But for alert reader Patricia, this raises a question:
I find myself wondering what other MST fans find funny, beyond MST itself. What do they immediately think of as “funny”: Monty Python or Saturday Night Live, Carol Burnett or Jerry Lewis, Keeping up Appearances or South Park?
I find myself wondering that too!
Ever since I was little, one of the primary obsessions of my life was the study of comedy, comedians, humorists, what’s funny. I’ve read and enjoyed everything from Mark Twain (and he wrote some short essays that are laugh-out-loud funny) to John Kennedy Toole, Woody Allen to Chris Miller. I’ve seen funny movies of all kinds. Some seemed funny at the time but don’t age well (as a teenager I remember LOVING “The End”; I rented it again recently and it left me cold and a little pissed off); some (“Bringing Up Baby” and “Office Space” come to mind immediately) get funnier every time I see them.
There are some comedy franchises that people insist that I MUST see because they are brilliant and…meh. Two examples of that would be “Red Dwarf” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” I watched them both with great expectations of hilarity and I just wasn’t laughing. All I can say is “sorry.”
Monty Python (and their forebearers, Cooke and Moore) are the kind of British comedy I love (btw, check out Shout Factory’s wonderful “Secret Policeman’s Balls” collection for more stuff like that). “Are You Being Served” and Benny Hill not so much (though when Benny rattles off a classic bawdy music hall tune, you may find me smiling).
I am male, so the Three Stooges are funny to me (it’s a biological imperative), but really we’re talking Curly and early Shemp; the rest is just dreck. Similarly, I am a huge Marx Brothers fan, but really we’re talking about their last three films for Paramount (“Monkey Business,” “Horsefeathers” and “Duck Soup”) and their first two for MGM (“A Night at the Opera” and “A Day at the Races”). The rest are a little thin on the laughs.
Let’s see: Musically there’s Spike Jones, Alan Sherman, Stan Freeberg and Tom Lehrer and Weird Al, a list that that I think represents a continuum of funny songs.
On TV I STILL enjoy “The Simpsons” after all these years, I find Family Guy a subversive delight (though I have to admit that the shock value wears off on repeat viewings) and I should tell you my story about South Park. When I first encountered it I instinctively HATED it. I agreed with Kevin Murphy who, at that time, called them “profane Colorforms.” It just seemed like they were trading on the immediate laughter that comes from a little kid yelling profanities.
But I came around, and what did it for me was the South Park movie. I took a shot at the video store one day and rented it and found myself doubled over with laughter. I then went back and checked out the show, and discovered that it had grown over the seasons, and that there were more funny episodes than not.
I am plagued by guilty pleasures: When BBI would mock “Friends” I would cringe: I giggled at it more than it probably deserves. I am ashamed to admit that currently that spot is occupied by the low-brow “Two and a Half Men.” 
I am not a fan of comedy that tries to get its laughs by making its audience cringe in embarrassment or laugh at somebody’s humiliation (so “Borat” and “Bruno” leave me cold). That said, “The Office,” which trades largely in embarrassment humor, cracks me up. I’m complicated.
I like a lot of the Adult Swim stuff, especially “Robot Chicken.” I don’t watch Saturday Night Live, but that’s mostly because I’m usually doing something else at that hour on a Saturday and I never think to Tivo it. But back in the day (the Eddie Murphy-Billy Crystal-Chris Guest era) I loved it.
Speaking of Chris Guest, I love all his unscripted movies, from “Waiting for Guffman,” to “Spinal Tap” to “Best in Show.”
I could go on all day, but that’s probably enough. Off we go.
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I should have read some of the others before I got started.
Gotta add:
– Newhart
– Green Acres
– Good Neighbors
– Religulous
– Calvin & Hobbes
– Bloom County
– Canadian TV’s “the Newsroom”
at least!
Oh yeah:
– Billy Connelly
– Vicar of Dibley
– Derek and Clive
TV shows:
The Honeymooners
All in the Family
Cheers
The Cosby Show
Seinfeld
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
Monty Python’s Flying Circus
Movies:
Marx Brothers, Laurel & Hardy, Chaplin, Keaton, and the Stooges at their peak
The Mel Brooks trifecta (Producers, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein)
Clerks
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
‘Toons:
The Simpsons
South Park (best satire today)
Futurama
Robot Chicken
Venture Brothers
“Family Guy” is just okay in my book. I’ll laugh at it, but Peter Griffin is too Homer-esque and, as SP pointed out, the gags all too often have nothing to do with the plot.
