Age well?

I think "Seinfeld" will age well. Unlike most of comedies today which deal with topical humor, most of Seinfeld's humor deal with universals: dating, relationships, food, slapstick.

Sitcoms that age well speak to people that have seen them, as well as younger viewers viewing them in re-run form for the first time. Originality is also a key. If a sitcom takes a run at a new topic, it will become beloved, like Lucy and the assembly line, and Kramer and his cooking or wacky inventions.

But "Roseanne" doing send-ups of "Gilligan's Isand" and "I Love Lucy" come across incredibly stale. Topical humor depends on previous knowledge for laughs, and that's not going to be the case decades down the road. Seinfeld had it occasionally, such as Kramer's Mary Hart lurch. (Now how many people are going to know about that syndrome when Mary Hart is too old and wrinkly to do ET anymore?) Thus, originality and universality are key to becoming a beloved sitcom.

Look at Cheers, it hasn't aged well. Most of it looks so 80s. It's almost kitchy in it's Reagan-esque jokes. And how about "Family Ties, boy, talk about your supply-side humor. Far too topical. "All in the Family" has too many Hippie-Nixon jokes to be relevant today.

Sitcoms still hilarious are I Love Lucy, The Honeymooners. Aside from a few things like real movies, answering machines jokes, I think people will still be laughing at Seinfeld 20-30-40 years from now.

C Casserly wrote:

Yeah, What I find amazing is that my son watches The Stooges - Stoogefest The New VR(for Ontario people) on Sundays and finds them funny. Shows that were made 60 years ago! It may not be high brow but it sure has longevity. I will bet his grandkids will find them funny too. Humour that gets to the basis of our lives no matter how silly (Stooges) or clever (Seinfeld) makes us laugh - we can see ourselves, play out vicarious events. Pie fight anyone?

The Andy Griffith Show has aged very well...I think one reason is because it's about the timeless appeal of the slower-paced life in small-town America. Other than the the hair styles, makes and models of cars and a few pop-culture references (the novelty of rock and roll, the space race), TAGS isn't nailed down to any specific era.

By the way, I believe there is a subtle reference to Mayberry in the final episode. The first scene of the NY4 on the street in Latham, Mass., (just before the car-jacking), as the camera is panning down past the gazebo, the background music is an accoustic guitar playing the Seinfeld theme, which (at least to my ears), sounded very similar in style to the Andy Griffith theme. Did anyone else notice that?

will become beloved, like Lucy and the assembly line, and Kramer and his cooking or wacky inventions.>>

Or Kramer being basted and salivated over by Newman. :)