Stand-Up Comedy For Kids Of All Ages
By
Antoinette “Toni” Attell
Copyright © 2006 All Rights Reserved
Smashwords Edition
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Thank you for purchasing this very special workbook on performing stand-up comedy. Many valuable hours spent authoring it and we hope it will prove invaluable in your work if you did not purchase this book; please take a moment to get it through your local retailer.
Published 2011
Copyright 2006
Library Of Congress TXu001267922
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION I – Your Stand-Up Comedy
Chapter 1: The Comedy Questionnaire
Chapter 2: Finding your Style and Developing your Comedy Philosophy
Chapter 3: Styles of Humor and Their Definitions
Chapter 4: From the Circus to the Stage
Chapter 5: Comedy Isn’t Always Pretty
Chapter 6: My Own Road to Comedy
Chapter 7: Set-ups and Punch lines
Chapter 8: Different Styles of Comedy/Discovering Your Niche
Chapter 9: Sample Stand-up Comedy
Chapter 10: How to Create Your First Minute
Chapter 11: How to Perform Comedy
Chapter 12: The First Two Weeks of Writing Comedy
Chapter 13: The First Two Weeks of Performing Comedy
Chapter 14: How to Cope with Stress/Harness Stage Joy
Chapter 15: The Stage Experience
SECTION II - Comedy Pups and their Styles of Comedy
Jyl Ray
Mitch Collier
Sari Cohen
Josh Caya
Athena Diaz
Kimberly Knefel
Nora Davis
Jerry Messing
Clarissa Williams
Nicole Weekly
Jesse Del
INTRODUCTION
In this book, you will find samples of comedy ranging from the works of young children to older teens. I have included pictures of them, so the reader can see them, as they were when they were doing the comedy and how they look now. Samples of their comedy have been included, so that each one of you can choose the style of comedy that you most resonate with. You may find that there are two or three styles that you resonate with, but I strongly suggest you start with one, and then add to that after you have completed your first minute of comedy.
Do not feel restricted to one particular style or type of comedy; you can always adapt other styles or types of comedy to your routines later, layering as you progress. What is most important is to get started and to have fun with the process.
Do not judge yourself; just commit yourself one hundred percent, knowing that all famous comics started out the same way. I encourage you to imitate the style of any favorite comic or comics that you resonate with. Many comics imitate someone during their career; it is all right to do so until you have developed your own style and feel comfortable and confident with it. This process will help you start to make choices and any choice is better then no choice.
It is very important you practice your material over and over until you have it so well memorized and coordinated that you can shift sections of it around – or eliminate bits if necessary – depending upon the type of audience you are performing for.
Read through all of the Comedy Pups material, and then create your first minute knowing you can call upon and incorporate any of the other Pups styles into your comedy. This will help you find your own unique style. Keep notes on their processes; these notes will aid you in your own process as a stand-up comic. If you treat each Comedy Pup as a teacher, it will make your role as the student easier and more effective. By observing their tricks and secrets you will add to your own abilities and help your own process flow more freely.
Within these pages, you will find a chapter detailing the different types and styles of comedy; in addition to definitions and how to create the same kind of stand-up as the Comedy Pups.
Remember: have a fun with the process and never judge yourself.
QUOTABLE QUOTES
“I wrote on TV specials starring Toni “Toad” Attell. I can say a mime did my words. And now…she has written a great book to help in the journey to find the funny you. Just Kidding is a great title for a how-to comedy book because you can always get a laugh just by using the phrase just kidding!… Just kidding.” Wayne Kline, head staff monologue writer for The Tonight Show — since 1992 — with Jay Leno – since 1987.
“Let’s give this book to congress. After all, we know they’re just kidding,” — Jonathan Winters.
“This book will teach children how to be lonely, egocentric and maladjusted adults…just kidding!” Anne Beatts, comedy writer for the original Saturday Night Live and National Lampoon television and movies.
