Blog Post #9

This statement was released by Ronnie Willmarth's agent on November 17, 2011:

In his blog post titled, "Blog Post #7", Ronnie attempted to gently poke fun at the Ancient Greeks and in the process he used insensitive terms to describe their culture. He realizes that this was completely uncalled for and feels horrible about offending anyone who was offended by these offensive things. Ronnie is deeply, deeply sorry and is taking a personal sabbatical to work on his inner self.

This statement was released by Ronnie Willmarth's agent on November 17, 2011:

Hey everybody, I've just returned after taking an entire three lines off, and can honestly say I'm a changed man. Thanks to everyone who supported me during this time.

Alright, alright, seriously, it's me now. This mock celebrity-style apology was an example of modern satire, which means that fifty years ago nobody would have thought of it as humorous. Maybe you don't either. If that's the case, you should never have been born. No, wait...whoops! You should have been born fifty years ago. That's what I meant.

In the scheme of comedy history, I am incredibly thankful that I live during the 21st century because comedy is at a very exciting place right now; mainstream and alternative avenues are well-developed with both new and old styles being performed, not to mention that nearly every club in the country has indoor plumbing.

American comedy has been taking huge strides in the last hundred plus years. Let's take a look at a timeline:

We know where we came from, we know where we are, and we have no idea where we're going next. It's exciting! As I mentioned, both mainstream comedy and alternative comedy are popular, which is great. A quick definition of both:

Mainstream comedy: Traditionally rooted, the most popular construct of performance.

Think David Letterman/Jay Leno/Conan O'Brien, Television shows with laugh tracks, Brian Regan, Louis C.K.

Alternative comedy: Traditionally rooted, consciously breaking standardized performance.

Stuff like Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job, Demetri Martin, Anthony Jeselnik, Modern Family, anything especially Burlesque.

It's smart to stick to the bread and butter of your time, but comedians are also coming up with new ideas and experimenting. It keeps things from stagnating. We can watch "the Old" and still find it hilarious. A comic mixing "the Old" and "the New" brings fresh perspective, and one trying out "the New" is free to do so and uncover those precious few golden nuggets of genius that the general population approves of.

I suppose it's been this way every decade. It's growth. Learning. There's nothing new under the sun, and already it's apparent that comedy trends run in a circle. But hey, I've never been alive before I was born, so bring it on back and let me experience it in a new way.

Blog Post #8

When you're performing:

You can't be self-conscious.

You can't care at all how you look.

I was talking with some friends today, and I asked them what they felt the greatest asset of their personality was. We talked about each other's strong suits, and when it came to me they all said, "You're funny."

Dissatisfied, I said, "What does that mean? How is it an asset?"

After a pause: "People feel comfortable when you're around. You put them at ease."

I thought about it, and it's true.

Everybody is worried about saying the wrong thing, making an impression, not looking like an idiot. We comedians look like idiots, whether intentionally or not, and we accept it. When people see that, they relax. "Oh, good," they say. "They're looking like the idiot. Glad it's not me!" Hopefully they think about it and notice, "They aren't self-conscious. They don't care at all how they look. Maybe I don't have to either."

You can learn more about someone in an hour of play than a year of conversation. -Plato

Take your work seriously. Don't take yourself seriously. -My father

Blog Post #7

"SEPARATING THE COMEDIAN FROM THEIR WORK", OR, "'DO YOU ACTUALLY MEAN THAT?'"

Part 2 of 2

Today we will be examining an aspect of comedy that is both a blessing and a curse.

That aspect is negativity.

Negativity is powerful. It not only destroys, but stirs a motivated person to rebuild. There's something innately funny about yelling, hearing someone go on a rant, or ridiculing a social construct. Of course, as we discussed in the first few blog posts, these negative sentiments must ring true, not simply be unfounded emotional outbursts or the sounds of a fool spewing folly.

The way I write jokes for stand-up comedy is to probe my topic with these four questions:
What's weird about ______?
What's scary about ______?
What's hard about _______?
What's stupid about ______?

As you can see, these are all negative words. You would be offended if I used them to describe your personality. But, when I get on stage and show people what's weird, scary, hard, and stupid about human nature, our culture, technology, or myself, then they laugh.

Comedians always have a target, and they always aim for a head shot. When a comedian is doing well, the audience says that they're "killing it". Now you know why.

"Everything in moderation, nothing in excess"  -The Ancient Greeks

Oh yeah, Mr. Ancient Greek, with no right arm and a rusty butt-cheek? I say: "Everything in moderation, nothing in excess. Except moderation."

See, comedy is the opposite. Everything in comedy is excess. Even in deadpan or understated humor you still have an excess of something, perhaps sarcasm or drollness.

I often wonder, do I use this type of overstatement too much? Is my sarcasm funny and does it make the point I want it to? Or does it come off as negative, caustic and mean? That's the last thing I want, but sometimes I may be too sincere in my insincerity.

I think of Mark Twain, the most famous American satirist. There really is "truth in jest", but he believed the totality of his negative satire and was pessimistic and unhappy. I believe that negativity is funny because we know we live in a fallen existence, not a hopeless one. I wonder what heaven will be like when we laugh because of positivity.

Any satirical form of comedy requires insincerity. It serves as counterpoint, in a way. The key is to use it sparingly; as a tool instead becoming a tool of it. Honest, non-satirical relationships are more important in life than comedy, and you can't have them if you aren't a sincere person at your core.

On the flipside, people like to watch someone be in character. Even though you have a thousand sarcastic things to say about everything and everyone doesn't mean that you mean them. Sometimes you do and sometimes you don't. Maybe you're just saying it because it's funny.