Stand-up:
George Carlin
Richard Pryor
Bill Cosby
Sam Kinison
Bill Hicks
Louis CK
Jim Norton
Rich Vos
Radio:
Howard Stern (back in the day)
Opie & Anthony (today)
Phil Hendrie
And count me among the Sasha Baron Cohen fans. I don’t think of him as “embarassment humor,” I think of him as Candid Camera meets Andy Kaufman, and he’s so brilliant at it it’s easy to forget his subjects. Plus, “Da Ali G Show” did provide the one time I liked Pat Buchanan.
Firesign Theater!
Curb Your Enthusiasm, Eastbound and Down, Southpark, The Office, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Anchorman, Bad Santa, Spaceballs, Rolemodels, Cheech and Chong
Anyone ever see the show “Dave and Steve’s Video Game Explosion”? Very funny short-lived, hard to find show with very subtle humor. Right up my alley.
For me comedy begins with one name, Donald Duck. I cannot stress how much I love Donald. I also like Garfield, but not nearly as much.
Comedians in particular, Bill Cosby, Joel (of MST3K fame, I love “Agent Jay”), Jeff Dunham, Eddie Murphy, Rodney Dangerfield, Brett Butler, Ron White, and the queen herself, Rita Rutner.
Shows, The Critic, The Tick (cartoon), Married with Children, Big Bang Theory, Rules of Engagement, Whose Line is it Anyway? (both flavors), Aqua Teen Hunger Force (fantastic show), Friends, Monk, House of Payne, and Dog the Bounty Hunter (if that isn’t comedy, then what is?). Oops, forgot Absolutely Fabulous!
Movies: Blazing Saddles and other Mel Brooks fare, any Broken Lizard stuff, the plays of Tyler Perry, Almost every Leslie Neilson movie, Hot Shots as well.
Can’t Stand: Scrubs, The Office, South Park, Seinfield…
Apart from Shakespeare, the Oxford English Dictionary, and the Authorized Version of the Bible, the greatest body of work in the English language would have to be Monty Python’s Flying Circus. The films are wonderful, but the television series is inspired. Eric Idle’s songs, particularly “The Lumberjack Song” and “Money”, are priceless.
In the USA, we have Jonathan Winters, who can make me cry with laughter, doubled over on the floor. If you liked The Producers, Harold and Maude, Dr. Strangelove, John Waters, or just seeing people doing strange things, I commend to you The Loved One, a 1965 classic featuring Jonathan Winters, Liberace, Tab Hunter, a very young Paul Williams, Rod Steiger (AND A CAST OF THOUSANDS!)
#77- Re: Small Shots.
Everyone I know believes I hallucinated this show! NO ONE ELSE remembers this little gem but you and me. Manic Depressive Superman, The Amish Matrix, Non-Violent Gladiator, Charlie’s Middle-Aged Angels. Just a perfect balance of smart-assed, goobery and clever. Most importantly, it was consistently chucklesome and had a terribly sweet nature. Man, that was a good one.
Just a brief addendum:
A pattern emerging from this list is a certain trend toward the life-affirming/joyful in lieu of the hateful. Makes a fan proud.
Am I really the first one to actually say Who Framed Roger Rabbit? The Looney Toons esp Bugs/Daffy/Elmer & Roadrunner. A few people have mentioned Bringing Up Baby but I’m adding Charade. Cary Grant & Audrey Hepburn were both so gifted. My Fair Lady is good too. I remember the original George of the Jungle as funny. Current favorites include Young Frankenstein, Cheap Seats season 1, Whose Line esp Colin/Ryan working together. I grew up laughing to Monty Python, early SNL, Cheech & Chong, George Carlin. I was big on Rodney Dangerfield for a while too. Favorite MSTs include Red Zone Cuba, Giant Gila Monster (Servo on Cinema MSTed me), Invasion of the Neptune Men, Godzilla vs the Sea Monster.
I’m Mr Mom to my 3yr old & Wow Wow Wubbzy, the Backyardigans, & esp. Oswald can be amusing. I’m dreading have c**p like Spongebob or Camp Laslo on in a few years. I threw out a Henny Youngman joke at the right moment recently and cracked up a couple of 20yr olds. Some jokes never are too old.
