Saturday, July 31, 2010

Show me the Funny

Let me start out by saying that I have a great sense of humor. It's true, just ask anyone. Which leads to my subject: how do so many unfunny people keep appearing in the movies, or on TV? I have a short list here of unfunny players. If you disagree, tell me something, in particular, they did (this century) that was funny.

Dane Cook.... I suppose his fifteen minutes are finally up, and he is actually a cook somewhere. How did this talentless, moronic, hack ever become semi-famous. Was that the joke? The entertainment industry decided to just make some chump a star? I dare anyone to name one funny punchline of his. Funny being the keyword.

Robin Williams... Sure when you were seven, Mork was hilarious, but what has he done in the last thirty some years? Patch Adams alone should have been enough to get him blackballed. Watch (if you can) Williams on a talk show; no matter the subject, first he does the black voice, then John Wayne, finishing with the gay voice. Ta da! Every. Single. Time.

Eddie Murphy.... Quick, other than speaking as a pixeled jackass, name the last movie he was funny in. Going all the way back to the 1980s, aren't you? How do these guys keep getting parts?

Adam Sandler..... How long has it been since he was on Saturday Night Live? Twenty years? Because that's the last time Crazy Pickle Mustache man was funny. Happy Gilmore was his last watchable movie. Sad.

Steve Martin.... He does about one funny movie every 15-20 years. There was The Jerk. Then Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. Then, ahhh, err, uhh....

Ricky Gervais..... I don't get English humor, I guess. Because if he's supposed to be funny, I'm glad I live over here. As the fat, sweaty, bumbling, everyman, Jackie Gleason nailed it. Gervais tries to pull it off, and he's uncomfortable to watch.

Steve Carell..... I watch The Office regularly, and The 40 Year Old Virgin was funny, but he's not the reason either are funny. It's the characters around him. He is very uncomfortable to watch. Which, I suppose, is great un-comedic acting. I doubt The Office could survive without him, but he's not the one I laugh at.

Howard Stern.... I know he's not on TV, or in the movies, and there's a reason for that... he's not funny! This old shyster has made a career out of saying 'dick', 'pussy', and having lesbians, on the radio. All very groundbreaking stuff, but not necessarily funny. He has funny regulars, writers, and guests, but he, himself...not funny!

8 comments:

  1. Different point of view.

    Dang it, you got me thinkin' again... I'm trying to think of the last "comedy" flick I actually went out of my way to see... There are a few (1980ish) that are occasionally broadcast on television that I'll sit through, but anything made lately? Naw...

    Maybe I'm weird, but the last comedy I thought was pretty good was Legally Blonde! I guess I get off on rubbing the establishment's nose in it! :p

    That got me to thinkin' about the last time I had a good laugh. I don't think of myself as a stick in the mud. I enjoy making other people laugh, but the last time I had a good laugh?

    So... this morning I started paying attention to anything that spontaneously set me off. Looking through the Drudge Report I came upon an article about LA US Congresswoman Maxine Waters possibly being put on "trial" by the House Ethics Committee (talk about a joke BTW) and so I clicked on the title and here is this picture of the Honorable Ms. Waters and she looks pissed! That got a good laugh out of me...

    I know I was really turned off by the "Start Your Engines" BS NASCAR laid on it's fans a few weeks back with Alan Sandler and whoever that other jerk was as they tried to be funny. I took it as an affront. I'll never watch that movie simply based on that BS.

    Hmmm, I'll have to see what else gets me to laugh. I know I was damned pleased and happy the Rays knocked off the Yankees last night!

    Maybe I'll get back to you on this...

    ReplyDelete
  2. D-Man... why so serious? As the world famous Fox blogger Jokerswild would ask.

    Legally Blonde was a cute little movie.

    They don't make a bunch of clean, family comedies these days. Shrek (the 1st one) was clever, clean, and funny.

    It's always easy to get a laugh from Drudge. X)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Can't disagree with any of the above selections and could add quite a few. Tracy Morgan?? WTF?

    Only peeps who get me laughing literally out loud are Stewart, Tosh and that super cute sneezing panda...(dwindy gets the credit there!)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Kristen... Tracy Morgan is either a great actor, or a very bad comedian.

    Daniel Tosh has the funniest show on TV!!!

    Jon Stewart? Meh. His puzzled, raised eyebrows, false bewilderment act gets real old by about the fourth or fifth time he trots it out every night. He has some funny lines, and funny regulars on his show, though.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Uh, I agree with you on all of these sad sacks. I was going to say Steve Carell is funny, and he's in one of my faforite funny movies, "Anchor Man", but he is always a pathetic type, you laugh at him, but then feel sad for his character afterwards. Got to give Steve Martin his dues, hard to stay funny when you're closer to 90, than 50!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Colbert makes his former boss look like an amature!

    ReplyDelete
  8. CR... Colbert is a homeboy from Charleston. He and his two young sons were pictured in today's paper with their catch from a recent fishing trip here.

    Your right, he pokes fun at conservatives a lot funnier than Stewart does.

    ReplyDelete