Comic Blames Text Messaging On Lack Of Laughs

from the we-hope-he's-joking dept

A few years ago, some folks in Hollywood started complaining that text messaging was destroying the movie business. Their argument was that kids would see a movie and immediately text their friends saying how bad it was. In the past, it would take at least a week or so before the word of mouth messaging got around to let people not to go see a movie. However, with text messaging, apparently people would find out very quickly and not buy tickets. Of course, there was a simple solution: make better movies, because the same effect works both ways. However, now it appears that an offshoot of this complaint has reached a different industry. Textually reports that a comedian is complaining that text messaging is ruining his act, because people are sending his jokes on by SMS. The first night, his jokes kill, but after that everyone knows his jokes. Of course, you have to wonder how good a comic he is if his jokes lose all of their humor once known. A good comedian should also have timing and presentation on his or her side. Besides, how many people in the audience are seriously texting around all the jokes he makes? It seems that a much more likely reason for the lack of laughs was that he just wasn't particularly funny.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  • identicon
    Chris, 30 Jan 2006 @ 5:25am

    No Subject Given

    All I know is no matter how often I hear Dane Cook's acts, or any other decent comedian's, they're still funny as the first time I heard them, if not more.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      gb, 30 Jan 2006 @ 6:09am

      Re: No Subject Given

      This is probably about Dane Cook. He is the least funny and the most unoriginal "comic" in the business. be funny and you don't need to worry about getting slammed through any medium!

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Vasco DaGameboy, 30 Jan 2006 @ 6:17am

        Re: No Subject Given

        I agree completely about Dane Cook. There's nothing funny about him. In fact, SMS might actually improve his act, if someone were sending you Mitch Hedberg's jokes. However, this is about a British comedian. Just taking one look at him with that golfball in his mouth and wire basket on his head had me rolling (yeah, right.) Can't you see the SMS now: ...and then the bloke put a wire bawsket on 'is 'ead! Jolly good fun!

        Outlaw the Blackberry and save comedy!!!!

        link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          Ben, 30 Jan 2006 @ 6:37am

          Whats up with the comedian bashing

          Come on people, you don't need to bash on any comedians here. Humor is the point, If a comedian can't do his own jokes better than someone over there texts then maybe they shouldnt be in standup.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        David, 30 Jan 2006 @ 7:13am

        Re: No Subject Given

        I can see how you would say Dane Cook is unoriginal.Yeah.........cause every comedian out there has tales about doing battle with a monkey that can talk and drive a van........

        Nobody is telling you that you have to like him but at least give the guy some credit.

        SMS can help distribute a joke this is true.......but as it was said before. A good comedian does not rely on the joke but the delivery.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          penguin, 30 Jan 2006 @ 7:28am

          thank god for TXT!

          who the hell cares about comedians. Humor's a pretty subjective thing anyway.
          What I can't get enough of is how execs are blaming word of mouth for bad box office numbers instead of their crappy movies. Texting just keeps me from wasting my money.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          Saint, 30 Jan 2006 @ 10:50am

          Re: No Subject Given

          "Nobody is telling you that you have to like him but at least give the guy some credit."

          He gets no credit. The fact is he's a hack comic and all good comics agree.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Jason Feld, 30 Jan 2006 @ 8:07am

        Re: No Subject Given

        ARE YOU HIGH!!!!????
        Dane cook is the funniest comic out there right now

        link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          Willie Nelson, 30 Jan 2006 @ 9:44am

          Re: No Subject Given

          I AM high. Huh?

          link to this | view in chronology ]

          • identicon
            Raymond Craven, 30 Jan 2006 @ 10:15am

            Re: No Subject Given

            how is it different than using a phone or email to tell people that movies suck?

            link to this | view in chronology ]

            • identicon
              Anonymous Coward, 30 Jan 2006 @ 10:44am

              Re: No Subject Given

              Because phones and emails aren't new. I can't blame Sputnick for my sex life; comics can't blame email for their lack of humor.

              link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          Anonymous Coward, 30 Jan 2006 @ 10:52am

          Re: No Subject Given

          "Dane cook is the funniest comic out there right now"

          Obviously you don't follow the comedy scene if you think he's the BEST out there.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          Sully, 30 Jan 2006 @ 12:38pm

          Re: No Subject Given

          Comedian name drop time!

          Lenny Bruce was funny...Bill Hicks was funny...Mitch Hedberg was funny...Doug Stanhope is funny...etc etc.

          Dane Cook is the flavor of the week. My guess is Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla's deal with Satan was bought out.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

          • identicon
            Anonymous Coward, 30 Jan 2006 @ 11:21pm

            Re: No Subject Given

            Wow the top selling comedy CD in 25 years qualifies you for..... flavor of the week?
            I'm sorry, before I laugh next time I'll be sure to check your list, you master of all things comedy.

            link to this | view in chronology ]

            • identicon
              Sully, 31 Jan 2006 @ 12:46pm

              Re: No Subject Given

              I could care less how many people buy his album(s). A lot of people buy the Blue Collar Comedy albums too. Alot of people bought Macarena albums.