Oh also Airplane. The Three Stooges too esp when Curly is outwitted by an inanimate object like plumbing. I thought the Monster at the End of This Book was the funniest thing when I was 7.
#111 What?! Spongebob and Camp Lazlo are fantastic cartoons! :shock:
Maybe quite not suitable for a 3 year old but certainly not on the same level of today’s truly awful cartoons, such as Total Drama Island.
And, on a side note, I must also confess a love of the Backyardigans…and i’m 23…and don’t have kids. The songs are just THAT good. :wink:
Not to get into instant messaging here but I can laugh at Spongebob. I just don’t believe it’s all that suitable for say… a 7yr old even.
Huka Pele! my friend
Funny:
Buster Keaton
Harold Lloyd
Charley Chase
Laurel & Hardy (although hit and miss)
W.C. Fields
Hal Roach’s pre-1939 Little Rascals/Our Gang
Fleischer Studios’ Popeye & Betty Boop cartoons
The Three Stooges (Curly and Shemp films only)
Charles Addams
Jack Benny & co
Most Warner Bros cartoons made between 1936-1962
Al Capp’s L’il Abner
Preston Sturges’ films
LOVE CRAZY (1941)
Jack Carson
Spike Jones
Red Ingle
THE MORE THE MERRIER (1943)
MURDER HE SAYS (1945)
Jack Cole’s Plastic Man
Ealing Studios (KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS, etc)
CHAMPAGNE FOR CAESAR (1950)
THE QUIET MAN (1952)
Harvey Kurtzman’s MAD (also TRUMP and HUMBUG)
Stan Freberg
THE HONEYMOONERS
LEAVE IT TO BEAVER
Bob & Ray
Ernie Kovacs
Senor Wences
Don Martin
Jay Ward cartoons
B.C.
The Wizard of Id
Frank Gorshin doing impressions
Early Muppets (pre-SESAME STREET/MUPPET SHOW)
THE ADDAMS FAMILY
Dr. Smith on LOST IN SPACE
ROGER RAMJET
Flip Wilson
FASTER, PUSSYCAT! KILL! KILL! (1966)
DRAGNET (1960s version)
THE PRESIDENT’S ANALYST (1967)
THE BLISS OF MRS. BLOSSOM (1968)
Monty Python (and most members’ offshoots)
Wacky Packages
INFRA-MAN (1976)
Fred Blassie singing “Pencil Neck Geek”
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (Seasons 2-5, 10 & 11)
Steve Martin up to DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS
THE MIGHTY PEKING MAN (1977)
Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker up to HOT SHOTS (1991)
ANIMAL HOUSE (1978)
WKRP IN CINCINNATI
Douglas Adams
SCTV
MEATBALLS (1979)
Rodney Dangerfield
USED CARS (1980)
URUSEI YATSURA
NIGHT COURT
Spitting Image
Christopher Guest’s mockumentaries
The Coen Bros
Steven Wright
Margaret Smith
Tommy Sledge
The Amazing Jonathan
Penn & Teller
Calvin & Hobbes
The Far Side
FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF (1986)
Little Caesar’s Pizza ads of the 1980s & 1990s
EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN (1987)
Dan Clowes’ Lloyd Llewellyn and Eightball
Peter Bagge’s Neat Stuff
DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS (1988)
MIDNIGHT RUN (1988)
Drew Carey (as a comic, before sitcom fame)
Early REN & STIMPY
THE SIMPSONS (Seasons 1-8)
Wallace & Gromit
UNCLE BUCK (1989)
GET A LIFE!
