# Things that funny people know **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 22, 2012, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516 "2012-10-22T13:29:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/21 "2012-10-22T15:09:14Z")
I know that my funny mouth gets me into more trouble than anything else. I also recognize there’s a tiny bit of tragedy in there that I can’t seem to control it much of the time. \>.\< ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/22 "2012-10-22T15:15:49Z")
A fool laughs at a joke three times. First when he hears it. Second when he tells it. Third when he finally gets it. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/23 "2012-10-22T15:17:18Z")
Sometimes, even funny people aren’t funny. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Doom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Dr\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Doom)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/24 "2012-10-22T15:25:49Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Sometimes, even funny people aren’t funny. And some funny people end up being funny, even when they are making a conscious effort [NOT](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynmLdLwlgLI) to be. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/22080_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/25 "2012-10-22T15:51:24Z")
To quote Benjy Stone from [My Favorite Year](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084370/): > [@](#): > > On the funny side there are the Marx Brothers, except Zeppo; the Ritz Brothers, no exceptions; both Laurel _and_ Hardy; and Woody Woodpecker. On the unfunny side there’s anyone who has ever played the accordion professionally. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/26 "2012-10-22T16:01:12Z")
The funniest word in the English language is “trousers.” But the funniest article of clothing is pants. That’s why underpants are funnier than underwear. Underpants. See? Also, the funniest element on the periodic table is darmstadtium. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/27 "2012-10-22T16:04:37Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > The unexpected is funny. The out of place is funny. Incongruency is funny. Among other factors, this. I once made a professional comedian laugh out loud _at his own joke_ because I pulled the punchline out when he wasn’t expecting it. One of my proudest moments as an open-mike-night hack. ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/28 "2012-10-22T16:07:11Z")
> [@](#): > > …{people} who play the accordion professionally… : Wait, so Weird Al isn’t funny? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/29 "2012-10-22T16:09:28Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Also, the funniest element on the periodic table is darmstadtium. Francium is only funny to Jerry Lewis. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/30 "2012-10-22T16:34:54Z")
Gary Larson’s Far Side cartoons were funny to me sometimes because he communicated one thing verbally in the caption, and something else entirely in the visual imagery of the cartoon. Example: a pair of conjoined twins are being examined/interviewed by a doctor. The caption is of the doctor asking them, “…OK, let me get this straight. Frank, you’re saying that it’s your brother Jim here who turns in to a werewolf at night?” The caption clearly indicates some uncertainty/confusion on the part of the doctor. Then you look at the panel: Frank is all beat to hell, and his conjoined brother Jim has a guilty “fearful of being discovered” look on his face. I’m not sure if that’s an example of incongruity (between the doctor’s uncertainty and the preponderance of blatant visual evidence) or understatement (by the doctor), but Larson seemed to engage in that sort of thing a lot. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/31 "2012-10-22T19:39:17Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Ask me what the secret to great comedy is. > > What’s the se TIMING! Thank you. I was going to attempt to convey this myself. Best execution I’ve seen was Dudley Moore with Dick Cavett. (DM: “Ask me…” / DC: “What’s the…” ) . ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/32 "2012-10-22T19:49:35Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > Too soon. 😃 > [@Dr\_Doom](#): > > …in capable hands, gooderisms are usually spoon. 🆒 As opposed to SpellCheck, which can be your worst enema. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Doom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Dr\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Doom)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/33 "2012-10-22T19:56:09Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > 😃 > As opposed to SpellCheck, which can be your worst enema. [Whoosh?](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spoonerism) Did I spell “whoosh” correctly? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/34 "2012-10-22T20:03:00Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > Best execution I’ve seen was Dudley Moore with Dick Cavett. (DM: “Ask me…” / DC: “What’s the…” ) I didn’t know that there was more than one execution. I’ve heard about it with Buddy Hackett and Johnny Carson. And I heard it from a roommate. But it makes sense that it’s a standard. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/35 "2012-10-22T20:05:29Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > A fool laughs at a joke three times. > > First when he hears it. > > Second when he tells it. > > Third when he finally gets it. An example of the rule of three. Many good jokes have three parts. Example: The “Would you believe” jokes on Get Smart. I understand that comedians tend not to laugh at other people’s jokes since they are too busy analyzing them. And I agree about surprise - lead the listener someplace, and then pull the rug out from under them. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/36 "2012-10-22T20:09:38Z")
Brevity is the soul of wit. (Usually.) ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/37 "2012-10-22T20:13:22Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Third when he finally gets it. Then there’s the secret to kids’ comedy. Repeat the joke again and again even if you don’t understand it, as long as it gets a reaction. And that reaction might just be a polite adult who doesn’t ask you to stop. My cousin’s favorite joke when he was four: Hello? You don’t say you don’t say who was it, he didn’t say! He didn’t say! Hello? You don’t say you don’t say who was it, he didn’t say! He didn’t say! Hello? You don’t say you don’t say who was it, he didn’t say! He didn’t say! Hello? You don’t say you don’t say who was it, he didn’t say! He didn’t say! Hello? You don’t say you don’t say who was it, he didn’t say! He didn’t say! Hello? You don’t say you don’t say who was it, he didn’t say! He didn’t say! Enough! ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/38 "2012-10-23T00:05:59Z")
> [@Dr\_Doom](#): > > [Whoosh?](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spoonerism) > > Not a whoosh, but I’m not a dullard. > As a being who loves spoonerisms, I enjoyed the joke, and was inspired to use it as an excuse to pass along the SpellCheck gag, which is funny in a similar way (serving as its own example. I think). > > Did I spell “whoosh” correctly? Indeed! ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/39 "2012-10-23T00:19:56Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > I didn’t know that there was more than one execution. I’ve heard about it with Buddy Hackett and Johnny Carson. And I heard it from a roommate. But it makes sense that it’s a standard. I’ve heard it three or four times, always on TeeVee. The first time was Moore and Cavett, probably mid 1970’s. I’d bet it goes back to at least the 1920’s. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516/40 "2012-10-23T00:23:38Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > Indeed! Hey! That’s not how I formatted my reply. Now everybody thinks I am a dullard. It should have looked like this: \*Originally Posted by Dr\_Doom View Post Whoosh? \* Not a whoosh, but I’m not a dullard. As a being who loves spoonerisms, I enjoyed the joke, and was inspired to use it as an excuse to pass along the SpellCheck gag, which is funny in a similar way (serving as its own example. I think). \*Originally Posted by Dr\_Doom View Post Did I spell “whoosh” correctly? \* Indeed! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-funny-people-know/638516.md?page=3)