EDUARDO INFANTE: Funny

1. What scene from a sit-com, book, film or play have you found the funniest and why?
Finding Nemo’s final scene, within the final titles, seems hilarious to me. And yet, I found it rather deep, too. Here you have these fishbowl fish who dream of making it to the ocean. When they finally do, they’re floating in the sea, they look to one another, and finally, one of them asks something like: “and, uh, what’s next?” Hilarious, yet deep. A very funny scene that has even served me as a starting point in a conference I taught last year in Venezuela.

2. When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt and who or what made you laugh?
It just happened a couple of weeks ago, while visiting Memo, one of my best friends, and as we were reminiscing some of our adventures. We do have quite many of them, as Memo is my friend since I was 11 years old! OK, Memo and I had a few beers in this encounter. But it was not due to alcohol that we laugh ourselves off. It was more because of the special ties that bound us together, and all those good and bad times we've lived as one.

3. What’s the funniest or most absurd situation you have found yourself in? Did you find it funny at the time or afterwards?
When I was traveling in Up With People, we went to a town in Sweden to which we arrived early in the evening. Considering it was Winter time, “early in the evening” pretty much meant 4 o’clock.

Anyway, in this one town, which name I cannot remember at the moment, I was hosted by a guy in his late twenties who lived by himself in a four floor building. His flat was in the third floor, I think. (As a matter of fact, I think I was reading with FQOF’s blogger Andreas that time. I’m not quite sure, though)

My (our) host brother picked us up at the pick up place and then drove us home for that night. We pulled our luggage out of his car and headed to the apartment, to which we went immediately. For some reason, I was not able to carry all of my luggage at once, and had to come back to my host brother’s car for it. And so I did. No problem whatsoever up until this part of the story. The bizarre situation came afterwards.

As I picked that second piece of luggage, I went up to my “home” for the next few days walking up the stairs until this guy’s flat. I opened the door and crashed at the nearest couch, once having placed my remaining piece of luggage on the floor. As I’m sitting on this sofa, a big athletic, Swedish-looking, guy comes out of what seemed to be the kitchen. He stares at me and starts saying something in Swedish. I obviously don’t understand a word of what he’s saying, and reply something back in English.

The guy looks confused, and upset at the same time. He answers back in Swedish, with a louder tone this time, though. And I sort of realize that he is mad as hell. When he’s coming after me, as if he were about to kick me out of this apartment, I mention that I’m in an Up With People cast, and that this guy – to whom I’ll call Mathias – is hosting me for a couple nights at this, his apartment. All of a sudden, those final words crack his serious mood up, and he starts laughing hysterically. It so happened that the big muscle, Magnus, lived in the floor below Mathias. For some reason, his door was opened when I happened to miss Mathias flat by one floor. No wonder why Magnus, the muscle man, was staring at me when I crashed at his couch with a “what the heck is going on!” face.

He was kind enough to walk me up the stairs and report the funny situation to Mathias, though. Mathias, Andreas (if it was you who I was rooming with, A), and myself had a blast laughing at the situation for a good half hour afterwards.

To this day, I still don’t understand what’s up with that Swedish custom on not locking the door of your home…

4. How would you describe your sense of humor and why do you think there is so much variation among individual’s senses of humor?
I would describe myself as a happy and adaptable person. Most times, my jokes go across in a very good way. I tried to joke twice with a professor of Boston, in a seminar I’m taking, and she did not get my jokes, though. But the fear of rejection has never stopped me from joking, or smiling here or there.

There are different kinds of people, and so there are different kinds of humor styles. We just cannot blame it on anything or anybody. It’s actually fantastic, if you ask me, that we have all these styles and senses of humor. How boring it would be if the world were otherwise.

5. Is humour powerful?
Hell yes. Humor is the most powerful, and healing, abilities human kind has developed. An ability that puts us on the edge when we master it, to the point that we can get a good laugh at ourselves once we realize how small and insignificant we are in the universe.

RICK VON FELDT: Funny

1. What scene from a sit-com, book, film or play have you found the funniest and why?

I find myself humorous not funny. I think that is why I don’t remember funny things. I remember in school that there were kids who could recite entire scenes from Monty Python. They would talk themselves into laughing fits by must repeating the lines. I didn’t laugh at the lines. I laughed at them laughing at the lines.

