Comedy Made Easy. David Kline Lovett
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is good for your health. Making someone laugh is not only beneficial for the person laughing, it’s beneficial for the person who created the humor! Laughter can be the cure for a bad mood. Depression can be lowered and often completely removed simply by laughing. There is a reason George Burns and Betty White were working and were productive into their nineties’. Their work was funny!
Funny People Have a Better Memory
We remember things best by using association. By linking what we want to remember with something else, we can remember these things more easily. It is much easier to remember by linking them with humor. Humor happens to be the easiest way of creating associations. Experts on memory teach that the more outrageous the association, the better the link and thus the longer and better the memory retention. When a speaker puts humor in a story, their point will be much more easily remembered.
Funny People Are Better Heard
A group of friends, a class, and/or an audience will listen better when humor is present. Who wants to listen to anything that is boring? That’s boring! Humor is a link for people to connect. For example, no matter where we come from or what language we speak, we can laugh at a Charlie Chaplin silent movie.
Funny People Are Better in Social Situations
You have or have heard someone who has said the wrong thing at the wrong time—the awkward situation where the person and maybe even a few of the people around them, wish they could disappear. Humor can save the day. For example, someone said something about a lady’s funny hat. The person next to them could say, “That’s my mom.” Another person could say, “That’s impossible because that’s my mom too.” In this example, a bit of humor and quick thinking saved the day.
Funny People Give Comic Relief
They don’t call it comic relief for nothing. Our mind can only focus on one thought at a time. When we fill our mind with humor it makes us feel good even at a time when we are feeling not so good. Laughter truly is the best medicine.
Funny People Are More Productive
It is true that we get more done with humor. When we make a job fun, it no longer is a job. We can work longer and not feel tired or bored. It’s easier to move and move faster. Time goes by more quickly when we are having a good time.
Funny People Use Humor to Speak Up
Comedy is a kind of free pass. With comedy you can say what is on your mind. You can make fun of the government, your in-laws, teachers, coaches, sports teams, and people who are hypocrites. It is more acceptable when done in a comedic manner. We can make fun of religion, politics, and pizza delivery. When you have a strong opinion, comedy is the place to say it; otherwise you need a big stick or really fast running shoes.
Conclusion
Let’s face it, even if you are one of the beautiful people, life is simply a whole lot better when you are funny. You get better service, better jobs, and better dates. It is a proven fact that funny people are more lucky more often. Laughter (the funny) is simply good for your health. The bottom line is, most all of us want more honey, more money, and a more healthy body to enjoy it. Humor is key.
Recap-Why Be Funny?
Funny people have a better life in many ways over their non-funny friends. Funny people in general enjoy these benefits:
1.Funny people have more friends.
2.Funny people are sexier.
3.Funny people make more money.
4.Funny people are smarter.
5.Funny people get better service.
6.Funny people have less tension and stress.
7.Funny people are healthier and live longer.
8.Funny people have a better memory.
9.Funny people are better heard.
10.Funny people are better in social situations.
11.Funny people give comic relief.
12.Funny people are more productive.
13.Funny people use humor to speak up.
Time To Play
Write about three times in your life where being funny was a benefit:
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II. Why We Laugh
“If I am not allowed to laugh in heaven, I don't want to go there.”
~ Martin Luther
Why we laugh is so important. By understanding why we laugh, you will understand how to get others to laugh. Your writing and delivery will have a purpose. With these insights it will be that much easier for you to successfully amuse, entertain, and enlighten.
We Laugh For Several Reasons
1.Discomfort
That’s right, we laugh when we are uncomfortable. Recall all the times you were in an awkward situation or close to it. Someone said something rude about a third person and you chuckled. The discomfort was caused by tension, the tension of being uncomfortable.
2.Surprise
Surprise is what gives you the big belly laughs; they are laughs where you just let it all out. The laughter can come so fast you don’t have a chance to even think about it. You laugh simply out of surprise. I will go into detail in the next chapter as to why the punchline MUST BE LAST. The technique used most to trigger surprise is misdirection.
3.Feeling Superior
Mel Helitzer in his book Comedy Writing Secrets wrote, “There appears to be a strong and constant need for us to feel superior.” In many ways, humor satisfies this most basic need. “Humor is a reaction to tragedy. The joke is at someone else’s expense,” wrote anthropologist Alan Dundes. We laugh when someone falls down. A person had the misfortune of falling down and we didn’t. Humor often ridicules the IQ of others, their social standing, or athletic ineptness. Our need to feel superior shows up when we ridicule places, cities, and countries. It shows up when we make fun of sports, hobbies, and politics.
4.Hostility