Countdown to July 4th: Comedy R Us: Humor, Comedy and Laughter in America
You have probably heard the story of Archimedes running home naked from a public bath shouting "Eureka! eureka!" "I have found it, I have found it!". He had figured out how to prove that the king's crown was made of pure gold or not.
Well, I had an eureka moment this morning. Nope, I wasn't solving a problem for any king or president. I am not a mathematical whiz like Archimedes.
For some time now, I have been wondering about what keeps Americans sane. After a lot of thinking it hit me that it must be...you guess it: Laughter.
Americans love to laugh at themselves, their wives and husbands. At their children and parents, grand-children and grandparents. Americans love to poke fun at their celebrities and leaders, demons and their God. Americans laugh at everything and that keeps most of them from falling off the cliff.
What will Americans do without their humorists and comedians? Imagine a world without Jay Leno. Conan O'Brien. David Letterman. Stephen Colbert. Ellen DeGeneres. Bill Cosby. Whoopi Goldberg. Chris Rock. Peter Sagal. Garrison Keilor. Jon Stewart. Bill Maher. Weird Al. -- . -- . --. Fill in the gap with the names of people who make you laugh. Don't you want to laugh simply thinking of these people?
Lewis Black, the Comedian who observed that "Republicans are a party with bad ideas and Democrats are a party with no ideas," best described the importance of comedy to this country when he remarked: "There's no measure to the value of comedy-- it's sanity maintenance, it's what keeps people on their toes, it's what provides humility, it's the insulation -- not only does it open us but it insulates us from everything."
Archimedes used to say "Give me a place to stand and I will move the earth". American comedians will probably say today: "Give me an audience I can make to laugh and I will make them go through anything in life."
Let's honor the great tradition of American comedians and humorists this July 4th.
Here are some links to comedy sites. Do you have any suggestions of funny sites you want to share?. USe the comments box below.
Will Ferrell meets his landlord: Watch the Landlord
Funny or die
Colbert Report Official Site http://www.comedycentral.com/colbertreport/index.jhtml
The Comedy Zone http://www.comedy-zone.net/
Larry Weaver's Website:
American Comedy Archives
Photo Credit: Ben Cohen, Stephen Colbert, and Jerry GreenfieldPhoto: Getty Images
Comments
You know the world is going crazy when the best rapper is a white guy, the best golfer is a black guy, the tallest guy in the NBA is Chinese, the Swiss hold the America's Cup, France is accusing the U.S. of arrogance, Germany doesn't want to go to war, and the three most powerful men in America are named 'Bush', 'Dick', and 'Colon'.
More funny Chris Rock quotes
In spite of the cost of living, it's still popular.
More funny Kathleen Norris quotes
Humor is just another defense against the universe.
[ Funny Humor Quotes]
Posted by: Debby | July 2, 2008 10:07 PM
I totally agree . . .We Americans use laughter to poke fun at what we do not want to see, to get through rough times, to deal with pain, anger, the list can go on and on.
Just tonight my husband and I had to use laughter to get through our son's three-hour tantrum . . and guess what the whole time I was totally unaffected by the entire event!
Posted by: Mary | July 3, 2008 08:39 PM