What is funny, so to speak, is that I ended up starring in three comedies on stage, written by comedy writer Neil Simon. But on stage, it was my “comic timing” that made people laugh. But it was subtle human comedy – at the predicaments of life. Not fart comedy. Or “three stooges” comedy which I despise.

If I want to laugh a little, I turn on Will and Grace. I think the character of Karen and her delivery of humor is just brilliant. And the lines out of all of the characters are smart and dead pan delivered.

When I was a kid, I think I laughed a lot more! I would laugh out loud at The Lucy Show. I couldn’t wait for Monday nights. And I absolutely loved Tim Conway and the whole crew of the Carol Burnett show. While writing this, I took a moment to go over to YouTube and look at a few moments of the humor: THE CAROL BURNET SHOW. It still makes me smile . Probably the last time I just remember laughing outloud was when I watched the television series “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” It is a fantastic comedy.

2. When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt and who or what made you laugh?

I am stumped. I don’t really laugh out loud. I honestly cannot remember this happening. Does that make me a sad person?

3. What’s the funniest or most absurd situation you have found yourself in? Did you find it funny at the time or afterwards?

I recently wrote in my blog about going to a high school dance. Or so it felt like it. That was absurd. I dreaded going to it. I smiled during the middle of it. And laughed at it later.

4. How would you describe your sense of humour and why do you think there is so much variation among individual’s senses of humour?

Peter, great question. Just having to answer the questions above really makes me wonder. As odd or potentially snobbish as this is going to sound, I believe that intelligence has much to do with our own style of humor. We see elements of life differently based upon our ability to understand them. And this then creates various levels of what is humorous to us.

It is interesting that I don’t laugh very much. But if find life humorous. And I actually like it when I can make people smile humorously. But not snort out loud laughter. I also wonder if living alone makes me laugh less?

5. Is humour powerful?

According to the doctors. But I am not sure we laugh as much as a society any more. In America, there used to be a lot of comedy on television. But now, it is all about crime scene investigation, scary things like demons and vampires and super human beings. I wonder if that says something about the psyche of the American people. Or perhaps the times we are in.

RAMAK SIADATAN - Funny

1. What scene from a sit-com, book, film or play have you found the funniest and why?

You know, Peter, you are not making my life easy here! Not only was I considering a similar subject for my week of questions, the irony is that I can’t even answer this!! J

I think Jennifer mentioned this as well, but to me funny is all about timing. What I thought was funny as a kid, may not be funny now. Likewise, I laugh at things now that never made me laugh before. A lot of it is about context, for sure.

So, then, how do I answer this question? With what is funny to me now? Or what made me laugh the hardest in the moment? Or perhaps it’s what I think would be sustained funny? You know, funny then and STILL funny now!

Let’s talk TV...here is a sampling of sitcoms, variety shows and cartoons that I think will always be funny to me – and they cover decades of TV and span all types of comedy: Three’s Company, The Cosby Show, Perfect Strangers, Seinfeld, Boy Meets World, the Carol Burnett Show, Abbott and Costello, Married with Children, Bugs Bunny, Cheers, Fawlty Towers, Golden Girls, Family Ties, How I Met Your Mother, Mad About You, Mork and Mindy, Soap, Taxi, The Muppet Show, I Love Lucy

Try any of them and you will learn TONS about me and my personality.

After I wrote this list, I went online to make sure I didn’t forget anything...you can do the same here:

http://www.dmoz.org/Arts/Television/Programs/Comedy/Sitcoms/

And since I’ve talked about TV, the scene I’ll pick is from a movie. Ben Stiller stars in one of my favorite “stupid-funny” movies...you know, the ones that are so utterly ridiculous in plot, acting and lines you can’t help but laugh? I’m talking about movies that might star Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler or Chris Farley. But a lot of those movies are just bad to me. Some make me laugh. And a few, like The Three Amigos, are like classics to me.

