Finding ourselves between series to stream, we’ve been watching several standup specials on Netflix. Maybe we’ve just been watching too many in too short of a time, but lately we realized than several of them just strike us as being really sad people. Has it always been so?
I know many comedians in the past have abused substances and talked about therapy, rehab, and their troubled family/romantic relations. But I think I previously caught more of the wry/cynical/bemused observer vibe that I’m seeing over specials filmed in the last few years.
Anyone else perceive a similar trend?
(IME, taste in comedy is extremely individual. But if folk wish, we can discuss specific comedians/specials.)
Comedians ARE unhappy people in real life, so it is said. (look at Robin Williams). Being honest about their struggles in a humorous way connects them with the audience as Bozo the Clown really can’t any more.
I think comedians are trying hard to connect with people who feel disconnected in our era. Talking about therapy is a great way to do that even if you do not go to therapy. I don’t go, but if I had to get up in front of many strangers every night I’d talk about my problems to connect with them even if I didn’t have any.
Talking about mental health doesn’t have the stigma it used to as well, and like Kyle Kinane says, 'We’re all broken toys up here."
What are some examples of “happy” comedians from the past?
Maybe your perspective has changed over the years. But let’s talk about what you’re comparing current stand-up routines to from yesteryear, and we all may get a better sense of what’s being discussed.
I cannot remember the details of any of this but I recall seeing an interview with a newly minted movie star. The interviewer asked him what had surprised him once he became famous. The person responded that he was surprised at how depressing most comedians were and not very fun to hang out with.
I have never been much of a fan of standup comedy. The jokes seem few, far between, and often very forced and stereotyped. Especially if it is ‘improv’.
For me, things which are really funny often just strike from left field… you can’t predict or script them. Certainly not on demand, on stage.
Happy comedians from the past: Harpo Marx, Jack Benny, George Burns, Gracie Allen. Martin Short’s life was happy until his wife passed away, and he still has his best friend Steve Martin keeping him active.
But there do seem to be many more unhappy than otherwise.
Yes, yes, that is well known. He also had an unhappy childhood and used drugs and alcohol extensively. His wikipedia page is very enlightening… There is a lot of evidence many comedians suffer from addiction and depression. A comedy club in California has actually provided a psychologist to counsel their talent for these issues.
While I have long heard that most comedians are unhappy, even depressed (despite the fact that many of them had a public/performance persona which was happy or upbeat), I think that there’s a difference between that, and what the OP seems to be talking about: comedians whose performance “persona” is actually sad or downbeat.
I confess, I watch very little standup these days, so I can’t really comment on whether it’s a trend these days.
To the OP - could you be so kind as to clarify this? I was also wondering if you were referring to the persona they present; or to you having some perception that they have an underlying sadness? (If the latter, what form would the perception take?
I’m in the UK, so perhaps this isn’t relevant to a perceived trend in the US, but we watch a shedload of live comedy, all types of standup, and I can’t think what there has been either a sad persona or an impression of underlying sadness about any of the comics we’ve seen; and, really, I’m struggling to see how you could make standup work if you had this.
Not all comedians are unhappy, but humor can be a defense mechanism and some comedians with really crappy lives have overdeveloped that.
Robin Williams has already been mentioned.
I’ve been listening to Christopher Titus a lot lately. I don’t know if he’s happy or not in his personal life at this point but it’s very clear he had an extremely chaotic upbringing and used humor to cope with a lot of it.
So the meme of the unhappy comedian has some truth to it but it’s not universal.
I agree with the general sentiment about sadness in this occupation. It seems almost a necessity for good comedy.
One exception I can think of is maybe Jerry Seinfeld, who was pretty funny in a contrived sort of way (I really did enjoy most of the Seinfeld series, except the episodes that were excessively narcissistic) but he always struck me as inauthentic. He engaged in the sort of observational humour that seemed superficially “witty” rather than genuine, as opposed to the authenticity of someone like George Carlin or, more recently, Taylor Tomlinson, both of whom seemed to speak from the soul. And then after Seinfeld, when the residuals rolled in and Jerry Seinfeld became a billionaire several times over, he became rich, happy, and in my view positively insufferable.
When very young, folk like Milton Berle, Sid Ceasar, Jenny Youngman, Alan King just told jokes. Someone like Don Rickles, Foster Brooks, Rodney Dangerfield, Phyllis Diller, Joan Rivers seemed to present exaggerated stage personas. Bill Cosby, David Brenner, Flip Wilson, Johnny Carson, George Carlin - they’d talk about divorce and drugs/drinking, but I never got the impression they were depressed. Folk like Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock, Richard Pryor clearly had issues, but impressed me more as angry than sad. Seinfeld didn’t talk about his emotions/therapy.
Not all modern comics are sad. Nate Bergatze presents wry observations, and Mike Birbiglia spins wonderful stories. Sarah Silverman is a hoot and Dave Chappelle is amazing.
But last night we watched Taylor Tomlinson - supposedly very hot right now. She described her parents as racist, her mom beat her with a wooden spoon, her dad offered her a knife when she threatened to kill herself, and other observations about her life and relations just came across as showing an underlying sadness. Pete Davidson and John Mulaney can be funny but sure have issues. Neal Brenna is pretty up front about his depression.
I’d have to look through my cue to give more names. We just say, “Wanna try this one?” Maybe we’ve watched too many in too short of a time that it seems there has been a lot of talk about about therapy and psychogenic medications.
Like I said, possibly not a lot more than ever, and maybe they are just more up front about it today. Also, we don’t tend to think about ourselves as prudes, but when we watch a few standups in a row, we quickly get enough of men/women graphically talking about genitals and assholes. Funny hos similar so many routines are.
You don’t have to guess. It’s indeed true that some people like stand up comedy.
His first special - sort of a funny one man show more than a comedy set - was called Norman Rockwell is Bleeding. He’s not afraid to be dark.
So, too, with Gary Gulman (one of my favorites).
…
It’s definitely a style, but it’s not ubiquitous. Just as Woody Allen was paranoid, some comedians are sad.
But not all. Burt Kreisher isn’t a sad man. Neither is Jim Gaffigan. Nate Bargatze was mentioned. Those are three pretty big names these days.