“Toni Attell reminds us that while some comedians may be childish, some children may be comedians, and writing and performing one's own comedy is an attainable goal. Her book is for anyone who wants to know more about being funny. If you can't read, don't buy it." Carl Gottlieb, author/screenwriter, Jaws Jaws 2. Jaws 3-D The Jerk, Doctor Detroit, Caveman, Bob Newhart Shows, Odd Couple (television shows) Tom and Dick Smothers Brothers Special, Vice President of the Writers Guild.
“I gave this book to my inner child and ever since I did, I’ve been in convulsions over his jokes. Oh, how I hate competition!” David Samson, author of The Joy of Depression, Useless Knowledge, American Idle, and Men Who Hate Themselves and The Women Who Agree With Them. He is otherwise known as funnyguy.com.
"Toni Attell teaches you how to find your unique comic voice and how to make it work for you," Michael Taylor, chair of the USC Cinema/Television Production Department. Film credits include: Phenomenon, Instinct, Bottle Rocket, and Copying Beethoven.
“Just Kidding – Stand-Up Comedy for Kids of All Ages is an excellent book to train students how to use comedy to enhance their self-esteem, self-confidence and utilize laughter to establish rapport with people of all ages. As an ex-principal with over thirty years of experience, I found Toni Attell’s book an extremely refreshing and enlightening addition to education that can last a lifetime.” Dr. Norma Lent Auerbach.
“Laughter is an internal massage that soothes every cell, creating comfort and joy throughout the entire body. By teaching children to laugh and create laughter, Toni Attell provides a great healing to the world. Her skills and understanding in the area of comedy are unsurpassed, and she is able to teach these to others so that they can spread the healing of laughter. Open this book and prepare for your own internal massage today!” Nancie M. Barwick, Ph.D. Author of Unstuff Yourself: Finding Joy on the Road to Wellness.
“This how-to book on stand-up comedy can also serve as an excellent resource for any educator who wishes to provide students with and alternative release for their emotions.” Dr. Helene A. Feldman, former Principal of a NYC High School and is presently working with the New York City’s Chancellor’s School Improvement Team.
“Toni’s book has compilations of brilliance. It confirms that kids are inherently funny and when they practice the methods that Toni teaches, the kids become hilarious. “Just Kidding” is obviously a work of art that not only informs the child comedian/actor but also instills confidence. To boot, the book is valuable to a child’s growth whether or not theatre is part of his or her makeup. My applause to Ms. Attell.” Michael J. Wallach, theatrical manager for more than twenty years, attorney, UCLA Extension and Santa Monica College instructor, and author of “How to Get Arrested” A motivational story for Actors.
“Just Kidding”
(Stand-Up Comedy for Kids of All Ages)
Overview
“A funny thing happened to a kid on the way home from school…he laughed…and suddenly the world didn’t such a formidable place, because now he could joke about it.” Toni Attell.
Learning how to be funny can be a wonderful, magical and uplifting experience for a young person: it sharpens communication skills, builds self–confidence, instills pride in cultural heritage…and that is just the beginning. It can also be an aid in bringing the family unit closer together.
Stand-Up Comedy for Kids is a hands on stand–up comedy book for children with just that goal in mind. It is meant to teach children how to use their life experiences in positive ways, utilizing stand–up comedy techniques. It also demonstrates how laughter can be a very useful and healing tool.
In addition to an easy to understand “How-To” section for “Stand–Up Comedy for Kids”, there is a section broken down into types and styles of comedy. There is also a “Comedy Pups” section, which includes how to effectively use one liners and jokes from Toni Attell’s “Comedy Pups.” The Comedy Pups are a group of young stand–up comics of all ages who have been featured at the L.A. Improv, Paramount Pictures, and the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Entertainment Tonight, Los Angeles Channel 4 News and The Los Angeles Times.
The Comedy Pups section will include the child’s age, photo, bio, stage photos, the reasons the child entered comedy, what it did for them, two to three of their favorite jokes, and what inspired them to write the jokes. This will help the children to associate with the child they resonate most with and/or the brand of humor that they enjoy the most to help them create their own outlook and style of stand-up comedy. This book will give children the “How To’s” and the “Why’s” of stand up comedy, regardless if they use the information to pursue comedy as a professional, amateur, personally, or just for fun.