So back to Ben Stiller. I’ve already grown tired of him, but ten years ago he put out a movie that became an instant classic stupid-funny movie.... Zoolander. Here’s the prep for the scene you’re about to watch. Stiller is a male supermodel, which means he is stereotypically unintelligent (well, just plain dumb), totally self absorbed and completely unaware of anything beyond the extreme superficial. In this scene, he and his male modeling friends are going out to help Stiller deal with his depression and it, of course, leads to a montage involving playful fighting, slow motion moves, and yes, Wham singing in the background:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMdXHQb9JE0


2. When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt and who or what made you laugh?

Well, I laughed pretty hard when I rewatched the clip I just posted. Does that tell you anything? I love laughing. I am always looking for an opportunity to find the humor in something, and if I’m not the one doing the laughing I am trying to make someone else laugh. I have squirted milk out my nose, choked on my food, woken up with sore ab muscles, you name it. And it happens so often I can’t remember the last time.

Accidental comedy makes me laugh the hardest. There was one time I was sitting in a training class at work. I had just been hired and was in this class with 14 other new hires. We eventually realized the weird squeaking noise we kept hearing was the result of someone in the room tapping their foot against the metal leg of the chair. But the tone of that squeak and the complete unawareness by the person that she was the one making the sound eventually left us all in an uproar. You know...that kind of laughter that is silent, tears are streaming, you’re convulsing and the last thing you need is for your instructor to ask you a direct question. But he did. And I lost it. We all lost it. It was totally harmless, everyone was laughing, but there was no good reason for it. I love those moments.


3. What’s the funniest or most absurd situation you have found yourself in? Did you find it funny at the time or afterwards?

Here’s one. My wife and I flew to Toronto for my cousin’s wedding. We weren’t married at the time. When we got there, we had no idea what was in store for us. Rather than sit back, take in some sights, go to the wedding, toast, laugh and drink, we found ourselves in an entirely different situation. We were calming down arguing family members, shopping for tea cups at IKEA for the wedding reception, decorating the wedding site, putting out chairs and tables at the reception site, cutting the cake and serving it to 200 people, spray painting tree branches in the snow that were stolen by all of our parents, and yes, making the drive to the Emergency Room due to a freak ping pong accident that left the 55 year old brother-in-law of the groom clinically dead for about 30 seconds (he’s fine now). Absurd? Yes. Funny? Oh yeah. Did we think it was funny then? I did. My wife didn’t. Now? We can’t stop telling the story. Simply outrageous, and I wouldn’t change my family for anything in the world.


4. How would you describe your sense of humour and why do you think there is so much variation among individual’s senses of humour?

I love irony, sarcasm, slapstick, witty, romantic, goofy, silly, dry, dark, all of it. I think I am just so grateful to be alive and thankful that I am healthy and capable as a human being, that I’m perpetually in a good mood. So my sense of humor is pretty loose. There it is...I’m loose when it comes to funny. (Insert joke here!)


5. Is humour powerful?

Only if the other person agrees. ;)

JENNIFER RABOLD: Funny

1. What scene from a sit-com, book, film or play have you found the funniest and why?

I think it depends on my mood, because I’ve watched some films and laughed so hard I peed my pants, then watched them years later and thought, “I laughed at that?” I don’t know why I find it so funny, but Raising Arizona gets me every time. Oh, here’s another one… I made my husband watch it with me on one of our first dates, just to gauge his reaction… So I Married an Axe-Murderer… don’t miss it. Fargo… I think I most enjoy black comedy when it comes to films.

I love reading books that make me laugh out loud. Tom Robbins’ early stuff, like Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, will do that to you. John Irving’s early stuff too, like The World According to Garp… Irving mixes the absurd with utter tragedy to great effect, I think. My kids and I love laughing at the Minnie and Moo series of easy readers. You won’t be able to help yourself with Minnie and Moo Go to Paris or Minnie and Moo Go to the Moon. I loved the Ramona books for the same reason… I still remember the “dawnzer” episode of Ramona the Pest from when I was eight.

Sitcoms… I loved Seinfeld, just like you Andy. It defined my generation and our humor. Anyone in their 20’s when Seinfeld was on the air knows exactly what you’re talking about when you say “soup nazi” or “sponge-worthy.”

