The "I Didn't Comment in Another Thread" Thread

[Snarf Zagyg]

Oh, I haven't heard any Dave Attell standup in ages. I always liked Colin Quinn too, but always seemed like a sore thumb on SNL.

Oh, he is still touring!

DaveAttell.com

daveattell.com

 

[overgeeked]

There can be a distinction between what "most people" find funny, and what people that really work at comedy find funny. I am reminded that (for example) there was a time when Dane Cook was wildly popular with large numbers of people, but was not considered a great comedian by people who really knew comedy (like the difference between Thomas Kinkade and Anselm Kiefer, or James Patterson and Haruki Murakami).

On the other hand, there are those like Norm MacDonald, Dave Attell, Colin Quinn, Bill Burr et al. who are (or were ... sigh) "comedian's comedians" who may not have the same wide reputation with the general public, but are respected for their craft by people who know.

Right. Comedians study comedy so they can see most jokes coming a mile away. When a comedian goes for the obvious punchline, they’re a hack. But hacks can be wildly popular for a time. When a comedian goes for the subtler punchline, they’re a good comic. When a comedian goes for the punchline only other comics would appreciate, they’re a comedian’s comedian.

Look at Norm MacDonald’s shaggy dog stories in interviews. If the interviewer isn’t a comic, they stare blankly. If the interviewer is a comic, they laugh the whole time.

Also see Gilbert Gottfried’s rendition of the Aristocrats joke at the post-9/11 roast of Hugh Hefner and the subsequent documentary about it. The comics on stage start laughing as soon as Gilbert starts with the joke because they know what’s coming (hint: everyone), while the non-comedians are horrified until the joke really gets going.

 

[Ryujin]

What do y'all older folks do on your birthdays when nobody really cares anymore?

For a while I would invite a few close friends out for dinner, pay for it, and not tell them the reason for the gathering.

 

[Ryujin]

Stephen Colbert’s character on the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. The fact that many of the same people he was parodying actually thought he was on their side made it all the more delicious. That misunderstanding does not somehow change it no longer being a parody.

"Poe's Law" in action.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Look at Norm MacDonald’s shaggy dog stories in interviews. If the interviewer isn’t a comic, they stare blankly. If the interviewer is a comic, they laugh the whole time.

I always thought it was telling that Norm MacDonald thought the closest he ever came to the perfect joke was the Lyle Lovett one ....

Spoiler

Julia Roberts told reporters this week that her marriage to Lyle Lovett has been over for some time. The key moment, she said, came when she realized that she was Julia Roberts and that she was married to Lyle Lovett.

And the reason?

Spoiler

The setup is the punchline.

Oh, and this....

 

[Ryujin]

We are going to have to agree to disagree on this. It's not context-dependent, here. The very nature of this specific type of comedy is that it is ambiguous.

It's similar to someone saying that they don't like stories with unreliable narrators because they don't know what "really happened." That's fine as a preference, but that preference precludes the entirety of that form. *

Now I will go back to the fundamental point- the best satire, the best irony, the best sarcasm ... it relies on that tension. It doesn't mean you can't critique it for other reasons- bad comedy can be bad for all sorts of reasons. But it does mean that the whole, "Some person didn't get the joke, so it's a bad joke," misses the point entirely when it comes to those specific forms. And again, it's not about knowing your audience. The point is that portion of the audience won't get it (and sometimes ... that is the point).

Or just look at the disparate reactions to Nathan Fiedler's various projects.





*And this idea of audience reaction should never be used when it comes to art. Look at this-

Roman Opalka

Roman Opalka, painter of infinity, died on August 6th, aged 79

webcache.googleusercontent.com

Some things need to come out. Do you think Opalka stayed up at night worrying if people "got it?" Life is weird, and people do things for all sorts of reasons- good, bad, or none at all. Communication is partly about making sure your audience understands your message, but we also forget the other important part; expressing yourself. In the end, the idea that some might not understand what you are communicating is not something that people will worry about. Have I placed acrostics in some posts? Maybe. Was that for you benefit or my own amusement? Hard to say ... don't you think?

"If you have to stop and explain the joke then it ruins the delivery, and you're likely playing to the wrong audience." - Caligula

 

[payn]

I always thought it was telling that Norm MacDonald thought the closest he ever came to the perfect joke was the Lyle Lovett one ....

Spoiler

Julia Roberts told reporters this week that her marriage to Lyle Lovett has been over for some time. The key moment, she said, came when she realized that she was Julia Roberts and that she was married to Lyle Lovett.

And the reason?

Spoiler

The setup is the punchline.

Oh, and this....

lol, I remember this episode!

 

[darjr]

Oh?! You’re constantly refreshing the page too.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

The 25 page rule: after 25 pages, a thread has typically exhausted most of the arguments and opinions about a given topic, and thus is no longer worth following.

exceptions: threads about pizza, whose meaning is enigmatic and limitless

All threads must eventually die in one of three ways-

1. Disinterest.
2. Too much interest (thread lock).
3. Pizza.

Of the three, pizza is always the preferred option.

 

[payn]

So, im thinking for tomorrow night I will go with a shrimp, sausage, and crawfish boil and a side of hushpuppies. Was it down with a bottle of Pinot Grigio.