This is not about S & M.
Ha! As if Salt and Mayonnaise had anything to do with pain. Okay, if you ingest too much sodium and contract hypertension or if you eat mayonnaise and get clogged arteries. Or whatever mayonnaise does to destroy decent people, as most delicious food does.
Ever been embarrassed? Ever had your heart broken? Ever stub your toe? Are you human?
Just by being human in an imperfect world, you know what pain is. Maybe not personally, but I'm sure you've heard lots of folks griping and whining a lot.
The next time you suffer, you needn't suffer needlessly. You can suffer for fun and profit. Use your pain and heartache to create comedy!
Strangely, the least funny topics can garner the most laughs. Richard Pryor joked about having a heart attack. Other comedians have discussed their battles with cancer.
Once you learn this secret to comedy, troubles are no longer problems; they're comedy gold! Don't take my word for it, listen to what others in the know say as well:
Charlie Chaplin wrote in “My Autobiography”: “My means of contriving comedy plot was simple. It was the process of getting people in and out of trouble.”
Will Rogers: “Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else.” -- But unfortunately, or fortunately, if you make a fortune, when you're the comedian, you're the somebody else for the audience. The embarrassments happen to you.
Carol Burnett: “Comedy is tragedy plus time.” -- This quote has been attributed to others as well.
Mel Brooks: “Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die.”
Tiny Rod Taylor, at his website www.abwag.com, says his drama coach Don Richardson taught him: “The more you are in trouble; the funnier it is.”
If you skip expressing your foibles and heartaches to avoid embarrassing yourself, you’ll miss a ton of material that will be funny and unique to you. No other comic suffers the same ways you do.
Embarrassment and Self-Insult Jokes are your friends.
* Too proud to be seen wearing glasses, Uncle Khaki opted instead to be seen falling down open manholes.
* I’m here to encourage you. No matter what problems you have, you can look at me and think, "At least my hair’s not as short as that guy’s." And if your hair is shorter, at least it looks better on you than me. But not to worry, ‘cause I look around and see some of you encouraging me too.
(I let my hair grow out again, so for the moment, that joke no longer works. Regarding my joke before that, I don't have an Uncle Khaki. Comedy lets you skew the facts as long as you go for laughs. Perhaps I'll discuss the beauty of K sounds in a future blog.)
The beauty of this is: You can also use Other People’s Misery by presenting their trials and tribulations as if those tragedies happened to you or through a character.
But be sensitive. Something recent or that happened to a demographic different from your own may be taken as you being callous and cruel.
The next time you suffer, find the funny as fast as you can. What better way to cope than with laughter? Especially if you can share your laughter with others too.
(Adapted and excerpted from my forthcoming book "How to Write All Kinds of Comedy Jokes!")
Blessings & Joy,
Dean
Ha! As if Salt and Mayonnaise had anything to do with pain. Okay, if you ingest too much sodium and contract hypertension or if you eat mayonnaise and get clogged arteries. Or whatever mayonnaise does to destroy decent people, as most delicious food does.
Ever been embarrassed? Ever had your heart broken? Ever stub your toe? Are you human?
Just by being human in an imperfect world, you know what pain is. Maybe not personally, but I'm sure you've heard lots of folks griping and whining a lot.
The next time you suffer, you needn't suffer needlessly. You can suffer for fun and profit. Use your pain and heartache to create comedy!
Strangely, the least funny topics can garner the most laughs. Richard Pryor joked about having a heart attack. Other comedians have discussed their battles with cancer.
Once you learn this secret to comedy, troubles are no longer problems; they're comedy gold! Don't take my word for it, listen to what others in the know say as well:
Charlie Chaplin wrote in “My Autobiography”: “My means of contriving comedy plot was simple. It was the process of getting people in and out of trouble.”
Will Rogers: “Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else.” -- But unfortunately, or fortunately, if you make a fortune, when you're the comedian, you're the somebody else for the audience. The embarrassments happen to you.
Carol Burnett: “Comedy is tragedy plus time.” -- This quote has been attributed to others as well.
Mel Brooks: “Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die.”
Tiny Rod Taylor, at his website www.abwag.com, says his drama coach Don Richardson taught him: “The more you are in trouble; the funnier it is.”
If you skip expressing your foibles and heartaches to avoid embarrassing yourself, you’ll miss a ton of material that will be funny and unique to you. No other comic suffers the same ways you do.
Embarrassment and Self-Insult Jokes are your friends.
* Too proud to be seen wearing glasses, Uncle Khaki opted instead to be seen falling down open manholes.
* I’m here to encourage you. No matter what problems you have, you can look at me and think, "At least my hair’s not as short as that guy’s." And if your hair is shorter, at least it looks better on you than me. But not to worry, ‘cause I look around and see some of you encouraging me too.
(I let my hair grow out again, so for the moment, that joke no longer works. Regarding my joke before that, I don't have an Uncle Khaki. Comedy lets you skew the facts as long as you go for laughs. Perhaps I'll discuss the beauty of K sounds in a future blog.)
The beauty of this is: You can also use Other People’s Misery by presenting their trials and tribulations as if those tragedies happened to you or through a character.
But be sensitive. Something recent or that happened to a demographic different from your own may be taken as you being callous and cruel.
The next time you suffer, find the funny as fast as you can. What better way to cope than with laughter? Especially if you can share your laughter with others too.
(Adapted and excerpted from my forthcoming book "How to Write All Kinds of Comedy Jokes!")
Blessings & Joy,
Dean
No comments:
Post a Comment