[lbo-talk] Jerry Lewis as worst-case scenario[wasRe:PrivateHateMail Gang Up]

Dennis Perrin dperrin at comcast.net
Sat Sep 10 16:46:33 PDT 2005



> So as a student of comedy - how many comics are dark, twisted people?
> Most? Many? Significant minority?
>
> Doug

There have been/are so many comics that it's impossible to say. You don't have to be tortured to be a good, or even great comic, but in my experience, it seems to help. Wanting to make strangers laugh is a weird compulsion, though there are those who care little for the audience and wish only to impress a select few (some of The Simpsons' writers fit this description). For most it's a form of seeking acceptance, and I've seen comics so desperate for acclaim that, onstage, they turn their personal lives into an unflushed toilet: "I'm much worse than you! My life's a fucking freak show! Laugh at me!"

But then, those are the artists. The rest could be selling shoes, and in many cases, should.

Dennis



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