Just for Laughs

Just for Laughs (French: Juste pour rire) is a comedy festival held each July in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1983, it is the largest international comedy festival in the world.

History

Just for Laughs was founded in 1983 by Gilbert Rozon as a two-day French language event. In 1985, Andy Nulman joined the festival's staff and introduced English language events as well; under Nulman's stewardship, the festival increased to a full month, with French-speaking performers during the first half, and English speakers in the second half. International and non-verbal acts (acrobats, pantomimes, etc.) are scattered throughout the program. In 1999, Nulman left the festival's full-time employ; however, he directed its major Gala Shows at the Saint-Denis Theatre every July, and remained on the board of directors of the festival's parent company. After an 11-year absence, Nulman returned to Just for Laughs in July 2010 as president of Festivals and Television.

Each day, performers, "New Vaudevillians" and other acts both vocal and visual perform throughout the city, particularly in the "Latin Quarter"—an area known for its theatres, cafés and boutique shopping. In the evenings, the nightclubs and live venue theatres offer special programs supporting the performers. Although Just for Laughs attracts spectators from around the world, many of those in the audience are talent scouts, booking agents, producers and managers from the entertainment industry. Performing at the festival is one of the biggest opportunities for undiscovered talent to showcase their act in front of industry professionals.

Just for Laughs (U.S. TV series)

Just for Laughs is an American sketch comedy show hosted by Rick Miller that shows clips from the Canadian version of the show. Good ratings during the summer airings in 2007 and a writer's union strike resulted in ABC adding the show to the network lineup as a midseason replacement for 2007-2008. It returned to the schedule on January 1, 2008, before being canceled on May 12, 2008. However, on June 4, 2009, it was announced that a third season would begin airing on June 21, 2009. Program Partners will bring the show back to the United States for a fourth season beginning in fall 2015; this season will air in first-run syndication.

Seasonal Nielsen ratings

Seasonal ratings based on average total viewers per episode of Just for Laughs on ABC:

References

Just for Laughs (disambiguation)

Just for Laughs is an annual comedy festival in Montreal.

Just for Laughs may also refer to: