History Main / ToughRoom

* In ''Series/TheFreshPrinceOfBelAir'', Will attends the funeral of Uncle Phil's former mentor turned political rival, a cantankerous and perverted creep [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor who died when Will shouted at him to drop dead]]. When it turns out that all the "mourners" there [[LastDisrespects hated the man and are just there to make sure he's really dead]], a guilty Will chews them out. One demands to know who he is; Will says "I'm the dude that killed him", causing the room to erupt with applause. Will drops this trope's name in response.

* Series/{{Castle|2009}}'s quips are largely ignored, especially in the earlier seasons. As the show went on and the cops became more acclimated to Castle's presence, they started to crack a smile now and then, and now Ryan and Esposito sometimes [[NotSoAboveItAll join in]] when Castle launches into his [[IncrediblyLamePun Incredibly Lame Puns]].

* Series/{{Castle}}'s quips are largely ignored, especially in the earlier seasons. As the show went on and the cops became more acclimated to Castle's presence, they started to crack a smile now and then, and now Ryan and Esposito sometimes [[NotSoAboveItAll join in]] when Castle launches into his [[IncrediblyLamePun Incredibly Lame Puns]].

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Bluey}}'': In "The Pool", the kids start to get bored while waiting for the shade to grow bigger so they can play in the pool without sunscreen. Cue Bandit trying to cheer them up with a twist to the classic dad joke:

[[/folder]]

* The Flash in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' is sometimes deliberately subject to this trope. He's surrounded by a number of ComicallySerious characters, and he tends to have a [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] sense of humor. When he gets his DayInTheLimelight, the audience finds out he's actually quite capable of being serious and practical.
* Numbuh Two in ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' often finds his attempts at {{One Liner}}s met with groans, complains, [[LamePunReaction or outright assault]] from his fellow agents (especially Numbuh Five).
* Krusty the Clown of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' might be an example of this. He tends to alternate between this trope and SoUnfunnyItsFunny.
-->'''Krusty''': How d'you make the King ''Lear''? Put the Queen in a bikini! ''(gets booed)'' Whoa, tough crowd! [[ComicallyMissingThePoint They're booing]] ''[[TheBard Shakespeare!]]''

* ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' examples:
** ''WesternAnimation/BugsBunny'' finds himself dealing with this in ''Hot Cross Bunny''. Thinking that the operation theatre was a stage, he performs an impressive impression, dance, and magic act only to be met with [[http://i.imgur.com/Z77mlKS.jpg the same stern silence from the audience of doctors]]. ("What a tough audience! It ain't like Saint Joe!")
** In "Night of the Living Duck", Daffy dreams he's about to perform in at a nightclub where the audience, is made up of famous monsters, mostly the UniversalMonsters "Gee, tough audience!" he quips. Fortunately, he finds a bottle of "Eu de Torme", that lets him sing like Mel Torme (who does his singing voice in the cartoon) and he's a hit.
[[/folder]]

* In ''Series/TheFreshPrinceOfBelAir'', Will attends the funeral of Uncle Phil's former mentor turned political rival, a cantankerous and perverted creep [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor who died when Will shouted at him to drop dead]]. When it turns out that all the "mourners" there hated the man and are just there to make sure he's really dead, a guilty Will chews them out. One demands to know who he is; Will says "I'm the dude that killed him", causing the room to erupt with applause. Will drops this trope's name in response.

* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1985'': In "Take My Life...Please!", the stand-up comedian Billy Diamond performs his usual act for a crowd as soon as he arrives in the afterlife but none of them even crack a smile. It soon becomes clear to him that he is in {{Hell}} and [[IronicHell that the only way to make the audience laugh to tell them all of the horrible things that he has done in his life]]. His new agent Max tells him that he has been booked to perform this act for the next two eons, possibly more.

[[folder:Film]]

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'': In his EstablishingCharacterMoment, Hades's sarcastic "hunk of moussaka stuck in [his] throat" joke isn't appreciated by his fellow gods, who are not very happy to see him, causing him to wonder if it's an "audience or a mosaic." On the flip side, the entire pantheon [[HypocriticalHumor bursts in laughter]] when Zeus made a similar pun about his workaholism, causing Hades to storm out in anger.

* Strictly invoked [[PlayedForLaughs for]] [[{{Irony}} laughs]] in a ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' parody (this time titled "''Whose Idea Was This Anyway''") on mid-to-early ''Series/MadTV'': When the cameras cut to Drew Carey (played by Creator/WillSasso), who is trying to elicit a laugh from the audience (who are actually the real audience for ''MadTV''), no one does so. (...except for a few close to the back who are {{Corpsing}}.)

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'': In his EstablishingCharacterMoment, Hades's sarcastic "hunk of moussaka stuck in [his] throat" joke isn't appreciated by his fellow gods, who are unhappy to see him, causing him to wonder if it's an "audience or a mosaic." On the flip side, the entire pantheon [[HypocriticalHumor bursts in laughter]] when Zeus made a similar pun about his workaholism, causing Hades to storm out in anger.

* Strictly invoked [[PlayedForLaughs for]] [[{{Irony}} laughs]] in a ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' parody (this time titled "''Whose Idea Was This Anyway''") on mid-to-early ''Series/MadTV'': When the cameras cut to Drew Carey (Played by Creator/WillSasso, who is trying to elicit a laugh from the audience (who are actually the real audience for ''MadTV''), no one does so. (...except for a few close to the back who are {{Corpsing}}.)

* Strictly invoked [[PlayedForLaughs for]] [[{{Irony}} laughs]] in a '"Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' parody (this time titled "''Whose Idea Was This Anyway''") on mid-to-early ''Series/MadTV'': When the cameras cut to Drew Carey (Played by Creator/WillSasso, who is trying to elicit a laugh from the audience (who are actually the real audience for ''MadTV''), no one does so. (...except for a few close to the back who are {{Corpsing}}.)

* Strictly invoked [[PlayedForLaughs for]] [[{{Irony}} laughs]] in a '"Series/Whose Line Is It Anyway'' parody (this time titled "''Whose Idea Was This Anyway''") on mid-to-early ''Series/MadTV'': When the cameras cut to Drew Carey, who is trying to elicit a laugh from the audience (who are actually the real audience for ''MadTV''), no one laughs. (except for a few close to the back who are {{Corpsing}})

* [[Film/{{Arthur}} Arthur Bach]], a FunPersonified [[LonelyRichKid millionaire playboy]], deals with this ''constantly'' and often finds himself the only one laughing -- and comments upon that. ("Tell me, has there been a death in your family? This is funny stuff here.") He drops the trope name when he visits his fiance's humorless father and can't make the butler or him crack a smile with his quips about such things as the stuffed-and-mounted moose head on the wall. "This is a tough room -- I don't need to tell you [the moose] that." One reason he and working-class Linda fall in love is because she ''does'' appreciate his sense of humor.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': In the episode "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E2DinosaursOnASpaceship Dinosaurs on a Spaceship]]," the Doctor shows Rory and Rory's father how to pilot a spaceship designed for Silurians; essentially, TheReptilians.