GROUNDHOG DAY (1992)
DEAD ALIVE (1992)
ARMY OF DARKNESS (1993)
LOOKWELL
FORGOTTEN SILVER (1994)
Tea Leoni in the otherwise lousy FLYING BLIND
SPACE GHOST COAST 2 COAST
Lara Flynn Boyle in SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE (’97)
SPACED
ELECTION (1999)
WELCOME TO ELTINGVILLE (Cartoon Network pilot)
Ron White
Zits
KUNG FU HUSTLE (2004)
WEDDING CRASHERS (2004)
THE INCREDIBLES (2005)
YOU KILL ME (2007)
Iowahawk
Scott Meyer’s The Basic Instructions
Unfunny:
Charlie Chaplin
Harry Langdon
The Marx Bros
The Ritz Bros
Bob Hope
Red Skelton
Lucille Ball
Jerry Lewis
SOME LIKE IT HOT
Allen & Rossi
Woody Allen
Joan Rivers
Rip Taylor
Gallagher
Chevy Chase (other than in CADDYSHACK)
Al Franken
Robin Williams
Dame Edna
Yakov Smirnoff
Roseanne Barr
Whoopi Goldberg
Howie Mandel
Kevin Nealon
Andrew Dice Clay
Carrot Top
Richard Lewis
Bob Saget
Janeane Garafolo
Margaret Cho
FRIENDS
Adam Sandler (and by extention, Rob Schneider)
Jim Carrey (post-IN LIVING COLOR)
Martin Lawrence
DR. KATZ
HOME MOVIES
FAMILY GUY
SHREK
Will Ferrell
AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE
Jon Stewart
Stephen Colbert
BORAT
Seth Rogen
and several billion others
Here is my list:
The Honeymooners
Barney Miller
Monty Python
The Three Stooges
Abbott and Costello
Laurel and Hardy
Buster Keaton
Airplane!
I enjoy dry humor (A Bit of Fry and Laurie), silly humor (Looney Tunes), gross humor (Ren and Stimpy), horrific humor (Evil Dead 2), black humor (Evan Dorkin’s Milk and Cheese), stupid humor (Anchorman), smart humor masquerading as stupid humor (Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure), cult humor (Last Action Hero), action humor (Wasabi), nostalgic humor (The Sandlot) corny humor (Muppet Show) and inappropriate humor (Avenue Q). There are many more examples I’m leaving out…mainly because I’m lazy.
This list was an interesting read:
Funny (just a few):
Keeping Up Appearances
Red Dwarf
Red Green
Fawlty Towers
The Simpsons
Family Guy
Futurama
The Venture Bros.
Monty Python
Ghostbusters
Spinal Tap
Bowfinger
Tropic Thunder
Anchorman
Evil Dead (et. all)
“Weird Al” Yankovic
The Arrogant Worms
Jon Stewart
Stephen Colbert
Jim Gaffigan
Bruce Campbell
Not Funny:
Tim and Eric Awesome Show
Squidbillies
The Stooges
Jeff Dunham
South Park
John Belushi (I’m sorry)
Short Circuit
Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter
Likes: Frasier, Kids in the Hall, Monty Python, Simpsons, Family Guy, This is Spinal Tap, Calvin & Hobbes, pre-1990 SNL, Sealab 2021, SGC2C, Robot Chicken. Never got into Friends or Seinfeld.
Crap, I left out Woody Allen. How did I manage to do that? I was just listening to one of his stand up records, too. I love pretty much anything that man does.
Funny to me is a lot of things.
Monty Python is funny but verrrryy rarely laughing out loud till i wet myself funny.Mostly its just”Oh thats clever” funny.I love it though.
This is gonna sound odd,but veggietales are hilarious.Its a good christian message,but has so much stuff packed in there for older viewers and parents.
Several comedians crack me up,Eddie Izzard,The blue collar comedians except Larry.Nick Swardson,Gabriel Iglesisa,Kevin Hart,Loni Love,all of these people are hilarious.
As for old school comedy,Laugh-in is my favorite.
Lots of great lists and I enjoyed reading them.
Hasn’t been mentioned yet:
Your Show of Shows (Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner, Howie Morris)
Another Cary Grant movie to add. Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House.
Funny:
TV:
-Seinfeld (seasons 2-7)
-King of the Hill
-Drew Carey Show (except his last season)
-Curb Your Enthusiasm (first 3 seasons)
-Father Ted (VERY pleased to see I’m not the only one here who likes it!)
-Honeymooners
-Mary Tyler Moore Show
-Monty Python
-early South Park
-Family Guy
Movies:
-Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
-Uncle Buck
-South Park: The Movie
-The Great Outdoors
-Monty Python and the Holy Grail
-almost all Coen Brothers movies (as dark comedies go, “Barton Fink” and “Fargo” are among the best)
-Airplane!
