# The "Why was that funny?" thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 8, 2013, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672 "2013-10-08T12:52:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/1 "2013-10-08T12:52:27Z")
Here’s the thread for you to put down all those jokes, scenes, etc that people found funny but you’re mystified as to what they were laughing about. I’ll start… In an episode of WKRP, a friend of Loni Anderson’s character died, leaving her a video-taped testimonial of some sort. The lawyer asked her if she had a VCR, and she looked at him and said “Yes, two.” The laugh track was cued. Well, 30+ years later… I still don’t get it. Why was that funny? ---
**Author:** ![WreckingCrew](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wreckingcrew/32/4080_2.png) [@WreckingCrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WreckingCrew)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/2 "2013-10-08T13:01:57Z")
My only guess is that episode aired in 1981, when VCRs were new and cost a lot, maybe $800-$1000. So for Jennifer to have two of them was a sign of her extravagant lifestyle/the types of gifts her suitors gave her. Still not really funny though. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/3 "2013-10-08T13:03:03Z")
Remember there were a number of references to Jennifer dating elderly sugar daddies. In 1981, when that program aired, home video was not that common, and the units were hich as heck. When I got my two-head VHS in 1984, it was almost $400! Three years earlier, I expect they would have been much more expensive–and secretary Jennifer had TWO of them (possibly gifts from some of her geriatric dates). My take, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/4 "2013-10-08T13:05:01Z")
It’s kind of obvious Jennifer was an escort in her off duty hours. She probably worked at the station just so she’d have a visible means of support. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/5 "2013-10-08T13:12:38Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > Remember there were a number of references to Jennifer dating elderly sugar daddies. In 1981, when that program aired, home video was not that common, and the units were hich as heck. When I got my two-head VHS in 1984, it was almost $400! Three years earlier, I expect they would have been much more expensive–and secretary Jennifer had TWO of them (possibly gifts from some of her geriatric dates). > > My take, anyway. Hell, a good one was still upwards of $150 bucks in about 1999-2000! ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/6 "2013-10-08T13:40:37Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Well, 30+ years later… I still don’t get it. Why was that funny? You had to have been there. I had a neighbor about that time who had several VCRs in a stack, and was busily making illegal copies to sell. Video stores didn’t exist, commercial tapes were costly, but people were starting to buy players. I’m trying to remember the movie, made just a few years after WKRP – and as sure as God is my witness, someone will remind us of the title – the main theme was the attraction of breaking into a rich man’s house and stealing his DVD player. Wow, a DVD PLAYER, better than diamonds! Jennifer once dated the “appliance king,” and her kitchen had every appliance possible. There was the popcorn popper, the deep fat fryer, the toaster, the rotisserie, the apple corer… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/7 "2013-10-08T14:33:10Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > Remember there were a number of references to Jennifer dating elderly sugar daddies. In 1981, when that program aired, home video was not that common, and the units were hich as heck. When I got my two-head VHS in 1984, it was almost $400! Three years earlier, I expect they would have been much more expensive–and secretary Jennifer had TWO of them (possibly gifts from some of her geriatric dates). Exactly. Part of the running joke of Jennifer’s character was that she only dated really wealthy guys (who were also, invariably, old guys). There was an episode in which her childhood sweetheart (Hoyt Axton) shows up, and we learn that she grew up dirt-poor in West Virgina. There’s another episode of WKRP in which she starts dating a studly young guy, and thinks she might be falling in love, but he’s **poor** , and, in fact, she realizes that he’s dating her to get at her money. And, yeah, in 1980, VCRs were still not common in American households, and were still quite expensive. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/8 "2013-10-08T14:42:19Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > It’s kind of obvious Jennifer was an escort in her off duty hours. She probably worked at the station just so she’d have a visible means of support. [From Wiki.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Marlowe) > [@](#): > > She rarely dates younger men, claiming “I like older men better. They’re so mature and kind, and they tire easily.” ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/9 "2013-10-08T15:59:03Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > It’s kind of obvious Jennifer was an escort in her off duty hours. She probably worked at the station just so she’d have a visible means of support. That’s the evil-minded view. It was noted that Jennifer was the highest-paid employee at the station, never asked for any of the gifts the rich old men gave her and in fact turned down the money Col. Buchanan wanted to leave her. In fact, she was a sweet, simple girl from West Virginia who turned down Ronald Reagan’s offer to make her Secretary of the Treasury. Having said all that, I’d still take Bailey in a heartbeat. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/10 "2013-10-08T16:14:47Z")
