Nearly every sitcom catchphrase ever has followed the same trajectory. While some writers have had the audacity of trying to manufacture a character’s catchphrase from the start, their origins are usually accidental — it’s just a particularly funny one-off line that gets a huge response. Then, after seeing that huge response, the writers work it into more and more of the scripts, and it becomes a beloved part of the character (and show). But inevitably, the catchphrase ends up being overused, and what the audience once looked forward to, they now dread.
“Did I do that?” Yes, Urkel, you did. You did exactly that, and we still hate you for it.
There have been a handful of times, however, when a sitcom catchphrase has stayed fresh all the way through the show’s run. I managed to find 12 of them, and no, I didn’t forget to include “Bazinga!”
‘Pretty Good. Pretty, Pretty, Pretty, Pretty Good’
Larry David’s catchphrase from Curb Your Enthusiasm originated organically in the show’s third episode. Lost on his way to a party with Cheryl, he gets out of his car and asks for directions, only to find out that the guy he’s asking directions from is someone who already hates him from an earlier incident at the driving range. After failing to get directions, Larry returns to the car and Cheryl asks, “How did it go?” Lying, Larry drags out his reply: “Pretty good. Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty good.”
The catchphrase has been repeated a number of times since — including by other characters mocking Larry — but Larry himself never overused it, bringing it out about once a season. Combine that with Curb’s low episode turnout (only 10 per season) and its infrequent seasons, and Larry’s “pretty goods” always remained pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty fresh.
‘D’oh!’
After 7,000 episodes (or thereabouts), we still haven’t gotten tired of hearing Homer say “D’oh!” on The Simpsons. While Bart’s early catchphrases like “Eat my shorts!” got old and were retired, “D’oh” has continued to work because it’s not some contrived phrase shoehorned into scripts, it’s a guttural, animalistic sound that means something bad is happening to Homer.
‘I’m Listening’
The reason why some catchphrases manage to stay fresh is all about context. When it’s some pithy retort like “You got it, dude,” the writers have to forcibly manufacture dialogue in order to get to that reply. In contrast, Frasier Crane’s catchphrase on Frasier was used in nearly every episode, but it never got tiresome because it was used within the context of his radio show, so there was always a natural reason for him to say it.
‘It Stinks!’
Similar to Frasier, film critic Jay Sherman’s catchphrase on The Critic was something he used on his show within the show. “It stinks” was his honest feeling toward most of the movies he was reviewing. That said, “It stinks” probably never got old mainly because The Critic lasted only 23 episodes.
‘Hey Now!’
Another example of a catchphrase for a show-within-a-show. What makes Hank Kingsley’s a bit different, though, was his clawing sense of desperation that compelled him to use it in his personal life as well, lest you forget that he’s on TV every night.
‘Oh, My God! They Killed Kenny!’
Had South Park continued to kill Kenny in every episode for 26 seasons, the bit/catchphrase definitely would have worn out its welcome. But by the time the show reached its fifth season, Matt Stone and Trey Parker lost interest in forcing Kenny’s death into every episode, so they just stopped doing it. Kenny died “for real” at the end of Season Five, then he stayed dead until the end of Season Six (when Stone and Parker finally bowed to fans demanding Kenny’s return). Since then, Kenny has only died sparingly, so it’s a pleasant surprise when it happens. As such, the accompanying “Oh my God! They killed Kenny” and “You bastards!” is a welcome part of his occasional demise.
‘Norm!’
From the very first episode, every time Norm enters Cheers, he’s greeted with the whole bar shouting his name. It never gets old for a couple of reasons. For one thing, it’s a single, unobtrusive word as opposed to an entire phrase. For another, it’s not Norm saying it. Had he announced his own arrival every time he sauntered into Cheers, we’d hate the guy, but by everyone else saying it, it makes him extra endearing. Finally, “Norm!” was always followed up by a fantastic bit of joke writing where someone would ask Norm how he was doing and he’d give a funny reply. My personal favorite example:
Sam: Hey, what’s happening, Norm?
Norm: It’s a dog-eat-dog world, Sammy, and I’m wearing Milk-Bone underwear.
‘That’s What She Said’
Michael Scott’s “That’s what she said” had all the trappings of a bad catchphrase, but staved off spoilage in large part because the writers of The Office always cleverly hid the setup, so you almost never saw Michael’s juvenile reply coming. Plus, despite the fact that it was said 40 times throughout the series, that isn’t that much when you stretch it out over the nearly 150 episodes that Michael appeared in.
‘Missed It By That Much’ and ‘Would You Believe…’
The 1960s spy parody Get Smart had a number of repeated phrases, yet two of its biggest never got old for differing reasons. “Missed it by that much” is what secret agent Maxwell Smart would say when a bullet (or something similar) missed him, but the phrase usually followed some big, funny physical gag, as opposed to the catchphrase itself being the joke. As for “Would you believe…,” this was a recurring gag for when Max was bluffing to a bad guy. Similar to the jokes that followed Norm’s entrances on Cheers, the “Would you believe…” bits were always a variation on a theme, and they were always sharply written. Here’s an example:
Maxwell Smart: You see the moment I suspected there was something wrong with this old scow, I immediately telephoned headquarters, and I happen to know that, at this very minute, seven Coast Guard cutters are converging on this boat. Would you believe it? Seven.
Mr. Big: I find that pretty hard to believe.
Maxwell Smart: Would you believe six?
Mr. Big: I don’t think so.
Maxwell Smart: How about two cops in a rowboat?
‘You Big Dummy!’ and ‘This Is the Big One! You Hear That, Elizabeth? I’m Coming to Join You, Honey’
Another show where two catchphrases remained funny was Sanford and Son. The reason why for each was Redd Foxx. Foxx was never not funny — whether he was calling his son a “Big dummy” for the 200th time or faking his 200th heart attack, it always got a laugh.
‘Hello, Newman’
Once again, it’s all about context. On Seinfeld, Jerry didn’t say “Hello, Newman” in every episode. It was specifically reserved for episodes with Newman, and it was worked in naturally, as the way Jerry greeted his archnemesis. Better yet, “Hello, Newman” was the setup, as opposed to the punchline.
‘Wubba Lubba Dub-Dub’
Rick’s catchphrase from Rick and Morty only works because it’s sort of an anti-catchphrase. For starters, he’s only said it a few times, and when he does, he literally calls it his “catchphrase” as a way of mocking irreverent catchphrases like “Yabba Dabba Do!” and The Big Bang Theory’s insufferable “Bazinga!” “Wubba Lubba Dub-Dub” is funny because it’s not a catchphrase, which, paradoxically, is what makes it such a good catchphrase.