“One, and It’s Not Funny!”
June 16, 2009
Comedy is aggressive. But that doesn’t mean every stand-up routine or video should turn into a slasher movie.
But laughs generally depend upon some kind rule-breaking is. Sometimes the joke is that we’re violating rules; certainly, we’re outside of some expected norms, or it wouldn’t be funny.
But the fact that you’re breaking a rule or an expectation of some sort doesn’t automatically make something funny, on the face of it.
I mean, come on: anyone’s husband can do angry humor, if he weren’t way the hell above that shit.
And anyone can do blue humor, or tell “just for the hell of it” jokes. I mean, when my grandmother was alive I used to tell her jokes about avoiding the California Highway Patrol because I knew she had a lead foot just like I did—but I don’t tell those jokes to everyone’s grandma. I don’t even tell ‘em to my mother. (Hi, Mom. No, the Cruiser doesn’t even go up to 80 mph, as far as I know, much less . . . hey: look over there! It’s a Democrat. Maybe you should vote for it!)
Part of humor is knowing your audience, and to presume that everyone in the room is down with woman-hating is not the way to make friends, influence people, or become the majority party again.
Unless Obama tries to pass this health-care plan, that is. In that case, all bets are off, and I’ll die laughing.
Sorry, Stephen: you’ve got great sideburns, and you can act the whatchamacallit off any metaphor that might elude me this time of night after a day at the office. But I’m not going to give you any charity laughs, and neither am I handing ‘em out to Dave Letterman or Wanda Sykes. I sort of smiled at the Barack Obama line about the Special Olympics, because the guy can throw out a bit of well-placed self-deprecation, but to say such a thing on national television was, I thought . . . kind of lame.
I’m interested, however, in seeing the tape of Reagan making jokes about how single mothers are sluts. Send it along; I’ve got all evening.
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June 17th, 2009 at 7:27 am
“…kind of lame.” Ha! I get it!
June 17th, 2009 at 12:12 pm
I am so glad you posted this!
I just dared Crowder to make a video and post it on YouTube of him doing all the Letterman material from June 8 and 9 about Gov. Palin and her daughters, only substituting the names of Michelle Obama and Malia and Sasha.
I gave him some other good advice, too.
It’s too bad I don’t care for popcorn. I hear it’s de rigeur at times like this.
June 17th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
Seems to me that imitating Letterman hurts the case, doesn’t it? Doesn’t that play into the Left’s defense? We are better. Cynthia Yockey is better.
June 17th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
[...] feel this way sometimes too Little Miss Attila: Sorry, Stephen: you’ve got great sideburns, and you can act the whatchamacallit off any metaphor [...]