COMEDY: A REAL 'LAUGH' FEST THE PEACOCK'S TAKEN SOME COMEDIC STRIDES.

Byline: - Valerie Kuklenski

NBC had a longtime predisposition toward daring programming decisions, especially in comedy. They were No. 2 and they tried harder.

``Your Show of Shows'' (1949-54), headlined by Sid Caesar, was sometimes described as ``tightrope television'' because of its live format, multiple sketches and improvisations. It was the training ground for many great comedy writers, including Woody Allen, Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner and Neil Simon.

``Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (1967-73) started as a throwaway show to air after the Miss America pageant. The following January, NBC booked it in what producer George Schlatter called the ``kamikaze time period'' of 8 p.m. Mondays opposite CBS powerhouses ``Gunsmoke'' and ``The Lucy Show.'' Somehow the one-of-a-kind comedy show - with snippet-size sketches, star cameos, trap doors and ``sock it to me'' splashes - got noticed. Some viewers loved it, while others were appalled by its irreverence. Together they made it No. 1 for two consecutive seasons.

``The Flip Wilson Show'' (1970-74) kicked drag comedy up a notch with Wilson's signature character, the sassy, sexy Geraldine.

``Sanford & Son'' (1972-77) was the first widely appealing, truly ethnic situation comedy series, followed two seasons later by ``Chico and the Man'' (1974-78).

``Taxi'' (1982-83) was a series the network showed great faith in, snagging it from ABC's rejects pile after four seasons and giving it another chance. (It lasted one more year.)

``Family Ties'' (1982-89), ``Fresh Prince of Bel Air'' (1990-96) and ``Mad About You'' (1992-99) groomed future movie stars Michael J. Fox, Will Smith and Helen Hunt.

``The Cosby Show'' (1984-92) brought back family-oriented series and jump-started the half-hour format.

``Cheers'' (1982-93) and ``Seinfeld'' (1990-98) started slow, but the network allowed them to grow their audiences and was rewarded with consistently high ratings in the long run.

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2 photos

Photo:

(1) Goldie Hawn of ``Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.''

(2 -- color) Peter Tork, left, Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz and Michael Nesmith of ``The Monkees'' (1966-68).