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SECTION I – Your Stand-Up Comedy
THE COMEDY QUESTIONNAIRE
Please complete the following questionnaire. If you answer yes to any of these, you are definitely suited to do comedy.
01.) DO YOU THINK YOU TAKE YOURSELF TOO SERIOUSLY? If you are answering this question, you probably do.
02.) DO OTHERS THINK YOU TAKE YOURSELF TOO SERIOUSLY? Ask at least three people you know, and then ignore what they say.
03.) DO YOU FEEL YOU FIT IN WITH OTHER PEOPLE? Or do you feel as if you are lost in a crowd.
04.) DO YOU EVER FEEL LONELY AND ISOLATED? As if you were on the inside looking out.
05.) DO YOU ENJOY OR DISLIKE BEING THE CENTER OF ATTENTION? Either way you can turn into a great comic.
06.) DO YOU HAVE A VIVID IMAGINATION?
07.) DO YOU DAYDREAM A LOT? About anything that is not being discussed at the moment.
08.) WHEN YOU DISPLAY STRONG EMOTIONS, DOES IT SOMETIMES MAKE PEOPLE LAUGH?
09.) DOES MAKING PEOPLE LAUGH MAKE YOU FEEL POWERFUL?
10.) DO YOU THINK THE WORLD IS CRAZY?
11.) DO YOU THINK THAT EVERYONE ELSE IS STRANGE BUT YOU? You’re right!
12.) DO YOU ENJOY MAKING PEOPLE LAUGH?
13.) DO YOU ENJOY LAUGHING?
14.) DO YOU FEEL PEOPLE MAKE FUN OF YOU? Think how good it will feel when you can control what they laugh at.
15.) WHAT MAKE’S A PERSON LAUGH?
WHAT DO YOU LAUGH AT? Your answers might help you decide what type/style of comedy — see below — you would like to use when you begin writing your material.
A.) PHYSICAL COMEDY/SLAPSTICK, e.g., people slipping and falling, walking into doors…
B.) WHAT PEOPLE SAY? Athena Diaz: “Hi Everyone, My name is Athena, just like the Greek goddess. I asked my mom what a goddess was and she told me, don’t worry, you’ll find out when you get older and boys start noticing you.”
C.) WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT WHAT THEY THINK? From Clarissa Williams: “I love going to church with all that uplifting music and the Holy Ghost speaking through the people. To me that’s the most interesting part of church, because I always wonder what they’re saying. I don’t want to be rude and ask someone I don’t know, excuse me, what are you blubbering about the Lord? I mean that’s rude, right? So I just sit guessing. Until one day, my mom started speaking in tongues and finally I know the deal. So after church I said, ‘Mom what were you saying to the Lord in tongues?’ She told me, ‘That’s between me and the Lord.’ I just sat there thinking: that’s because you don’t know!”
D.) WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE? Jerry Messing’s joke: “My sister is so blonde that when she got a flat tire she used the air from her head to fill it up.”
E.) PEOPLE WHO TALK ABOUT THINGS THAT DON’T SEEM TO MAKE SENSE IN OUR WORLD? Like Nikki Weekly’s joke: “My dad’s a deep sea diver, and he wears a wet suit. I don’t get it: it’s not okay to wet your bed but it’s okay to wet your suit?”
F.) ENVIRONMENTAL HUMOR? Making fun of an environment or surroundings. Jyl Ray: “I grew up in Irvine, which is the only place where you can get pulled over for not driving a nice car. I was watching a TV show one night a while back, and it was panning over the community and it looked just like Irvine. All the houses looked the same, all the grass perfectly trimmed, everyone looked like they were on their way to church…and then the title appeared: LIVING IN CAPTIVITY. Yup, that sums it up.”
G.) HOW PEOPLE VIEW THEIR FAMILY? Mitch Collier: “I bet none of you guessed from my accent that I am half redneck, on my Mom’s side…my Dad wanted me to point that out.”
