Follow Zap2it:
Whitney Cummings defends multi-camera sitcom: 'It's the best format for stand-up comedians'
Barring the success of few sitcoms on CBS, the multi-camera format -- be it laugh track or live studio audience -- has been something of a kiss of death for the 21st century TV comedy.
Naturally, when the cast and producers of Whitney Cummings' eponymous NBC sitcom "Whitney" took the stage at the Television Critics Association summer press tour, the new series' format dominated discussion.
"It's the best format for stand-up comedians," says Cummings, referring to her and co-star Chris D'Elia's career on stage. "It made the most sense for us... I think our relationship with the audience is something you can tell we're comfortable with."
Cummings namechecked some of her favorite series, including "The Cosby Show," "Everybody Loves Raymond" and "Roseanne" -- all of which boasted stars that got their starts in stand-up.
"It's an exciting tradtion to be part of, it's still a viable form," says executive producer and showrunner Betsy Thomas. "Stuff ebbs and flows. Genres get taken down because of speciifc shows. I think it's a fantastic format that will hopefully be around for a long time."
Cummings actually has a lot riding on the mult-cam this season. She's the co-creator and producer of CBS' "Two Broke Girls," starring Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs. Still, "Whitney" is definitely her day job.
"At home, I'll sort of read the notes about 'Two Broke Girls,'" she says, "[but] I think it's in pretty good hands with [showrunner] Michael Patrick King."
Naturally, when the cast and producers of Whitney Cummings' eponymous NBC sitcom "Whitney" took the stage at the Television Critics Association summer press tour, the new series' format dominated discussion.
"It's the best format for stand-up comedians," says Cummings, referring to her and co-star Chris D'Elia's career on stage. "It made the most sense for us... I think our relationship with the audience is something you can tell we're comfortable with."
Cummings namechecked some of her favorite series, including "The Cosby Show," "Everybody Loves Raymond" and "Roseanne" -- all of which boasted stars that got their starts in stand-up.
"It's an exciting tradtion to be part of, it's still a viable form," says executive producer and showrunner Betsy Thomas. "Stuff ebbs and flows. Genres get taken down because of speciifc shows. I think it's a fantastic format that will hopefully be around for a long time."
Cummings actually has a lot riding on the mult-cam this season. She's the co-creator and producer of CBS' "Two Broke Girls," starring Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs. Still, "Whitney" is definitely her day job.
"At home, I'll sort of read the notes about 'Two Broke Girls,'" she says, "[but] I think it's in pretty good hands with [showrunner] Michael Patrick King."
Follow Zap2it on Twitter and Zap2it on Facebook for the latest news and buzz
Photo/Video credit: NBC
Related pics
Zap2it Elite Sheet Must Reads from the Web's In-Crowd
Night by Night
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
-
8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30
ABCDancing With the Stars performance show (Sep. 24) Castle (Sep. 24)
CBSHow I Met Your Mother (Sep. 24) Partners (Sep. 24) 2 Broke Girls (Sep. 24) Mike & Molly (Sep. 24) Hawaii Five-0 (Sep. 24)
NBCThe Voice (Sep. 10) Revolution (Sep. 17)
FOXBones (Sep. 17) The Mob Doctor (Sep. 17) Local Programming
CW90210 (Oct. 8) Gossip Girl (Oct. 8) Local Programming -
8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30
ABCDancing With the Stars results show (Sep. 25) Happy Endings (Oct. 23) Don't Trust the B (Oct. 23) Private Practice (Sep. 25)
CBSNCIS (Sep. 25) NCIS: Los Angeles (Sep. 25) Vegas (Sep. 25)
NBCThe Voice Go On (Sep. 11) The New Normal (Sep. 11) Parenthood (Sep. 11)
FOXRaising Hope (Oct. 2) Ben and Kate (Sep. 25) New Girl (Sep. 25) The Mindy Project (Sep. 25) Local Programming
CWHart of Dixie (Oct. 2) Emily Owens, M.D. (Oct. 16) Local Programming -
8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30
