The practice of television executives of ordering dozens of pilots for proposed television series each year – far more than their networks could possibly broadcast as series – created a sizable body of unsold pilots that had never aired.
[1] Just for Laughs was one of these series, aired by ABC in the summer of 1974,[2] and it consisted entirely of unsold pilots for situation comedies.
[2] Stars appearing in the series included Frank Sutton, Cloris Leachman, Dick Van Patten, Hal Linden, and Barbara Eden.
[2] The third episode of Just for Laughs, "The Life and Times of Captain Barney Miller," served as the basis for the premiere episode of the successful situation comedy Barney Miller, which began its seven-season run in January 1975.
[3] Just for Laughs ran for four episodes over the course of four consecutive weeks in August 1974, airing on ABC from 8:30 to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday evenings.