H.) HOW PEOPLE VIEW THEIR OWN ETHNICITY? Or their family’s ethnicity. Sari Cohen: “Family is great. My mom is Jewish and my dad is Mexican. They own a restaurant where they serve Gefilte fish tacos. It’s cool, because right down the street is a Mexican Soul food restaurant, it’s called: Nacho Mama.”
I.) HOW PEOPLE VIEW OTHER ETHNICITIES AND HOW THEY COMMUNICATE? Mitch Collier’s routine where his redneck uncle calls about a computer problem is connected to a technician in India.
J.) EMOTIONAL HUMOR? Ryan Knefel: “My mom…she’s—well—the L word! Yeah you guessed it…Lawyer. So there is never a conversation with her; it’s always a custodial interrogation. Except I have NO right to remain silent. And EVERYTHING I say IS used against me!”
K.) THE DIFFERENT WAYS PEOPLE VIEW THE SAME THING? Mitch Collier: “Yes, in case you’re wondering, I really am a musician. In fact, if this stand-up thing doesn’t work out, my backup plan is to be a rock and roll star. My Dad says a back-up plan is accounting or engineering. Yeah, right…”
L.) PEOPLE DOING IMPRESSIONS OR IMITATIONS OF PEOPLE OR ANIMALS? Mitch Collier’s routine doing Arnold Schwarzenneger.
M.) POKING FUN AT POLITCS? An example might be: “I heard they’re coming out with a new Christmas song in honor of President Bush. It’s called The Little Dumber Boy.”
N.) POKING FUN AT ONESELF? Sari Cohen: “A lot of people still think I’m thirteen. Obviously I’m not thirteen…most thirteen-year-olds are taller than me. You know, I thought I was too short to go on the rides at Disneyland. But I was wrong. I can ride all the rides at Disneyland…in Japan.”
O.) IMPROVISATIONAL COMEDY/WORKING WITH THE AUDIENCE? (See chapter Two).
P.) SOMEBODY DOING COMEDY NOT AS THEMSELVES BUT AS A CHARACTER THEY HAVE CREATED. Jerry Messing doing the surfer dude as a waiter in a restaurant.
Q.) SELF-PITY COMEDY? Kimberly Knefel: “I am the youngest in the family. I always get blamed for everything and I am so tired of being treated like a baby. All these old people keep coming up to me and pinching my cheeks and saying “I knew you when…” How could they know me when? I’m only eleven.”
R.) RELIGIOUS HUMOR? Sari Cohen. “My mother’s Jewish and my Father’s Buddhist. Every time I go shopping I get guilt from past lives.”
S.) DIALOGUE HUMOR? One person playing two characters speaking to each other. Mitch’s routine between Dr. Evil and Fat Bastard.
Finding Your Style of Comedy and Developing your Comedy Philosophy
Stand-Up Comedy comes from deep within each comic. It is unique to each individual, which is why there are so many different styles, forms, and uses for stand-up. For some comics the goal is simply to make people laugh. For others its use is therapeutic; some comics become agitated, angry or upset; some use stand-up comedy as a means to heal old, emotional wounds or as a form of emotion self-defense.
Reasons for Doing Comedy
A comic may start his routine irritating us with his appearance, the sound of his voice, his mannerisms or how he speaks; but we eventually discover that what we first disliked about the comic ends up fascinating us.
What is most important to remember about performing stand-up comedy is that it comes from your own personal truth. That truth comes from your needs.
Check off the items below that you feel apply to you. Try to pick at least two or three of the items listed.
A.) The desire to make people laugh.
B.) The need for attention, i.e., the need to be seen and heard.
C.) The desire to imitate others. This includes imitating famous people, imitating people you know, animals or replaying a moment in time.
D.) Playing back a moment in time as you interpret it.
E.) The need to release pent up emotions.
F.) The desire to be silly.
G.) The need to cover shyness.
