 Comedy: August 04, 2010 Issue [#3880] |
  Comedy
This week: Funny, no way! I can't recall punchlines Edited by: Kate - Writing & Reading  
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Greetings, I'm honored to be your guest host for this week's WDC Comedy Newsletter.
It takes seven muscles to smile and twenty-seven to frown, and laughter is an aerobic exercise. So think of it, comedy is therapeutic - both for the writer and the reader/listener 
If I were invited to a dinner party with my characters,
I wouldn't show up.
~ Dr Seuss
I'm not a funny person, I'm told. I often miss a punch line; but I have a knack for making people laugh when I open my mouth, albeit at my expense So, I've learned over decades to keep my eyes and ears open and my mouth shut (my pencil ever sharpened).
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"Laughter is good medicine!." It's being tested (and perhaps proven) daily in worker productivity, social altruism, and family harmony (or lack of overt hostility). Medical science is even jumping on the bandwagon, scientifically postulating that humor is good preventive medicine. Recent studies propound that laughter releases beneficent endorphins into the bloodstream. Laughing has even been touted as an easy, age retarding, low impact physical exercise, requiring merely seven muscles to raise a smile, as opposed to twenty-some for a line-scoring, drooping frown .
Humor is out there, seeking but the discerning eye and open mind (which writers, by nature, have). Comedy today has very few taboo subjects, and quite a variety of forms for expression, from slapstick and physical compedy to the sardonic and wry wit of political jokes. Just think about it, who wouldn't laugh as the convenience store robber, running for the exit, holding tight his bag of cash from the register, finds his unbelted 'fashionable' droopy drawers falling to his ankles. He has to stop and bend over to pull them up, an apparent invitation to the arriving cops to cuff his wrists and retrieve the purloined money, his pants effectictively still shackling his ankles. Here, a potential crime becomes a comedic repast. (This is, by the way, a true crime, about a year old.)
As you see, humor can be subtle or satiric, as well as out-and-out funny, like the joking miming clown (physical) or stand-up comedian telling jokes. To be effective (and get a laugh or smile), what they all require is a sense of pacing - a writer who can see the humor in something others may overlook or bypass as white noise, and build up to it by expectation or with a twist. Comedy, I think, more than other forms of writing, needs to follow the old Writer's Rule of Three.
I first heard the term Writer's Rule of Three many years ago in a school writing class, and am still attempting to master its parameters in all my writing. It's an interesting way for me to recall the components of a good story - that it have a beginning (to set it up), a middle (to define/describe it), and an end (resolution). Whether it be political satire or slapstick, comedy writing really needs all three of these elements to make the reader see the humor the writer sees. If the plot is too involved or convoluted, or the setup is misleading, or the ending simply abrupt, the humor is lost - the reader won't 'get it.' All comedic forms require tight, vivid writing to make the reader see, hear, and experience with all the senses the comedy within the mystery or potential tragedy, the humor driving human or other faux pas or foibles as envisioned and depicted by the writer.
Let's explore some comedic 'expression' ~ something will hit home if not as a pie in the face (physical comedy) then perhaps with its not so subtle innuendo (satire) I'd like to offer a few visual examples to perhaps raise a chuckle.
 Dark comedy deals with disturbing subjects, often blending with horror, as it portends to mock death, drugs, war, terrorism. For visual examples, think George Carlin, Shel Silverstein, Frankie Boyle. Blue comedy is a close cousin, playing on sexual and social mores. Consider Richard Pryor, George Lopez, Andrew Dice Clay. See a story or poem in the making with a comic twist to release the tension.
Observational comedy finds and showcases the humor in everyday life, often by inflating the importance of trivial things or by noting how silly 'normal' can be. Think Jerry Seinfeld, Ray Romano, Ellen DeGeneres.
Alternative comedy such as satire, slapstick, surrealism, improvisation (improv). See Rick Mayall or Linda Smith here?
Physical comedy uses physical movement and gestures ~ and yes, someone wrote the comedic antics for Lucille Ball, the Three Stooges, Chevy Chase, Jim Carrey, albeit their delivery made you laugh.
Prop comedy. The name speaks the form, as shown by Gallagher, Carrot Top relying on ridiculous props (watermelon, anyone?).
Topical comedy pokes fun at headlines and news events. This form becomes quickly dated; that is, unless the event is monumental and memorable. Interesting take on politics and government for those inclined to Deadpan humor ~ no it's not horror raising - rather think Dennis Miller, South Park.
Word play and witticism. You might think it's topical, but wordplay by subtle manipulation of language (pun included) for a wordsmith (crafting with words) can lead to some memorable images in prose and verse. Consider for us wordsmiths the literary legerdemain of Shakespeare, or if Woody Allen doesn't raise a smile, how about the Simpsons.
Wisecracks ~ okay, that's what many of us think of when we think 'comedy,' the witty remark, perfectly timed. Let's end this exploration of comedic expression on a light note, a smile perchance, as you explore some of the versatile comedic expression of members in our Community. You will certainly find something to read that will crack a smile, if not make you RALF, i mean, ROFL.
Remember, laughter is good for you, and
Fun!
Kate
(user:manga_kate)
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I invite you to spend a little of your time with some of the writers in our Community and partake of their comedic variety 'show.' I'm sure they will be pleased to hear whether or not you 'get it.'
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I hope you've enjoyed this exploration of comedy and found something to tickle or slam your funnybone. As a guest, I don't have an ask and answer, so I invite you to take just fifteen minutes of a day, look about you, and envision a comedic exchange real or imagined. Now, write it down so you can laugh again, and share the mirth. Pass along the the smile; remember, only seven muscles as opposed to more than twenty, and it's a fit contagion.
And you'll have fun writing it!
Write On!
Kate
Kate - Writing & Reading
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