# Question about Three's Company episode (editing) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 17, 2004, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622 "2004-05-17T16:22:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monster)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/1 "2004-05-17T16:22:07Z")
This weekend TV Land did a marathon of Three’s Company. Last night I happened to catch my favorite all-time episode. It is the one where Jack takes a tranquilizer to calm his nerves because Janet wants him to take her to a party at an island off the coast of California, but Jack is afraid to fly. Jack acts very silly because of the tranquilizer. He then drinks an energy drink when he gets tired and dances all around the room. My question is this: about halfway through his dancing, the scene gets cut off. I recall watching reruns on the Fox affiliate and always seeing the scene in full. However, this is the third time I’ve seen it on TV Land and it is always edited to cut off halfway through. How can can I find out why they do this? ---
**Author:** ![Wasabee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f05b48/32.png) [@Wasabee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wasabee)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/2 "2004-05-17T18:36:47Z")
It’s called commercials. Most shows in syndication get cut enough to allow atleast one or two extra commercials ---
**Author:** ![Sauron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@Sauron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sauron)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/3 "2004-05-17T18:46:16Z")
What **monster** said. I’m a big fan of _The Andy Griffith Show_, but I’m not old enough to have watched it when it actually aired. All my experience with the show has been based on syndication – for several years, a local independent station aired two episodes back-to-back after the evening news. I didn’t know until relatively recently that each episode had a two-minute closing scene, always after the big joke finale, wrapping up the storyline from that episode. Those had been cut to make room for commercials. ---
**Author:** ![monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monster)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/4 "2004-05-17T19:22:14Z")
Are you saying they cut it to squeeze in _more_ commercials? Last night the show came on at 9 PM and the closing credits ran at 9:23. There also was at least one commercial break during the show. If that is the reason, that really sucks. I swear, this scene is a gut-buster and they ruin it to show commercials!! I thought maybe there was something “un-PC” that I couldn’t recall and they cut it so as not to offend TV Land viewers. ---
**Author:** ![Wasabee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f05b48/32.png) [@Wasabee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wasabee)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/5 "2004-05-17T21:01:38Z")
> [@monster](#): > > Are you saying they cut it to squeeze in _more_ commercials? Last night the show came on at 9 PM and the closing credits ran at 9:23. There also was at least one commercial break during the show. If that is the reason, that really sucks. I swear, this scene is a gut-buster and they ruin it to show commercials!! I thought maybe there was something “un-PC” that I couldn’t recall and they cut it so as not to offend TV Land viewers. It’s commercials. This is a common practice. Yeah it kind of sucks when it is major cuts like the Andy Griffith. Usually they just take a few lines out or cut scenes a little earlier. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/6 "2004-05-17T21:17:16Z")
> [@Sauron](#): > > What **monster** said. I’m a big fan of _The Andy Griffith Show_, … I’m also too young to have seen the show, but when TBS was running all the time, I recall the episode where Barney is a real estate agent trying to sell Andy’s house. Opie doesn’t want to leave and asks Andy about telling little white lies about the condition of the house. Andy realizes he’s setting a bad example by doing this and decides to be honest with the potential buyers. Barney is none too pleased and escorts the buyers out after they decide to pass on the house. The part where Barney comes back into the house and gives Andy a dirty look made the episode, but it got cut in subsequent showings. ---
**Author:** ![SSgtBaloo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac91a4/32.png) [@SSgtBaloo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SSgtBaloo)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/7 "2004-05-17T21:38:37Z")
I am old enough to remember watching the Andy Griffith show before it went into syndication. Part of what was cut from those shows _was_ commercials. Back in the day, when a show was often sponsored by one company, part of the show, with the actors in character, was a commercial. Usually this was a little bit at the beginning and another near the end. For the Andy Griffith Show, it was usually Post Grape Nut cereal (“Post Grape Nuts fills you up, not out” was the tag-line). Sometimes it was coffee (whichever brand was owned by the same company that owned Post Cerials at the time). Occasionally, you’d see a show with two sponsors. The ads for each sponsor would alternate every week. –SSgtBaloo ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2004, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/8 "2004-05-17T21:58:36Z")
It’s standard practice to shorten the “real content” time when a sitcom goes into syndication to allow for more ads. Sometimes the editing snips a piece here & there instead of all at once, but the editing can be heavy-handed, not always done by a director. I remember a sequence in _Cheers_ cut just before the climactic punch line was delivered. I wouldn’t have known about it except I was quite familiar with the original and remembered the clever punch line, which I had to supply myself. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-threes-company-episode-editing/245622/9 "2004-05-18T01:30:51Z")
Sitcoms thru the 60s and 70s used to be about 26 minutes long without commercials. Nowadays, it’s more like 22½. Similarly, hour-long shows from earlier eras have as much as 8 minutes snipped out here and there.