# Why are there no (good) female comedians? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 15, 2006, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769 "2006-04-15T08:23:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/1 "2006-04-15T08:23:26Z")
It just occurred to me, that while I have seen a few female stand-up comics, not one of them has ever been funny. Any speculation as to why this is such a male-dominated profession? Should equal-rights activists sue? Should Dave Chapelle be tarred and feathered? (O.K., I was joking about the equal-rights activist question) ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/2 "2006-04-15T08:37:00Z")
Ellen Degeneres has done some funny specials on HBO. Whoopi as well. I think Kathy Griffin is quite good. Margaret Cho has some DVDs of shows she has done and I laugh out loud. And I don’t know her name, but a rather hefty woman was on Jay Leno about three weeks ago and she was hysterical. (Help me here, as I want to remember her name for future specials!) Oh, and I aslo have laughed at some shows with Roseanne, Joan Rivers and Wanda Sykes. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/3 "2006-04-15T08:42:56Z")
Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Jo Brand, Sandi Toksvig … ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/4 "2006-04-15T08:50:29Z")
Hmmm, I forgot about Ellen. She is at least marginally funny, but being a lesbian and all I’m not sure it’s the same thing. I’m not very enamored with Whoopi or Roseanne, but Wanda is also marginally funny. Margaret Cho? No. Haven’t heard of the other ones mentioned. Maybe I’ll check them out, but if they’re so good why haven’t I already heard of them? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/5 "2006-04-15T08:53:33Z")
My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She’s ninety-three today and we don’t know where the hell she is. - Ellen DeGeneres ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/6 "2006-04-15T08:57:41Z")
[Ruby Wax!](http://dawnfrench.tripod.com/ruby.html) Or the British ladies from [" Smack the Pony"](http://www.tv.com/smack-the-pony/show/4253/summary.html). We have about two-three succesfull female comedians in the Netherlands as well, although we have more male ones. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/7 "2006-04-15T09:02:46Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > …but being a lesbian and all… Good to see you are open minded and all… ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/8 "2006-04-15T09:15:00Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > Good to see you are open minded and all… Oh I am. I really do like Ellen. I think I should explain. I was trying to think about this more from a psychological perspective. I googled all of the women mentioned so far that I didn’t recognize, considered the ones I do, and with the slight exception of Kathy Griffin (who I realized I also recognize), on a superficial level, none of them strike me as having particularly traditional feminine qualities. (and of the ones I recognize, I still only think Ellen and Wanda are funny, but even they don’t bowl me down) That’s _totally_ fine and cool. I’m just trying to figure out what it is about the traditional social concept of feminity that seems to preclude humor. Maybe that makes it more of a GD but I don’t really want to debate, I just want to hear speculation. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/9 "2006-04-15T09:35:21Z")
For the most part it _is_ a male-dominated field, however: Sarah Silverman. Whoa. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/10 "2006-04-15T09:43:32Z")
Forgot to mention Rita Rudner who has been performing non-stop in Las Vegas for years. ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/11 "2006-04-15T10:09:54Z")
[QUOTE=DMarkWhoopi as well.[/QUOTE] I respectfully disagree. ---
**Author:** ![Jennyrosity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@Jennyrosity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennyrosity)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/12 "2006-04-15T10:21:09Z")
I’m in total agreement with the OP. I’ve never seen a female comic who can do more than raise a smile from me. I’m not sure why this is - IRL I know plenty of very funny women. But female comics never do it for me. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/13 "2006-04-15T12:10:31Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > For the most part it _is_ a male-dominated field, however: Sarah Silverman. Whoa. 10-4. Anybody who could ask why there are no _good_ female comedians has just not seen/heard the hilarious Sarah. I hear she has a Comedy Central show scheduled to debut this summer. Believe it or not, I heard it [HERE.](http://www.npr.org/templates/rundowns/rundown.php?prgId=35&prgDate=04-08-2006&view=storyview) ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/14 "2006-04-15T12:22:27Z")
Brett Butler is pretty funny. ---
**Author:** ![Hamadryad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6de8d8/32.png) [@Hamadryad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamadryad)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/15 "2006-04-15T12:33:46Z")
It must just be a matter of preference. I like just about every comedianne mentioned so far. Also Moms Mabley, Felicia Michaels, Laura Hayes, Lily Tomlin, Carol Burnett, Phyllis Diller, Judy Tenuta…even Joan Rivers was pretty funny back before Melissa went through puberty. I don’t know how Ellen’s (or Lily’s, for that matter) lesbianism has anything to do with whether or not she’s funny. OR feminine. Her routines before she came out didn’t mention her lesbianism (obviously) but were funny as hell. If it’s the charm of femininity you’re talking about, Rita Rudner (mentioned upthread) almost always performs in formal gowns and is careful to keep her speech refined. I think an accurate question might have been, “Why don’t I like female comedians?” ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/16 "2006-04-15T12:55:29Z")
If Gilda Radner was not considered a funny comedian, I don’t think anyone (male or female) deserves the title. I also agree with Whoopi, Lily, Ellen, Roseanne & Carol. I think the problem is finding the right vehicle for female comedians. The field is an “old boy’s club,” something female comedians have been bitching about for decades. ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/17 "2006-04-15T13:12:00Z")
This probably goes against your “traditionally feminine” clause, but I think Janeane Garafolo is wonderful. ---
**Author:** ![Merhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Merhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merhouse)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/18 "2006-04-15T14:11:33Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > And I don’t know her name, but a rather hefty woman was on Jay Leno about three weeks ago and she was hysterical. (Help me here, as I want to remember her name for future specials!) I think you’re talking about Lisa Lampanelli, and yes, she **is** HYSTERICAL! ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/19 "2006-04-15T14:28:47Z")
Oddly for a “lesbian comedian” Ellen DeGeneres comes across as less strident and “masculine” than a good many non-gay female comedians. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769/20 "2006-04-15T14:33:28Z")
> [@Merhouse](#): > > I think you’re talking about Lisa Lampanelli, and yes, she **is** HYSTERICAL! I guess - pretty rough stuff though > [@](#): > > How to Be a Better Italian > > Lift weights and use steroids to ensure equal parts muscle and zits. > > Start fights in bars for no reason. > > Date girls with huge hair. > > Compete with blacks to see who can wear the most fake gold chains. > > How to Be a Better Black > > Refuse to use correct grammar, then complain that the hiring process is racist. > > Refuse to use a condom, then blame the woman when she gets pregnant. > > Refuse to tip, then complain about service. > > Order all soft drinks with no ice. > > Never show up on time, to work, to movies, or for dates. > > Have as many gold teeth as possible. > > How to Be a Better Asian > > Get drunk on half a beer. > > Watch every race of man sleep with your women, while only Asian women and ugly white women will sleep with you. > > Own your own store. > > Refuse to give the correct amount of duck sauce. > > How to Be a Better Hispanic > > Make whites nervous by speaking Spanish on the subways. > > If you can’t say something nice…knife the bastard. > > Have no Asian friends. > > Be viciously jealous of your girlfriend, even though she was dating someone else when you started getting it on. > > Wear your pants too tight. > > How to Be a Better Jew > > Pretend to be Italian socially, and act like a Jew at work. > > Invent more holidays. > > Complain about every meal you’ve ever eaten. > > Complain about being single as often as humanly possible. > > Be rude to cab drivers. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-no-good-female-comedians/352769.md?page=2)