              So yes, I suppose the top selling comedy album in 25 years, can make you the flavor of the week. Just because it's popular doesn't make it great, and just because it's unpopular doesn't make it great. That list is my opinion. Dane Cook being the flavor of the week is my opinion/prediction. Sure, I could be wrong. But it's going to take more than album sales to convince me.

              link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Saint, 30 Jan 2006 @ 10:47am

      Re: No Subject Given

      lol, Dane Cook is not a decent comedian by any legitimate standards.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    BJUProf, 30 Jan 2006 @ 5:41am

    Blame technology

    We love scapegoats in our country. Everything is somebody else's fault. Text messages, file sharing, VCR's, radio, Phonograph records....all things that were touted as the "death" of some industry or another and they ended up doing nothing but making things even better for the concerned industries...to those who learned to use them.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    smg, 30 Jan 2006 @ 6:11am

    No Subject Given

    now THAT is funny, it may be that comedians best joke...

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Randolph Carter, 30 Jan 2006 @ 6:16am

    It's quite simple really...

    Stan Boardman isn't funny. At all. If this _really_ was a problem, then how can I rewatch old episodes of Red Dwarf, or listen to the same episode of 'Just A Minute' a few times a week and still laugh.

    While I still kinda see his point, we saw Dylan Moran here in Munich doing pretty much the same set as his live DVD, and it was still funny as hell.

    Stan - just do some more 'celebrity' 'reality' TV-shows.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Just Me, 30 Jan 2006 @ 6:19am

    The Aristocrats!

    This is the best example of your point. A good comedian can still get huge laughs - even the 30th time the same joke is told in the movie.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      lar3ry, 30 Jan 2006 @ 6:38am

      Re: The Aristocrats!

      I agree. Henny Youngman was the epitome of the fallacy of the comedian's complaint.

      A lot of the great verbal humorists are gone. Groucho Marx, Fred Allen, Jack Benny, Bob Hope... they could have you in stitches on radio, on television, and on the stage. Later on, Lenny Bruce was the master, and Richard Pryor was finding new material to keep people laughing.

      I think things changed during the era of the "comedian superstar," which gave us Steve Martin and Robin Williams... not the same as the older ones, but still, their humor still worked on records and during stand-up.

      If your comedy sucks because people know the punchlines, it means your delivery sucks, plain and simple. People still watch Monty Python after all these years, and they know every line by heart. Learn to do the soft shoe like Johnny Carson when a joke goes flat, or come up with a real "off the cuff" ad-lib to keep your audience guessing. It may not be rocket science, but comedy does take skill.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        road, 30 Jan 2006 @ 7:04am

        Re: The Aristocrats!

        Dane Cook have you even heard his unedited act. The guy is hilarious. But maybe when you get past 40 your sense of humor goes down the drain with your looks and sex life. http://www.danecook.com/ as far as unoriginal I've never heard anything like his bit.

        Back to the topic at hand, if you’re going to bash text messaging you may as well bash any form of communication. I can get out of a movie call my friend and tell him it’s the worse thing sense the movie White Chicks. Word of mouth should be considered to be a good thing and not bashed by some no talent ass clown.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Ben McNelly, 30 Jan 2006 @ 7:45am

    No Subject Given

    I am surprised word of mouth isnt under fire...
    Hollywood Exec: d*** kids now days! Bloggin, texting, writing reviews on websites, and now this!!! Going to school and work and telling people our movie sucked!!!
    Hollywood brainchild: This is a simple fix... We just need to eliminate free speech!
    Hollywood Exec: I like it! Totalitarian entertainment... Just what I have been looking for!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Mousky, 30 Jan 2006 @ 7:51am

    Lets Blame Technology - The TV Show

    Previously on "Lets Blame Technology":

    Filesharing will kill the music industry as we know it.

    Google Book Search will destroy sales of books.

    ISPs want content providers to pay for using their "pipe".

    Today on "Lets Blame Technology":

    Comics see decline in humor; blame text messaging

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Jeremy Boyd, 30 Jan 2006 @ 8:04am

    Given the title...

    Comic Blames Text Messaging On Lack Of Laughs
    Now this is more plausible. I know when I get bored at live shows I start texting.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Dano, 30 Jan 2006 @ 9:30am

    hmm..

    calling stan boardman a comedian is seriously pushing the definition. he's about as funny as watching your kid get hit by a bus.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    haggie, 30 Jan 2006 @ 9:43am

    No Subject Given

    If he has a comedy CD and/or a DVD. Shouldn't the RIAA/MPAA be out there protecting his copywritten material?

    I think that the only appropriate solution is to shutdown all of the cell SMS systems in order to prevent this blatant thievery of comedic material from destroying a whole industry!

    If you tell a joke, you are a criminal!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    tommyboy, 1 Aug 2006 @ 2:14pm

    Dane Cook Sucks A Big One

    Anyone that thinks Dane Cook is funny should have there head examined. This guy is a tool. He brainwashed college kids through his web site to believe that he was the MAN. Which is total bull. This guy has a huge data base of robot fans that will pay to see him , and they only pay $17 to see him , if you don't believe me check out any college he has ever played at, but he has absolutely zero talent. The last time I was in New York I hung out at the "New York Comedy Club" and saw a comedian named "Robert Bella" , a cross between Steve Martin and Rodney Dangerfield , the funniest comic I have seen in years !!!! You want to laugh , see this guy , believe me you will thank me for the rest of your life. Make sure you call to see if he is performing , that way you don't go there just to see the average comedians.

    link to this | view in chronology ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.