H.) The need to be physical
I.) The need to laugh at life’s absurdities – home, school, personal relationships.
Ask yourself what it is that your needs and desires are and why you wish to do stand-up comedy.
Ask yourself the following questions. We will call this list of questions the “W’s.” Fill in the reasons for the following items listed below that you feel apply to you. Answer as many of the questions as you can.
Why do you want to do comedy?
Example: to make people laugh and feel good about themselves.
Who are you?
Example: You are someone who wants to be accepted by your peers.
What are your feelings?
Example: You are shy, but you would like to be more outgoing?
What makes you happy or sad?
Example: Funny movies, seeing those close to you smile.
What in your life does not make sense or confuses you?
Example: Why do you have to go to bed at a set time when your parents don’t?
Why do you look at life the way you do?
Example: Because you are special and are not like anybody else you know.
What are you trying to say?
Example: You want to help people see life from your perspective.
What result do you want to achieve from what you say?
Example: You want a positive reaction from others to what you say or think about life.
Why do you feel misunderstood by others?
Example: My parents don’t understand me.
Why do some people do the silly things they do?
Example: To get attention, to make people laugh or to feel important and in control.
What things are you passionate about, e.g., politics, religion, sports, food, the opposite sex, movies, television, just to suggest a few?
Example: You love to eat, make people laugh, draw pictures or paint.
What are your long-term goals, i.e. performing in clubs, at school events, in plays, on television, in movies?
Example: You want recognition as a performer. You want to be famous.
What is your physical assessment of yourself, i.e., do you feel physically equal, inferior or superior to others in your peer group? Do you sometimes feel isolated and alone?
Example: One day your best friend suddenly becomes your enemy and you feel it has something to do with the way you look or dress.
Possible Present Goals for doing stand-up comedy. Call these the “Is it’s.” Again, check off the items below, that you feel apply to you. Choose as many as you fee apply to you.
Is it to keep the bullies away from you at school?
Example: If you make them laugh, they might accept you or at least leave you alone instead of making fun of and picking on you.
Is it to take a clumsy or awkward moment and use it to your advantage, making people laugh with you instead of AT you?
Example: You trip and fall in class. Everyone laughs at you. To retort you say: “I can do it again for those of you who missed it,” or, “I can do it again is slow motion if any of you would like an instant replay.”
Is it because you have a physical impediment such as a limp, lisp or stutter that makes you feel awkward or alienated?
Example: By exaggerating the impediment, by having a sense of humor about it you discover that you now draw friends to you rather than feeling isolated, alone or sorry for yourself because others make fun of you or shy away from you.
Is it to bolster your self-esteem?
Example: By making people laugh this gives you the power and takes away the feeling of being a victim.
Is it to help you with your communication skills?
Example: Comedy can be a way of communicating and organizing your thoughts. It helps you to think more quickly on your feet.
Is it to help you make friends?
Example: Others may think of you as being strange or weird, but comedy can be a means of using this to your advantage.
How to Begin Developing your Comedy Philosophy
When I first began performing, I started by creating imaginary characters in my head. I discovered that I was afraid to try them in front of people, because I was afraid of being rejected. My favorite place to go was my family bathroom where we had a mirror over the sink. I would imagine that as I looked in the mirror I was performing in front of an audience. I would do my character, or comedy material, in front of the mirror, and I would mentally edit what I felt worked and what I felt did not work. Sometimes it just would not work, but it did introduce me to the process of practice and discipline.
Sometimes what we think is hysterically funny, others may neither understand, nor feel, nor find humorous. To avoid this from occurring, I suggest performing your comedy material in front of family or friends. The first time you do your material, you will usually get some positive response. It is important to keep in mind that doing comedy in front of those we know, can be either easier or more difficult then performing in front of a group of total strangers – sometimes family and friends can be more critical of us than strangers; and at other times because they care about us…they may be less critical.