ABCThe Middle (Sep. 26) Suburgatory (Oct. 17) Modern Family (Sep. 26) The Neighbors (Sep. 26) Nashville (Oct. 10)
CBSSurvivor (Sep. 19) Criminal Minds (Sep. 26) CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (Sep. 26)
NBCAnimal Practice (Sep. 26) Guys with Kids (Sep. 26) Law & Order: SVU (Sep. 26) Chicago Fire (Oct. 10)
FOXThe X Factor performance show (Sep. 12) Local Programming
CWArrow (Oct. 10) Supernatural (Oct. 3) Local Programming -
8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30
ABCLast Resort (Sep. 27) Grey's Anatomy (Sep. 27) Scandal (Sep. 27)
CBSBig Bang Theory (Sep. 27) Two and Half Men (Sep. 27) Person of Interest (Sep. 27) Elementary (Sep. 27)
NBC30 Rock (Oct. 4) Up All Night (Sep. 20) The Office (Sep. 20) Parks and Recreation (Sep. 20) Rock Center
FOXThe X Factor results show (Sep. 13) Glee (Sep. 13) Local Programming
CWThe Vampire Diaries (Oct. 11) Beauty and the Beast (Oct. 11) Local Programming -
8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30
ABCLast Man Standing (Nov. 2)) Malibu Country (Nov. 2) Shark Tank (Sep. 14) 20/20 (Sep. 14)
CBSCSI: NY (Sep. 28) Made in Jersey (Sep. 28) Blue Bloods (Sep. 28)
NBCWhitney (Oct. 19) Community (Oct. 19) Grimm (Sep. 14) Dateline
FOXTouch (Oct. 26) Fringe (Sep. 28) Local Programming
CWAmerica's Next Top Model (Aug. 24) Nikita (Oct. 19) Local Programming -
8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30
ABCSaturday Night College Football
CBSCrimetime Saturday 48 Hours: Mystery (Sep. 29)
NBCEncore Programming
FOXFOX Sports Saturday Local
CWLocal Programming -
7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30
ABCAmerica's Funniest Home Videos (Oct. 7) Once Upon a Time (Sep. 30) Revenge (Sep. 30) 666 Park Avenue (Sep. 30)
CBS60 Minutes (Sep. 30) The Amazing Race (Sep. 30) The Good Wife (Sep. 30) The Mentalist (Sep. 30)
NBCFootball Night in America (Sep. 9) Sunday Night Football (Sep. 9)
FOXNFL Game The OT (NFL post-game) The Simpsons (Sep. 30) Bob's Burgers (Sep. 30) Family Guy (Sep. 30) American Dad (Sep. 30) Local Programming
CWLocal Programming
| Legend: | New Show | New Time | Returning |
|---|
Recent video
New TV Shows
666 Park Avenue
1600 Penn
Animal Practice
Arrow
Beauty and the Beast
Ben and Kate
The Carrie Diaries
Chicago Fire
Cult
Do No Harm
Elementary
Emily Owens, M.D.
The Family Tools
The Following
Friend Me
Go On
Golden Boy
The Goodwin Games
Guys with Kids
Hannibal
How to Live with Your Parents
Infamous
The Job
Last Resort
Made in Jersey
Malibu Country
The Mindy Project
Mistresses
The Mob Doctor
Nashville
The Neighbors
The New Normal
Next Caller
Partners
Red Widow
Revolution
Save Me
Vegas
Zero Hour
Our Partners



Once again Whitney Cummings proves to have a below average IQ. First there aren't enough pretty people on TV for her, now she's comparing her crappy show to classic sitcoms. I can't wait until this gets worse ratings than Paul Reiser.
Proud to be a sexist pig, are you?
Her on screen husband is hot. What else does it need?
Good article that gives a fair and honest truthful opinion here,
Whitney is not going to be a show that’s heavily favored by the internet community. Most of the things that we hear right out of the gate is mostly negative but these are the same people that hate these kind of comedies. Whitney’s audience is the audience that watches shows like Two and a Half Men and that’s what NBC is looking for. Their not looking for the same crowd that watches their current comedies. They are looking to expand their audience and maybe bring back some of those viewers that watched Friends and Will & Grace back in the day.
Whitney seems like a simple enough show for the casual viewer to get into that’s what’s eventually going to draw viewers into it. I just think that Whitney has two directions that its going to go in and that’s either hit or fail. It’s up to NBC to be patient enough with the show to find its own audience. It’s going to take a while for Whitney to build its own audience b/c their on a network where its fanbase doesn’t favor traditional comedies.
With that being said 2 Broke Girls looks amazing and that will be TV’s next big hit since Big Bang Theory.