Better Living Through Chemistry
The phrase "Better Living Through Chemistry" is a variant of a DuPont advertising slogan, "Better Things for Better Living...Through Chemistry." DuPont adopted it in 1935 and it was their slogan until 1982 when the "Through Chemistry" part was dropped...
". Another familiar slogan was lampooned in a panel showing a little boy watching a General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
commercial while his father said, "And progress is our most important product. Do your homework!"
Keane would sometimes subdivide the narrow space allotted to his Channel Chuckles feature in order to squeeze in two panels. One two-panel gag was based on the titles of two current TV series. In the first panel, a man asks his wife "Why can't you be more like that show?" while pointing to a TV set as it displays the title Occasional Wife
Occasional Wife
Occasional Wife is an American sitcom that aired on NBC on September 13, 1966, and ran until May 9, 1967 . It was originally on NBC's Tuesday night schedule; in the Eastern Time Zone it aired from 8:30-9:00 p.m...
. In the second panel, the wife points to the same TV while asking her husband "And why can't you be more like that show?". Her TV screen showed the title The Man Who Never Was.
Some gags featured "Aunt Tenna", a matronly woman with her hair done in the form of a TV antenna, who spent all her time watching television or engaged in TV-related activities. The other recurring character in Channel Chuckles was "Dim Viewer", a grumpy old man who always had something negative to say about television programming, commercials or reception.
A second comic series of the same title, without creator attribution, was started in 1988.