# Humor that doesn’t age well **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comedian-jokes\ **Created:** [August 29, 2021, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723 "2021-08-29T13:07:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/141 "2021-09-03T02:55:02Z")
> [@cmkeller](#): > > You have a much more expansive definition of those two terms that I do. _Ace Ventura: Pet Detective_ is a motion picture that is often cited as an example of transphobia in movies. _Sleepaway Camp_(1982), _Death Hunt_(1981), and _Crocodile Dundee_(1986) are often cited as well. > [@aceplace57](#): > > Makes me sad that genre can never be made again. They made _American Pie_ in 1999. Don’t they still make those kinds of movies today? > [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > When I look at those 1980s tits & zits comedies, what I see is Baby Boomer producers working against long-dead conventions of sexual repression from their youth, by exploiting Gen-X actors who had to pay their dues in these grotesqueries until they could do the serious work they’d trained for. Generation X wasn’t born until the 1960s and by and large they weren’t starring in those sex comedies of the 1980s. Kim Cattrall of _Porky’s_ was born in 1951, Robert Carradine of _Revenge of the Nerds_ was born in 1954, and Diane Franklin of _The Last American Virgin_ was born in 1962. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/142 "2021-09-03T10:25:31Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > In the mid 70’s my father threatened to throw me out of the house for dancing. I stand corrected! Wow. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/143 "2021-09-03T16:12:25Z")
My mother’s high school had a graduation dinner. They couldn’t have a prom. This was in 1949. I don’t think the policy changed until the late 1960’s. Dirty Dancing is based on people’s real experiences. It bothers me that today’s humor is so heavily scrutinized. Some of our greatest comedians like George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor, Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Williams, and Billy Crystal wouldn’t have a career today. They would all be rejected by social media. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/144 "2021-09-03T16:57:37Z")
“Lenny Bruce would not have a career today, unlike the fabulous success he had as a standup in the '60s!” If you want to argue that things are more oppressive today than they used to be, maybe don’t use an example of a guy in the '60s who was literally put on trial for his standup routine? Also, _Billy Crystal_? ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/145 "2021-09-03T17:07:29Z")
It’s shameful. The former President of the United States deserves a modicum of respect. Calling the cocksucker names helps no one. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/146 "2021-09-03T17:11:48Z")
Billy Crystal has talked about his admiration of the old Borscht Belt comedians. It’s heavily influenced his work. Alan King, Jackie Mason, and Mel Brooks had similar careers. I love that type of humor. I doubt it would be accepted today. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/147 "2021-09-03T17:27:54Z")
Crystal did blackface to play Sammy Davis Jr. But of course the greats of comedy would have a career today. They were super-talented. They would just adjust their comedy to the times, exactly as they did back then. Remember that Carlin was a short-haired, non-controversial, mainstream comic until the late 60s changed the scene. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/148 "2021-09-03T17:33:56Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Crystal did blackface to play Sammy Davis Jr. Sure, but it wasn’t exactly a cornerstone of his act - it’s not like, “You can’t do blackface,” would hamstring his career the way, say, “You can’t do sexist nursery rhymes,” would hamstring Andrew Clay. At any rate, I think it’s pretty safe that if Billy Crystal were starting his standup career today, “Sammy Davis Junior” impressions would not feature heavily in his act for a variety of reasons, and not just “sensitive audiences.” ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/149 "2021-09-03T17:44:07Z")
Yeah but he might have done Kanye instead. And don’t forget this “mainstay.” > **[Tom Scharpling destroys Billy Crystal’s cluelessly racist “old jazzman” routine](https://www.avclub.com/tom-scharpling-destroys-billy-crystal-s-cluelessly-raci-1798246562)** > > One of the weirdest mainstays of Billy Crystal’s stand-up act, something he’s been doing since the 1970s, is his portrayal of a withered old African-American jazz musician. To play the character, Crystal scrunches up his face, affects a raspy voice,... Crystal grew up in a jazz producer’s house and saw old jazzmen constantly. He considered it a tribute. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/150 "2021-09-03T17:55:43Z")
Yeah, okay, black face was a bigger part of his act than I remembered. He also had that Fernando character that had a lot of gay-coded mannerisms. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/151 "2021-09-03T18:03:54Z")
Okay, a type of humor that hasn’t aged well, that’s not specifically racist/sexist/whatever? Third act bullshit. _Stripes_ is a solid, reasonably grounded comedy about a couple of fuck-ups learning how to be mature in boot camp, and they fuck it up with the third act where they take a militarized Winnebago on a joyride through Eastern Germany. _Trading Places_ is a sharp commentary on wall street and race relations, whose third act climax revolves around this group of smart, savvy people undertaking a dangerous, illegal scheme to manipulate the stock market and ruin two of the richest men in America, and their plan to do this by dressing up in funny costumes and doing goofy accents. ---
**Author:** ![veryfrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/87869e/32.png) [@veryfrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/veryfrank)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/152 "2021-09-03T18:15:26Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Crystal did blackface to play Sammy Davis Jr. > **[Sammy Davis' daughter: My dad's smiling at Billy Crystal's blackface...](https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/sammy-davis-daughter-my-dads-smiling-billy-crystals-blackface-impersonation-flna275853)** She doesn’t speak for every African American, obviously, but I’ll take her word for it about her dad’s opinion. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/153 "2021-09-03T18:16:29Z")
1. It was a GMC, not a Winnebago. 2. They invade Czechoslovakia, not East Germany. 3. The joyride was through Austria. 4. They were dealing commodities, not stocks. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/154 "2021-09-03T18:17:42Z")
Counterpoint: Winnebago is a funnier word. As would have just about any other idea for the third act of that movie. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/155 "2021-09-03T18:20:11Z")
Granted. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/156 "2021-09-03T18:41:32Z")
She’s literally a special case, with personal ties to Crystal. And she said that back in 2012, almost another era. I don’t doubt that what she said was true. I also don’t doubt that that no longer matters to the world. ---
**Author:** ![veryfrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/87869e/32.png) [@veryfrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/veryfrank)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/157 "2021-09-03T18:47:43Z")
Agreed. And 1984/5 when he was on SNL, was several other eras ago. Raking him over the coals for the old footage seems kind of pointless, but it’s stunningly unwise on his part to revive the impression. ---
**Author:** ![Soosie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Soosie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soosie)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/158 "2021-09-03T19:55:18Z")
That was so dead I don’t know how anyone in any decade can find that funny ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/159 "2021-09-03T20:40:17Z")
1. The legality of the scheme was not cut and dried at the time - at the time, trading on inside info in the commodities markets was legal - see the “Eddie Murphy Rule” [https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-MB-18853](https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-MB-18853) > We have recommended banning using misappropriated government information to trade in the commodity markets. In the movie “Trading Places,” starring Eddie Murphy, the Duke brothers intended to profit from trades in frozen concentrated orange juice futures contracts using an illicitly obtained and not yet public Department of Agriculture orange crop report. Characters played by Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd intercept the misappropriated report and trade on it to profit and ruin the Duke brothers. In real life, using such misappropriated government information actually is not illegal under our statute. To protect our markets, we have recommended what we call the “Eddie Murphy” rule to ban insider trading using nonpublic information misappropriated from a government source. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2021, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723/160 "2021-09-03T21:13:13Z")
I heavily agree with this. There’s so many great episodes of The Simpsons or King of the Hill where the 3rd act is all story resolution/drama and practically no jokes. Makes them hard to rewatch. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/humor-that-doesn-t-age-well/949723.md?page=9)