Comedians:
-Jerry Seinfeld, George Carlin, Bill Cosby, Steve Martin, Drew Carey, Blue Collar comedians, Don Rickles, Denis Leary
Not funny (or overrated):
-Arrested Development
-The Office
-30 Rock
-American Dad
-Full House
-Family Matters
-most other British comedies
NimblyRiven (#109), I’m indebted to you for the list of Small Shots movie titles! That brought it all back. I did so enjoy that series, and was sad to see it disappear. Their version of The Matrix (The Amish Matrix…”I don’t think this horse has ever seen a brother!”…priceless!) is the one I remember best, though I also recall that they did a version of Hannibal (or was it Silence of the Lambs?). Do you recall that title? (This whole “getting old & forgetting stuff” business is not much fun…)
i can’t say i like or dislike any particular type of comedy because there will be an example where i did like it…i don’t generally like the teen comedy stuff but Better Off Dead is one of my favorite movies for example.
i’m not a fan of traditional sitcoms even though i grew up on them. i think it’s been years since i’ve watched anything regularly and that was probably Futurama, which i love. I’m not a fan of Family Guy…it’s a bit harsh and obvious to me.
I like comedy within a pseudo-drama…Dead Like Me, Firefly. But then you get things like crime dramas that try too hard to be funny and fail, like NCIS…the characters are mostly just mean and nasty in that show.
I think i’ll watch most anything once…if i hate it, i’ll change the channel :P
In no particular order: Paramount era Marx Brothers, the Pythons, ‘screwball’ comedies, Looney Tunes, the Goon Show, Fawlty Towers, Ripping Yarns, Ernie Kovacs, Chris Guest’s films, the Rutles, Spinal Tap, [very] early Saturday Night Live, Jim Gaffigan, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Simpsons, Futurama, earlier South Park, Buster Keaton, WC Fields’ ‘It’s a Gift’, Bob Newhart Show, Mary Tyler Moore Show, Dr. Strangelove, Sleeper, The Producers [original version], Young Frankenstein, Female Trouble, The Film Crew, Rifftrax, Cinematic Titanic, there’s more I’m forgetting, but I love the most the shambolic wonder that is Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Max Shulman, creator of Dobie Gillis, wrote 2 HIGH-larious books after WWII when he was in his early 20s — Sleep Before Noon and Barefoot Boy with Cheek; I read these like mad in high school in the late ’70s, and along with Monty Python, SNL, and SCTV,I got a good education in parody, irony and peculiarity. Like MP and SCTV, MST has a lot of catchphrases that are lost on the uninitiated which make them all the more endearing (or irritating).
I enjoy any comedy — and any movie — that has heart, a good storyline and believable, cheer-able characters. South Park I enjoy when it gets a satiric edge to it — the Mormon and Scientology episodes are my favorites.
Online my favorite websites are The Comics Curmudgeon — Google and bookmark it now! — and The Onion.
Two other shows that haven’t been mentioned yet.
Yes, Minister
Yes, Prime Minister
Funny, and like many Britcoms, extremely witty.
Two more Cary Grant movies. Arsenic & Old Lace, and Operation Petticoat
I could write an encyclopedia of things I find funny. For the sake of brevity, I’ll give you a list of the five funniest things I’ve ever seen or heard (no particular order):
1. The moon buggy chase from Diamonds Are Forever.
2. Satan Gave Me a Taco, by Beck.
3. Eddie Murphy talking about his 300 lb. aunt falling down the stairs.
4. A warning sign from Southeast Asia depicting a person in a wheelchair rolling down an incline out of control towards the open jaws of a crocodile.
5. Torgo delivering a pizza to Deep 13.
Good question. Here’s my rundown:
TV
I don’t watch TV. That is, the actual TV itself. I use the Internet and DVDs to get my fix. As far as current primetime shows are concerned, I watch The Office and 30 Rock, and I’m a tremendous fan of Conan O’Brien and (to a lesser extent) Craig Ferguson. I’ve also been getting into Ken Marino’s new Party Down series. As older TV shows go, I love Arrested Development and Ricky Gervais’ The Office. (I prefer the UK Office to the US one.) And in the realm of animated comedies, you can’t get any better than Cartoon Network/Adult Swim’s The Venture Bros. I’ll also watch the hell out of anything put out by The State/Stella’s Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter, and David Wain. The Daily Show is a favorite.