2. When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt and who or what made you laugh?

I love to laugh and fortunately come from a family which also loves to laugh. We play games all the time, cheat, and laugh about it. We tell the same stories, year after year, and laugh again. Here’s just a little example from my family just last weekend that was actually captured on video and posted on You Tube (Caroline is my mother, responding to a photo given to her by my little sister, Lindsey). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8TYtGRJlt8

I’m a big fan of Saturday Night Live, and I must say that I laughed pretty darn hard at Tina Fey’s impersonations of Sarah Palin.

3. What’s the funniest or most absurd situation you have found yourself in? Did you find it funny at the time or afterwards?

It was my first year teaching high school, and I had one particular student in my class, BJ, who had no filters… every thought that came into his head came out of his mouth. So there I was, attempting to teach Lord of the Flies or something, and BJ, who had evidently just come from health class, announced to the class, “Did you know that the closest physiological experience to orgasm is a sneeze?” Dead silence. I thought humor might be the only way to respond. I replied, “Well, pass me the pepper” and went on with my lesson, as the kids’ jaws dropped. Evidently, one of the students repeated the conversation to his mother, who ended up complaining to my department chair, so I got a “talking to” about appropriateness. But honestly, I still think it’s the only appropriate response, and I think I gained a little of the kids’ respect by not getting flustered.

4. How would you describe your sense of humour and why do you think there is so much variation among individual’s senses of humour?

I do not like physical comedy. It has never appealed to me. I do enjoy black comedy… I think it appeals to my intellect. I enjoy self-effacing humor, like Obama and McCain roasting each other at the Alfred E. Smith dinner (many versions on You Tube)… wish they had conducted the entire campaign that way.

5. Is humour powerful?

I think humor is what gets us through tense times. And it’s a great way to negotiate issues in relationships, like when I was frustrated with my husband for not dealing with his dirty dishes and asked, “Are your dishwashing muscles broken?” One of the best ways to deal with grief is through laughter, as those left behind sit around and tell funny stories and laugh and cry at the same time. I remember the story of my grandfather who, when he was asked by the paramedics on his way to the hospital if he had any allergies, adamantly insisted that he was allergic to onions (I think they meant drug allergies). My grandmother leaned over and said to her dying husband, “They’re not taking you out to lunch, George.” Shakespeare was the master… all of his tragedies have comedic characters and moments. I think he knew that in order to most deeply feel the tragedy, it has to be juxtaposed with comedy.

ANDREAS EKSTROM - Funny

1. What scene from a sit-com, book, film or play have you found the funniest and why? That is just impossible. I find a lot of things funny. To mention one thing, here's an absolute favorite from Seinfeld. Every little line, every move, is just so bleedin' perfect...



2. When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt and who or what made you laugh? I can't remember. I rarely laugh that much. It might have been at the movies when I saw ”Burn after reading” a few weeks ago. (See it! It's the most fun I've had with a movie in a long, long time.)

3. What’s the funniest or most absurd situation you have found yourself in? Did you find it funny at the time or afterwards? I am not sure. I really can't think of anything like ”there I was with my foot in the whipped cream and my hands stuck inside a dead moose”, you know, those stories...

4. How would you describe your sense of humour and why do you think there is so much variation among individual’s senses of humour? I laugh at a lot: small things, crude things, wordplay, silly puns, politically incorrect things, old fashioned humour from rural Sweden, stuff that really doesn't translate... And the movie ”Team America: World Police”, another must-see. (And about people's different senses of humour? Well. People are different, in everything.)

5. Is humour powerful? Yes, in just about every way imagniable.

WEEK 9 - FUNNY

Funny

Well fellow bloggers, with a few minor exceptions, we have so far dealt with some pretty heavy (though interesting!) topics that have demanded introspection and thoughtful reflection – and all this against a background of global gloom over economic matters and terrorism. So I thought I would lighten the mood a little this week with a question theme around humour.


1. What scene from a sit-com, book, film or play have you found the funniest and why?

2. When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt and who or what made you laugh?

3. What’s the funniest or most absurd situation you have found yourself in? Did you find it funny at the time or afterwards?

4. How would you describe your sense of humour and why do you think there is so much variation among individual’s senses of humour?

5. Is humour powerful?