NOW that they've taken Larry Sanders off our screens, the funniest programme on television is, Dr Katz: Professional Therapist, a US cult cartoon series that has knocked The Simpsons off its animated pedestal. Already a huge hit on cable stations all around the world, Dr Katz only arrived on this side of the Atlantic a few weeks ago, and his therapy sessions are proving so insightful and knowledgeable that he is slowly moving up from the underground into mainstream acceptance.
The show is a mainstay on Comedy Central, a dedicated comedy television station in the US and, like The Simpsons, which started off as quick two-minute features on the Tracy Ullman Show, Dr Katz was originally a filler - before Comedy Central was deluged by requests from celebrities who wanted to appear on the show and be analysed by the good doctor.
He has already "treated" Larry Sanders (actor Garry Shandling), Joan Rivers, Emo Phillips, Steve Wright, playwright David Mamet and actress Wynona Rider. The latest "celebs" queueing in the waiting room are the dreadfully twee cast of Friends. Dubbed by Time magazine as "the year's best new sitcom", the Emmy award-winning programme is fighting off interest from the major network stations and is intent on preserving its independent status.
The half-hour show features the eponymous hero, a mild-mannered, rather feckless, middle-aged therapist who is routinely manipulated by his patients, his son, his secretary and his best friend.
By a happy coincidence, most of Dr Katz's patients are stand-up comedians and their routines, while on the analytical couch, form the basis of each episode.
The doctor's voice is supplied by real-life comedian, Jonathan Katz, who also writes and produces the show. "The Simpsons created an adult audience for animation which was handy for us," he says, "and because the show succeeds and gets the ratings, Comedy Central tend to leave us alone and let us do what we want, which is a very quirky type of comedy."
Not just quirky, but highly original and devastatingly funny. While the humour between the doctor and his clients is orthodox enough, in its own barbed way, the key to the show's success is how Dr Katz manages his relationships with the people around him, most particularly his son. The humour is very "un-American" in that it doesn't opt for the brash, confrontational approach, settling instead for a slower, more thoughtful angle. The cartoon cast of the doctor, Stanley (his best friend), Laura (his secretary) Julie (the local bartender) and Ben (his son) are all one step removed from reality, and quite downbeat characters, as American sitcoms go.
The computerised animation process that brings the characters onto the screen is called "Squigglevision", which gives the show a cheap and lo-fi look and is, according to Jonathan Katz, "seductively cheap ... the way the characters squiggle around is actually supposed to suggest emotional turmoil, but I'm not too sure about that. I've never had an interest in cartoons, my interest is in wood."
Katz himself was a very successful stand-up comic before the cartoon took off. He has written for Robin Williams, performed extensively and built up a reputation for surreal humour. He gave up stand-up be en use of the hours. "I'm not a night person," he says, "and I found it difficult doing the sort of humour I do in clubs late at night, when audiences want a more straightforward sort of routine. I like to think what I do is more challenging."
The show first aired in the US last year, and Jonathan, calling in favours from his comedy colleagues, got them on the show as patients. He is now concerned by the fact that most of the entertainment world in the US wants to appear on the show. "Maybe it's credibility by association," he says, "but in another way, we need the big name guests to keep Comedy Central happy, and if they're happy they'll leave me alone to do what I want."
Most of the show is improvised and edited down to 30 minutes from two to three hours of tape. He particularly enjoys the working relationship with his son in the show (played by H. Jon Benjamin) and says the part is a re-working of his own relationship with his father.
The show, which is now seen from Brazil to Hong Kong, works so well, he thinks, because it's a different take on doing stand-up on television. "The usual stand-up format is people standing in front of a brick wall doing their material, and although we have 10 minutes of stand-up in each show, which is written by the guest comedian, there's more going on," he says.
Although his cartoon figure bears a close enough resemblance to Katz himself, it's still different enough to ensure he doesn't get recognised wherever he goes - "although people do tend to recognise my voice".
In a quick bit of role reversal, he finishes by talking about his own therapist: "I used to go every week but I gave up after a while because I didn't find him to be a very supportive type of therapist. Every week I'd come in and he'd say `Now what's the matter with you?'."