Parenthetically, I bought season 1 of WKRP when they finally released it on DVD a few years ago (though a lot of the original music was replaced with sound-alike stuff). Some of the episodes and humor hold up pretty well after 30+ years (including, of course, “As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly”), but others show their age – especially the jokes and episodes about gender roles around Jennifer and Bailey (“she’s just a girl, she doesn’t know how to do anything”). ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/11 "2013-10-08T16:50:35Z")
The one that comes to mind for me is the “Puffy Shirt” episode of _Seinfeld_. Jerry explains to Kramer that he doesn’t want to wear the ridiculous shirt on TV and Kramer tells him it will be cool because he’ll look like a pirate. Jerry cries, “But I don’t want to be a pirate!” and there’s a big laugh. I never got it because it wasn’t a particularly funny line - I always assumed it referenced something, but I never knew what. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/12 "2013-10-08T16:56:15Z")
_Monkey Business_ with Cary Grant and Marilyn Monroe, has this exchange: MM: I’m so glad I found you. CG: No, I found you. (He extends his arms with his palms facing forward and his fingers pointing up). Pick a finger. MM: (Looking upset or embarrassed) Dr. Fulton! CG: Oh, you know that one. MM: Yes. CG: Oh, what a pity. I’ve seen online people claiming to get the joke, but no plausible explanation so far. ---
**Author:** ![aNewLeaf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ac91a4/32.png) [@aNewLeaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aNewLeaf)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/13 "2013-10-08T17:02:37Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Having said all that, I’d still take Bailey in a heartbeat. Bailey over Jennifer, easy choice. That’s like picking Mary Ann over Ginger. But what about Bailey vs Mary Ann? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/14 "2013-10-08T17:03:48Z")
> [@](#): > > Monkey Business with Cary Grant and Marilyn Monroe, has this exchange: > > MM: I’m so glad I found you. > CG: No, I found you. (He extends his arms with his palms facing forward and his fingers pointing up). Pick a finger. > MM: (Looking upset or embarrassed) Dr. Fulton! > CG: Oh, you know that one. > MM: Yes. > CG: Oh, what a pity. > > I’ve seen online people claiming to get the joke, but no plausible explanation so far. The only explanation I have for that is: Official Blonde I.Q. Test: Hold up your hand and tell a blonde to pick a finger. After she does, shake your hand and tell her to find it again. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/15 "2013-10-08T17:05:03Z")
> [@aNewLeaf](#): > > Bailey over Jennifer, easy choice. That’s like picking Mary Ann over Ginger. > > But what about Bailey vs Mary Ann? :dubious: Bailey. Next question? ---
**Author:** ![Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Licentious_Ectomorph)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/16 "2013-10-08T17:14:55Z")
The Big Bang Theory ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/17 "2013-10-08T17:20:05Z")
> [@woodstockbirdybird](#): > > Bailey. Next question? Penny or Alex? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/18 "2013-10-08T22:43:23Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > That’s the evil-minded view. It was noted that Jennifer was the highest-paid employee at the station, never asked for any of the gifts the rich old men gave her and in fact turned down the money Col. Buchanan wanted to leave her. In fact, she was a sweet, simple girl from West Virginia who turned down Ronald Reagan’s offer to make her Secretary of the Treasury. > > Having said all that, I’d still take Bailey in a heartbeat. Jennifer was also deeply religious and was revealed to have memorized the entire Bible and could reference any chapter and verse on request. While she may have dated extensively, there was no indication that she was a sex worker. As for “I don’t wanna be a pirate!” it was only funny because of Jerry’s petulant whiny tone. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/19 "2013-10-08T22:54:02Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > In an episode of WKRP, a friend of Loni Anderson’s character died, leaving her a video-taped testimonial of some sort. The lawyer asked her if she had a VCR, and she looked at him and said “Yes, two.” The laugh track was cued. > > Well, 30+ years later… I still don’t get it. Why was that funny? I think she said “I have several”, which is a little funny, given the context. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2013, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672/20 "2013-10-08T23:54:20Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Having said all that, I’d still take Bailey in a heartbeat. Me, too, but I always wondered if it was partly because Bailey was “obtainable” for someone like me who wasn’t old, rich and loaded, like the ones that Jennifer dated. And Bailey’s shyness and lack of confidence was an attraction to some males who thought they could “teach” her; Jennifer was unteachable and unreachable to all but the elite. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-why-was-that-funny-thread/670672.md?page=2)