What really makes something funny?

[mickill]

Mel Brooks once said that "Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die."

I think that's fairly apt.

[jabumbo]

its not always funny even if i laugh at it

[TurdBerglar]

the front wheel of my bike once got stuck in a sewer grate while i was traveling at full steam. you can imagine the rest. that's comedy too.

[boys_beastie]

someone laughing

[yeahwho]

Those glasses that have a big nose attached to them and a fuzzy moustache. They make somethings funny. Steve Martin became less funny the futher he got away from those glasses.

Those glasses are what make something funny.

[Sarky Devotchka]

the unexpected or the absurd makes me laugh.

and people bonking their heads on stuff.

[mickill]

Originally Posted by Sarky Devotchka

the unexpected or the absurd makes me laugh.

and people bonking their heads on stuff.

Does the first one usually involve some kind of misfortune on somebody's part? Like are you laughing at someone's expense, to some degree? I'm not trying to be condescending or anything, just seriously wondering if humor can, for the most part, be summed up by something as simple as the quote I cited.

[bigblu89]

I would agree there, even the funniest comedians tend to be the ones that can either make fun of other people, or more so, themselves.

[Sarky Devotchka]

I don't think it has to do with misfortune on someone else's part. Once I fell flat on my ass down in the subway trying to catch a train and I laughed. I was embarassed, but it was really quite funny. I made the train. Maybe if I didn't make the train, I'd be mad.

[Bob]

the quote's true, yeah, but it doesn't cover all of comedy. people falling down sewers (or better yet getting hit in the groin with things) makes me laugh, sure (well, in a movie or something), but other things do too. take seinfeld, monty python, um, other comedies, how much of that relied on laughs at people's expense (this post needs more parentheses)? not the bulk of it, at least.

i think clever use of language is a big part of comedy too. not just puns (although i love puns), but other word-related jokes as well. situational things. observational humor. i don't know. if it's done right, nobody has to get hurt.

and it's not just limited to television or comedy clubs, it applies to real world funny things too. like you're at a party, or you're just hanging out with friends, and you make each other laugh. unless you're pushing each other down sewers, nobody's getting hurt.


if you're asking for some definitive objective quality that something has to have in order to be funny, i don't think you can give one. different people laugh at different things. some people don't like seinfeld.

oh, and fuzzy glasses

[voltanapricot]

I don’t appreciate any sort of humour based upon somebody else’s misfortune. Like when people fall over, I cannot see how anybody would find that funny.

Saying that, I find ironic things funny, like that quote, it made me chuckle, I can’t explain how, but it did. Maybe it’s because some people do take themselves quite seriously. Like cutting their finger and thinking it’s the worst thing. I never have taken myself seriously, and people find me funny, and I love people who can laugh at themselves too.

[mickill]

Originally Posted by Sarky Devotchka

I don't think it has to do with misfortune on someone else's part. Once I fell flat on my ass down in the subway trying to catch a train and I laughed. I was embarassed, but it was really quite funny. I made the train. Maybe if I didn't make the train, I'd be mad.

I guess this brings us to a more complex area, with overlapping emotions and whatnot. But most people that saw you fall on your ass were probably a little amused, at your expense, once they were cetain that you were alright that is.

Maybe it's more to do with amusement than actual laughing. Like when we just need something interesting to happen, something bad usually.

[Bob]

Originally Posted by mickill

I guess this brings us to a more complex area, with overlapping emotions and whatnot. But most people that saw you fall on your ass were probably a little amused, at your expense, once they were cetain that you were alright that is.

Maybe it's more to do with amusement than actual laughing. Like when we just need something interesting to happen, something bad usually.

i'm reminded of a time when there was a fire alarm in our dorm and we all had to go stand outside. there were some kids trying to show off on their bikes. one tried to ride it along the top of a guardrail, and he fell, right on his nuts. nobody waited to see if he got up to start laughing. he got up and rode away pretty quickly, but that's not the point, the point is i still laugh thinking about it

[mickill]

Originally Posted by Bob

i think clever use of language is a big part of comedy too. not just puns (although i love puns), but other word-related jokes as well. situational things. observational humor. i don't know. if it's done right, nobody has to get hurt.