MOVIES
Oddly enough, I don’t do a lot of movie watching. I think The Big Lebowski is one of the funniest movies ever made. I enjoy the slightly more “high-brow” Wes Anderson films, but I also have a soft spot for good, dumb comedies like Hot Rod. Wet Hot American Summer sums up my brain quite well, and Ghostbusters is ridiculously enjoyable, though not entirely for comedic reaons.
COMEDIANS
I never used to be into comedians, but it seems like there’s been an upswing in quality of late. I enjoy Zach Galifianakis a ton. Jim Gaffigan is great, as are Louis C.K. and Eddie Izzard. Patton Oswalt is pretty good, and I miss Mitch Hedberg.
I also love stuff from as far back as the 1930s, across all mediums. I adore the Marx Brothers. Frank Capra comedies. Cary Grant comedies. Arsenic & Old Lace is a favorite, though Priscilla Lane might have something to do with that. The Philadelphia Story is one of the greatest films of all time.
THINGS I DON’T GET
Woody Allen. I certainly don’t knock the man, and it’s not that I’ve never laughed at his work, but the praise seldom matches up with his actual work. The same goes for Mel Brooks, sometimes. I can see why people like them, but their humor has a tendency to fall flat or lack “kick” for me. I’m sure there’s more that belongs in this category. Can’t think of anything else at the moment.
I think we’ve forgotten Caddyshack, particularly Bill Murray and Rodney Dangerfield, and the tragic ending to the Minister’s finest round of golf. :shock:
Next weekend’s discussion thread:
“Things funny, or not-funny, flying…” :mrgreen:
a little late to the party, but i’ll throw in that if I listed my top ten funniest TV shows of all time MST3K would be number one, natch, but it would also be the only American show on the list. Virtually every other show I watch right now is British, other than “Family Guy” (which wouldn’t make my top ten). Some of my favorites: Monty Python’s Flying Circus, Fawlty Towers, The Young Ones, League of Gentlemen, Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, Peep Show, The Mighty Boosh, The Office, Extras, Snuff Box…
For comedians, I left out Brian Regan…Dimitri Martin is a close 2nd place as well…
Has anyone ever seen The Steven Banks Show? I caught 5 episodes of it on PBS in ’93 or ’94, and loved it for a very unique blend of sketch comedy, nostalgia, songs, voice impressions, and spoofing the sitcom format. Years before South Park, Steven actually did a significantly funnier take on ‘clip show’ episodes, ending with him saying to his friend, “Hey, remember about 20 minutes ago, when you came over and we started talking about all this stuff?”, and then just rerunning the first 3 minutes of the episode…including the beginning of the first flashback. Brilliant. (Saul of the Mole-Men has since done one even better, though)
Since I’m a habitual toy collector, I may have just been a sucker for how once per ep, he’d act out some skit with whatever action figures he had lying around the apartment. His interpretation of Woodstock etched itself so firmly into my brain that I performed it in a drama class where we had to explain our favorite stand-up comic. I had a Transformer called Road Pig who became a Harley (I think) that was just the right scale to have my Boba Fett ride him and mow down the Lego audience.
“RRRGH! Outta’ my way, ya’ damn hippies! VROOM-rm-rm-rm…”
“Ay! If those ‘ell’s Angels don’t stop beatin’ up onnat guy, we’re not playin’!…Alright, we’re not playin’. Pack it in guys…”
Now, even though at the time I didn’t get the joke that he was apparently confusing Woodstock with that Stones concert where the guy got beaten to death, it was still funny because…well…I could tell he meant it. If there’s a reference to something that I don’t understand, delivery makes all the difference between alienating me or making me laugh. Of course, this principle applies to MST3K more than any other show.
Ex: I dislike the Brady Bunch enough to be proud that I’ve only seen 2 episodes, but I always laugh at the end of Pod People when J&TB debate whether the scene is more like when the Bradys visited the Grand Canyon of Hawaii, because they sound like they genuinely mean it. I think this principle is also what makes any “laughing at each other’s jokes” moment work, as opposed to being like Jimmy Fallon laughing at his own jokes to cover their lameness. Sincerity; just like with pumpkin patches.
Other shows that I found funny despite not getting half the jokes when I was 8, were the 2 Alf cartoons, which seemed 10 times more clever and better written than the sitcom. Even in college, I’d have flashbacks to something like: “STELLA!” “Elaaaiiine!” “STELLA!” “Elaaaiiine” and think “Oh, it was ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ meets ‘The Graduate!’ Now I get it!”
