It seems incessant. More than that, it seems infinite, always to be searching. No, seeking out as if nothing is immune to the analysis of potential. It becomes an addiction of sorts. It is as if everything that is seen and heard can be a potential bit in a comedian’s bag of bits. It creeps into your sub consciousness while you sleep. It can cause you to wake in a panic frantically stumbling somewhere between awake and a coma desperately hunting for anything to write with and something on to which to scribble. Although nothing is sacred you quickly begin to realize nothing can be forced either. And even more so, most people do not understand how this addictive struggle afflicts a person. However, I feel the biggest tragedy is the throw away attitudes of those that do not do, but for whom we do it. The job of a comedian is basically as underappreciated as it can be rewarding. A strange dichotomy for something that is boundlessly elusive.
My drug is comedy. The problem is two-fold. Comedy is the epitome of something that is subjective. I find a lot of stuff funny. I know that my humor is very different from what most people can admit they find humorous. Finding the funny is taking a subject or situation and taking the absurd to the extreme. Then there is the problem of going too far. What is too far for some may not be for others. One has to find balance. Reading your audience is necessary. You can spend months or even years fine tuning a bit, whether it is tweaking a word, changing your inflection or adding a pause. When it comes to comedy delivery is paramount. How many times has a friend tried to recreate a comedic moment and destroy it in the delivery? How many times has someone tried to recreate a night show act only to sound like a cursing bumbling fool? Comedy does not just happen. It takes someone that has a keen sense of observation, which allows a person to see things in a way that most cannot see, and then be able to explain in a way that most can understand and thus find humor. Comedy, I do not feel can be finitely defined, but when it does work there is definitely a specific equation that is pure as mathematical perfection.
Finding the funny is tedious. Tiger Woods probably had 18 mistresses because he has been used to playing 18 holes all of his life. Why do white people continue to play with wild animals and subsequently get hurt by them? You do not hear about black people doing that. Heck, black people get ‘nervous’ around other people’s dogs. Did you really go to a fight and a hockey game broke out? What ethnicity was that person that cut you off making a left hand turn from the far right hand lane? How old was that person that drove from here to the next town with their turn signal on? What is more, how can a person take these situations and make it something freshly funny? How about taking something that makes you angry and turning it around to something that is jocular. A priest, a rabbi and a black guy go into a bar, what happens next is anyone’s guess but will it be funny? It is my job as a comedian to try to find the funny and make you forget your hang ups, your disapproval and force you to release that uncontrollable urge to laugh until your stomach hurts. As I stand on the stage with just a microphone and a bright light blinding me I must take all that I know and throw it to the crowd in a way that orchestrates bringing the funny. It is a daunting, difficult and terrifying task. People often ask why do I it. When it goes south, it hurts. It is an indescribable, devastating, paralyzing pain. However, when it goes right it causes the most euphoric wonderful feeling one can ever imagine. To see the affect on an audience that is hearing your thoughts, your observations, your words, your quest to bring the funny, is exhilarating. Humor is healthy. Laughter is healing. Think of a comedian as a doctor that is trying to help ease your pain. Remember though that doctor is suffering a lot for your sake.
~Melik / me2upro.com