Yeah, but most good humor is usually crude and offensive. And it usually pokes fun at somebody. Somebody is the subject of the humor, perhaps even the ridicule. The handicapped, fat people, blondes, different races etc.

[mickill]

Originally Posted by voltané

I don’t appreciate any sort of humour based upon somebody else’s misfortune. Like when people fall over, I cannot see how anybody would find that funny.

Saying that, I find ironic things funny, like that quote, it made me chuckle, I can’t explain how, but it did. Maybe it’s because some people do take themselves quite seriously. Like cutting their finger and thinking it’s the worst thing. I never have taken myself seriously, and people find me funny, and I love people who can laugh at themselves too.

Self-deprecating humor is another big one. Okay, I'm starting to sense that it's not just about people getting hurt in some way, but more just misfortune, in general.

[Chicka B]

I find people getting hurt and perverted things funny, I'm a bad person. Haha things.

[voltanapricot]

Originally Posted by mickill

it's not just about people getting hurt in some way, but more just misfortune, in general.

This reminds me of a coversation about a year ago. This lad was making a sick joke out of some one-legged man he had seen trying to go down a waterslide at a water park when he was on holiday. Aaaaanyway I wasn't amused and said "That's a bit sick innit? I mean that poor guy probably can't do much and he wanted to have a bit of fun on the slide and there's you laughing at his one leg."
I didn't mean to make it funny, but everybody laughed. People do laugh that sort of thing, I guess. Hrm.

[mickill]

Originally Posted by voltané

This reminds me of a coversation about a year ago. This lad was making a sick joke out of some one-legged man he had seen trying to go down a waterslide at a water park when he was on holiday. Aaaaanyway I wasn't amused and said "That's a bit sick innit? I mean that poor guy probably can't do much and he wanted to have a bit of fun on the slide and there's you laughing at his one leg."
I didn't mean to make it funny, but everybody laughed. People do laugh that sort of thing, I guess. Hrm.

Yeah, see, your reaction kinda amused me there.

[voltanapricot]

That sounded kind of romantic there Skye.

*simper*

[voltanapricot]

Wrong thread, divvy!

[yeahwho]

You know whats funny, I just figured out your sig doesn't say "Oprah Wants You To Get Off My Jock".

[kll]

anything accompanied by a farting noise

[TurdBerglar]

Originally Posted by Skye

I have a soft spot for Mike

is it wet too?

[TurdBerglar]

so your spot that is soft, is it wet as well? that's all i want to know

[TurdBerglar]

face clothes can be soft and wet

[Chicka B]

hahahaha that was perverted right?

[mickill]

Originally Posted by Chicka B

hahahaha that was perverted right?

Yes, and it was at the expense of Skye's dignity. As a righteous babe.

[Documad]

Originally Posted by mickill

Yeah, but most good humor is usually crude and offensive. And it usually pokes fun at somebody. Somebody is the subject of the humor, perhaps even the ridicule. The handicapped, fat people, blondes, different races etc.

Hmmm, I don't find that kind of stuff funny. I also don't like people who put themselves down a la old school Joan Rivers.

I tend to laugh at odd things that strike me funny. I enjoy trueisms of the Seinfeld variety, absurd things, dry humor (which sometimes is mixed up with ironic humor but I can enjoy irony too), and jokes that make me feel smart because 95% of the American population wouldn't get it.

I also enjoyed There's Something About Mary, Stuck on You, Austin Powers, etc., but if you're going to go for silly humor it has to be perfect or it's just lame. With There's Something About Mary--it wasn't funny because it was crude--it also earned its humor with the Jonathan Richman parts, the gay men frequent rest stops foreshadowing, etc.

I should disclose that I often see people just being people and laugh to myself, so I'm a bit odd I suppose.

[voltanapricot]

Originally Posted by Documad

Hmmm, I don't find that kind of stuff funny. I also don't like people who put themselves down a la old school Joan Rivers.

See, I do like Joan Rivers. She made me feel guilty for laughing when I read a quote from some show she done after her husband's suicide:

"My husband commited suicide recently, it's my fault, I took the bag off my head when we were making love."

I sometimes think comedians have a harder time handling their art than say, dramatic actors, like you said it has to be perfect.

[kll]

did i mention fart noises?