This also applies to ‘This Hour Has 22 Minutes’, essentially the Canadian Daily Show long before the Daily Show. It’s gone so far downhill in the last 10 years that it’s current incarnation shouldn’t be mentioned in the same breath as the awesome Stewart and Colbert, but when it started in the mid-90s it made me laugh my arse off despite not knowing enough about Canadian politics to get a third of the jokes; the talent was just that good. A shame it had to lose founder Mary Walsh, and Rick Mercer who has never been remotely as funny in anything since (much like how I find Lewis Black hilarious on the Daily Show, but shockingly unfunny elsewhere). His solo news satire ‘The Rick Mercer Report’ has become a mediocre staple of the CBC in the last few years, “…and now he’s gonna’ start a band called-rrriiiiight…”
I also dislike humiliation/embarassment comedy. If I was to define my life with television shows it would be Monty Python, Doctor Who (yes, I know it is a science fiction show) and MST3K. MP and MST3K are the yin and yang of British-American humor. (Ok, that might be a reach.) For written humor let me introduced a book series not mentioned yet, Samurai Cat by Mark E. Rogers. The first three books are great, wonderful skewering of all fanboy genres. You may have to be a bit odd to love them, but they are giggle-worthy. I must say I agree with a lot of the comedic works mentioned today. Peace.
I just cannot leave this topic alone, sorry! I have to add that when it comes to music, I don’t like Weird Al, for example, but two musicians that can make me giggle are Frank Zappa and early Beck.
For me, I’ve always been open to any and every type of comedy, mostly because I like having a sense of humor to balance out the many inequities of life. That’s why I’m able to have a love for both the loud and out funny of “The Hangover” and the cerebral, repetitive funny of “Tim and Eric Awesome Show”. But ever since I did discover bad movies through MST3K, I’ve had the best penchant for laughing at people failing while trying something they’re obviously not good at. Oh, and they must be old enough to know better or it would not be funny. If “The Room” was made by an 8-year old, you’d just feel sorry watching that movie. But it was made instead by a 40+ year old “American” with no handle on how to recite English and a love of watching himself have sex on camera, so laughs are abound.
So much of my favorite funny stuff has been listed already—even Jane Austen—so I’ll just add the Engrish.com website; the High Life (a Brit—er, Scottish, comedy series); I Dream of Jeannie; The People’s Cube; many of the old musical comedies for both jokes and slapstick—and Busby Berkeley production numbers are truly hysterical; Cartoon Planet (tv and audio); desert-dry essayist Fr. George R. Rutler; comedy team French & Saunders; and just real life is pretty damn funny lots of times :grin:
I don’t like sitcoms, but I thought MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE was funny. Bryan Cranston was hilarious as the father.
Other funny characters:
Cotton Hill from KING OF THE HILL (he kilt fiddy men, and had feet on his shins).
Dr. Nick Riveria from THE SIMPSONS
Zapp Brannigan from FUTURAMA. Greatest braggart, clueless, buffoon character ever. One of the funniest things I’ve ever seen was Zapp singing ala Bill Shatner. He is also the most quotable dope of all time.
Bender Rodriguez from FUTURAMA-nothing needs to be said.
Bill Murray as the groundskeeper in CADDYSHACK
The Hansen brothers in SLAP SHOT.
Too many great characters to name.
Almost everything Phil Hartman did: He was great as Reagan, hilarious as Frank Sinatra, funny on THE SIMPSONS.
I LOVE Billy West as Zapp Brannigan, but I would be interested to listen to Phil Hartman’s take on him. Phil was scheduled to be Zapp, but we all know what happened.
Calvin and Hobbes + MST3K = my sense of humor exactly.
I love Judd Apatow movies (except Walk Hard, which was really stupid, and Talladega Nights, which was…ok. Sasha Baron-Cohen actually was good in it, probably the last time he ever made me laugh). Make of that what you will. Forgetting Sarah Marshall is one of my all-time favorite movies. I also have a total man-crush on Michael Cera. I PAID to see Year One. That’s how much I love the guy. Superbad is way up there on my favorites list…not in the top 5, but up there.
Groucho Marx is probably the funniest single person who ever lived, at least for me. His humor style is just perfect. How can you not list Animal Crackers among your favorite Marx Brothers movies? Captain Jeffrey T. Spaulding (The T stands for Edgar) was Groucho’s best character!
