Short story about a woman's distinctive laugh in canned laughter track?
March 11, 2021 12:56 PM   Subscribe

I am sure I read about this here, but am stumped as to its title and author. This was a science fiction or horror short story. A man (?) hears a woman's distinctive laugh in a studio audience in a radio show or TV show, and recognises it as belonging to (his aunt?). Somehow it becomes clear that she is trapped, and her laugh sounds more desperate every time he hears it. I think somehow he is able to rescue her, and the next time he listens to the show her laugh is gone.
posted by Orkney Vole to Writing & Language (3 answers total) 15 users marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: That's the Harlan Ellison story "Laugh Track." It was originally published in Angry Candy.
posted by minervous at 12:59 PM on March 11, 2021 [8 favorites]


Best answer: minervous beat me to it, but yea, seconding Laugh Track.
posted by myotahapea at 1:03 PM on March 11, 2021 [1 favorite]


I was thinking about this story a bit after hearing laugh tracks on Wandavision....
posted by Mutant Lobsters from Riverhead at 2:32 PM on March 11, 2021 [3 favorites]


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