Make notes about what you felt worked in your performance and what you felt did not work. Also, ask the opinion of the people who were your audience. I find that it is easy to throw away good material, because one person did not think it was funny, so don’t get discouraged, keep working on it. One person’s opinion does not necessarily reflect that of the entire audience. If you find that your material does not work after you have been doing it a while, try putting it aside, then come back to it. It may work in a different part of your show.
When I was a young mime and comic, I had the great fortune to meet Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, who was by this time very old. He told me that he and his brothers brought in all the comedy material seen in their movies from their years of doing vaudeville and stage shows. When I told him that I was a street artist, he said, “Good for you, it’s the last of vaudeville, because there are no longer any other places to perform and fail,” meaning that you have to make mistakes in order to learn what works and what doesn’t work.
Never be afraid of failure. You have to be willing to fail in order to learn how to be effective as a performer.
Jay Leno, who is on television every weeknight as host of the Tonight Show, performs his new material every Sunday night in front of a live audience to test what will and what won’t work on his show.
Don’t give away your power to your family or friends. Sometimes those who are closest to us can become a little jealous, and it is important to be aware of this. They also tend not to give out constructive criticism that might help us, because they are afraid of hurting our feelings.
When I was performing at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles, it was always my family or friends who would get to my shows late. They would disrupt the audience by choosing a front row table. Then, usually in the middle of my act, they would point at their watches, mouthing the words “gotta go, we’re late.” They would stand up, and totally disrupt the audience as they proceeded to make their way to the exit. When I think about it now, it’s funny, but at the time it was embarrassing. I am telling you this, because I want you to follow your own thoughts and instincts about what is right for your comedy act.
I learned a big lesson from this. Now whenever I invite friends or family to one of my shows I tell them my performance is a half an hour before it actually is scheduled to be.
STYLES OF HUMOR AND THEIR DEFINITIONS
There are many styles of comedy, a wide variety for you to pick and choose. I recommend you study and learn how to use improvisation in addition to any other styles you would like to try, because it is one of the easiest and most flexible styles to use. It can become an indispensable tool for you as a performer on stage, because should you make a mistake or forget a line, it gives you the ability to improvise on the spot. Classes on improvisational comedy are easy to find and most allow the student to take the learning process at his or her own pace. Improvisation can also be an aid to writing comedy. Through its use, you will find yourself coming up with more unplanned comedy on stage. Though this unplanned comedy may not all work in front of an audience, what does work can later be incorporated into your scripted comedy material.
Improvisation and all other types of comedy have rhythm, beats and involve a joke – something that makes the listener laugh – or so the performer hopes.
“I love my mom. She is the best mom in the whole world. She says she has only one little problem.”
Wait one to three beats, then say “ME!”
Improvisational Styles:
Physical/Environmental Humor:
Improvisational style also includes physical/environmental humor, because you are using an event that happened to you or something that occurred while people were watching you, such as a classroom, lunchroom or around a dinner table. Take the moment, the situation or the mistake and poke fun at it.
Example: Let us say you accidentally break your mother’s vase, a vase filled with flowers. You then look up at her and say, “Mom, now let’s be adults and look at this calmly. Tell me, how do you see this vase,” (wait three beats*) “half broken or half fixed?”
By using these techniques, you take a mistake that might have been embarrassing and turn it into something that is funny. The chances are good that people will be laughing with you, not at you. You take an embarrassing situation and turn it into a funny moment.
Another example of this technique is the following:
Example: Say you fart in class. Look at the person next to you and say, “OH MY, WHAT DID YOU HAVE FOR LUNCH?”
Of course, they may never talk to you again.
If the person should reply and say something like “peas,” you might improvise the following line:
“Thanks for letting me know, I’ll be sure not to have that for lunch tomorrow.”
In situations like this, there is no failing, in fact if you do not get a laugh, just keep adding stuff on top of it.
For instance: “Are you sure it was just the peas? I hear the mashed potatoes are deadly too,” (beat, then raise your hand and say) “OH NURSE!”