Family Guy…ugh. Every other joke is funny, which is fine, until you get to the inevitable point in the show where they spend two or three minutes making ONE DAMN JOKE THAT ISN’T FUNNY TO BEGIN WITH. SSSSSSSSSSSSS AAAAAAH IS NOT FUNNY FORTY TIMES. And screw Stewie. Nothing involving Stewie is funny…except when he went to stop his parents from having another kid, and his unborn brother **** turns out to be Wallace Shawn. THAT was funny…but only because of Wallace Shawn.
Arrested Development was amazingly funny for two seasons…and then kinda funny but ridiculous for one.
Freaks and Geeks was hilarious. It was probably the most honest and real portrayal of high school life ever put on TV…so of course, it got cancelled. That’s ok, though, 18 completely perfect episodes is better than 18 perfect episodes and then 60 crappy ones that ruin the show’s good name.
Kevin Smith. I even liked Jersey Girl. I loved Clerks II (frankly, if you didn’t like Clerks II, you obviously didn’t get Clerks). Clerks is my favorite movie of all time, bar none. Almost every line is golden. 37!? I’m not even supposed to be here today! I think you can see her kidneys. Life is a series of down endings. What’s his name? Annoying customer. Bunch of savages in this town. AND I COULD GO ON.
I Love You, Beth Cooper is hilarious. Funniest book I’ve ever read. I’m trying to pretend the movie doesn’t exist.
Simon Pegg. Anything the guy touches is amazing. Spaced was one of the funniest British shows in years (American Office >> British Office, as much as I like Ricky Gervais). Shaun of the Dead was the best zombie movie in about two decades. Hot Fuzz was note perfect.
You know what’s not funny at all? Tim and Eric. They constantly mistake “stupid” for “funny.”
*is glad* i see a few more mentions of The State & Kids In The Hall.
I am not the only one.
though, i don’t think *and granted I have only glanced* i saw any other Stella mentions.
go watch it. DOO EET.
and props to the guy who mentions ricky gervais, and arrested development in his post (#143)
and lastly..
It’s pretty awesome I’m #12 on this post cuz now there’s like.. a lot. ;3
The Jack Benny radio show is some of the greatest American comedy of all time. Beyond that:
Benny Hill
The Andy Griffith Show (with Don Knotts only)
Seinfeld
The Simpsons
The funny thing is, I’m not much of a Comedy guy. When I sit down for an evening’s entertainment, I prefer watching something from the horror genre. Which is how I discovered MST3K. I love old horror, new horror, good horror, bad horror. So when I happened upon Eegah! on Comedy Central, I knew the film, but wasn’t sure what the deal was with the three little heads in the corner…and got hooked.
Flight of the conchords
King of the Hill
The Office
Big Bang Theory
MXC
I’m a big fan of classic humor and comedians like Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Carol Burnett, Lucille Ball, etc.
I also love good uses of running gags and things that just come out of nowhere.
I don’t like jokes that just degenerate into either toilet or sex humor because a lot of that stuff I’m sure most of us outgrew after elementary school.
The problem with comic strips is that, after ten years or so, they often start to go stale and recycle the same stock gags. Look at Garfield and Foxtrot.
A medium not brought up so far is webcomics. Granted, there are a lot of stinkers out there, but there are also plenty of gems. Among my favorites:
Schlock Mercenary
Order of the Stick
Full Frontal Nerdity
Darths & Droids
Girl Genius (while technically it’s primarily dramatic, there’s a high rate of humor and anyway it’s a world ruled by mad scientists)
Comedy really has changed over the years. Like dafs said above, I find a lot of it lazy.
One of my favourite comedy shows though had to be ‘Hale and Pace’. Great stuff from the early 90’s that never has lost its shine for me.
I guess I don’t understand all the hatred for Bruno/Borat, I mean we’re on a website for a television show where people are directly made fun of, and sometimes quite rudely.
Television
Dick Van Dyke Show
Andy Griffith Show
I Love Lucy
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Da Ali G
The Monkees
Film
This is Spinal Tap
Some Like it Hot
Gold Rush
Singin’ in the Rain
Christmas Story
Writers
Kurt Vonnegut
David Sedaris
Stand-up
Chris Rock
Eddie Izzard
Radio
Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me