Favorite Funny People
I thought about doing stand up comedy for a while. I never did it, but I thouight anout it. While I was in that thinking mindset, I decided to study some of the greats to see if I could get some insights. I decided to start with Lenny Bruce. I'd never actually heard him perform. I was only familiar with his legend. He was recognized as warrior for free speech. He was arrested more than once and at his landmark 1964 New York trial, defended by Woody Allen, Bob Dylan, Jules Feiffer, Allen Ginsberg, Norman Mailer, William Styron, and James Baldwin. I was eager hear his comedy.
It was disappointing. It was too topical. Lacking detailed familiarity with the news events of the day, I wasn't able to tie the jokes together. The same thing happened when I got my youngest daighter to watch reruns of In Living Color, a show I remembered as being hilarious. When we watched it together, it was full of jokes anout Barbara Bush's hair and Mike Tyson's legal woes. My daughter had no idea what they were talkinga about and soon grew bored.
So, my theory on the best comedians is that they are the ones who speak to the human condition. Their work is timeless. It's just as funny 40 and 50 years later as it was when it was first recorded. Here are some examples.