Comedy Writing Secrets (2nd Edition)

In any case, you must be your own publicist.

Some claim they go together — that the luckiest people are those who work the hardest.

Getting six guys to agree on what's funny is easy. We read it aloud. If we laugh, it's in; if we don't, it's out. If four guys think something's funny and two guys think it's not, we solve that very simply: We take the two guys out and kill 'em.

Students should be encouraged to participate in class humor by posting jokes, collecting funny comments concerning the course, or identifying links to humorous Web sites.

I had a terrible education. I attended a school for emotionally disturbed teachers.

— Woody Allen

Some of you might have heard that I am unfair, rigid, and boring. For those of you who have not talked to my wife …

On the other hand, humor wins more awards at annual best-of-advertising competitions, and it is the fastest route to critical acclaim.

he commercial must sell product, not just entertain. In a sixty-second spot, the brand name should be mentioned four or five times.

This technique encouraged listeners to believe they were eavesdropping on a private conversation. The absurdity had the rare property of making listeners both laugh and buy.

These conflict-and-resolution skits ran sixty seconds in length, were brilliantly cast with comedic teams — like Jerry Stiller with Anne Meara; Bob and Ray — playing humorous characters in abnormal situations.