Improvisational Comedy:
Here is an example of regular improvisational comedy:
You are on stage and begin your comedy by asking people questions. You warm them up by saying “hello”, and then you ask them questions about where they live, how old they are, where they go to school, etc. This warms the audience up, gives them a chance to feel comfortable with you, and it gives you the chance to find something humorous you can respond to from their life in order to personalize the joke to them.
Example:
Where are you from? Oh San Francisco. I love that town because I love scary rides. It’s the only city where you get a free earthquake with every meal.
Here is an example of sarcastic comedy:
How old are you? Sixteen. I have a brother who’s sixteen ... going on thirty. I feel so sorry for you! It must be hard having your driver’s license, going out on dates every Friday night, while still living at home, not having to pay rent. (LOOK AT AUDIENCE) Don’t we all wish we had his problem?
Sean, 6 years old
This was his style of comedy:
Warming Up the Audience:
Even if you are performing for people you know, you should always introduce yourself. Fill in the blanks below
Example: Hi, my name is __ I’m __ years old. I live in the city of __ and I love cars. Who else out there loves cars? Let me see a show of hands. (You can use any subject you want as a warm up).
Types of Comedy:
A.) Environmental Comedy – talking about events that happen in your own personal life and your school, town or city everyday.
B.) Family Comedy – making jokes about your family and family life.
C.) Improvisational Comedy – non-scripted humor off the top of your head.
D.) Scripted Comedy – humor that is written out and rehearsed prior to performing.
E.) Ethnic Comedy – poking fun at your heritage or somebody else’s.
F.) Protective Comedy for Kids – using comedy as a shield or a weapon against those that might hurt you with their own humor or words.
G.) Personal Comedy – comedy that comes from events that happen to you in your own personal life.
H.) Political Comedy – making fun of the world, and how others run it.
I.) Illogical Comedy – humor based upon observations of things and events that do not make sense to you in life.
J.) Physical Comedy – humor resulting from the use of body language.
K.) Emotional Comedy – using an emotion to express humor or to emphasize a punch line.
L.) Wishful Thinking/Comparative Comedy – basing humor upon wishing to be someone or something that you are not, e.g., rich, blonde, a different body, a super athlete.
M.) Competitive Comedy – topping other people or yourself.
N.) Neurotic Comedy – paranoid/feeling you are never enough/trying to do the right thing but always screwing it up comedy.
O.) Dead Pan Comedy – humor done in a straight monotone voice.
P.) Straight Man Comedy – The straight man is the one who sets up the humor for the funny man without actually making a joke himself.
Q.) Comedy Team – consists of a straight man and a funny man or two or more comics working together.
R.) Comedy Isn’t Pretty – taking bad things that happen and turning them around to be funny.
S.) Romantic Comedy – appealing to the heart but in a humorous way.
T.) Insult Comedy – making fun of others or yourself.
U.) Character Comedy – doing comedy as a character.
V.) Warming up the Audience – interacting with the audience at the beginning of your comedy routine or as the first act to appear before the audience on stage, i.e., being the Warm Up Act.
W.) Impressionistic Comedy – doing impressions of others, usually famous people, but with a humorous twist.
Remember comedy comes in threes:
One: Set up your joke.
Two: Take the proper number of beats.
Three: Deliver the punch line.
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Definitions Used in All Chapters
* Beat = taking an actual breath or using your own rhythm of speech to punctuate the last line of speech of what we call the punch line of the joke. It does not have to be an extremely funny joke in order for you to relay to the audience that you have the situation under control and can laugh at yourself. A beat can also be the time to say the word “beat” in your head or it can be the rhythm you use in your jokes.
For Example: one beat, two beat, three beats. Whether you say one beat, two beat or three beats in your head, it is the rhythm that feels most comfortable to you that is most important. It is the rhythm that sets how you deliver your jokes.
Beats: Using your own rhythm while speaking and adding beats for punctuation. A beat is pausing the moment before saying the punch line, a funny line within the joke or pausing between words and sentences. You can say the word beat in your head for each beat or you can take a breath.
Example: (one beat, two beats, three beats) or (one dog, two dogs, three dogs) equals three beats. Keep in mind you are saying the words silently.