Comedian or Idiot?
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It occurred to me that a lot of funny comedians wind up being idiots:
David Letterman
Kathy Griffin
John Oliver
Stephen Colbert
Jimmy KimmelI think I have figured out the problem!
When portraying themselves as a jesting clown.. these people are funny..
But when those same people want to be taken seriously - such as when they make serious political statements.. then what they say makes them idiots. -
I think… most people are idiots. We all definitely can become idiots.
Celebrities, comedians or otherwise, are simply viewed usually through their work. But when you see their human side (the mistakes, the over-reactions, the sexual harassment charges etc) the image is shattered. Much more than when you hear about a pedophile neighbour, or a cousin addicted to drugs, or an uncle abusing his wife etc. -
I think… most people are idiots. We all definitely can become idiots.
Celebrities, comedians or otherwise, are simply viewed usually through their work. But when you see their human side (the mistakes, the over-reactions, the sexual harassment charges etc) the image is shattered. Much more than when you hear about a pedophile neighbour, or a cousin addicted to drugs, or an uncle abusing his wife etc.I agree with THAT.. in fact, I would restate what you said by pointing out when a comedian crosses the line between being a fictional character to being "real" they are no longer funny.
This is probably not the best example.. but it conveys the idea. If a comedian were to say.. "boy my wife is a bitch! I wish she would walk out the door and never return!" That could be quite a funny thing to say. However, if that comedian's wife really did disappear and was murdered.. that joke would then cross the line into reality and no longer be funny.
Here's another… "break a leg!" that would almost always be a funny suggestion... but if the person then DID break their leg, that would be tragic and no longer be funny (unless the person that broke their leg was crooked Hillary Clinton!) -
Exactly.
Most comedians (the ones I like anyway) are basing their act on a persona, loosely or tightly deriving from their own lives.
Partly though we do want the real factor. For instance Kathy Griffin (and many others of course, she's just an easy example) did/does have a large following because some of the things she expresses on show are things she genuinely believes in (that Trump is crazy, that celebrities are just very awkward people etc), so she will attract like-minded people. Its when we get to see the real side we dont like, then all of a sudden we find it "too real" or foolish. Because they are starting to earn our disapproval instead of our approval.In essence. No one is being an idiot out of the blue. Just like with other people in your life, the longer you get to know someone the more you realise they have (as is ordinary and expected) an ugly side as well, or simply a side you dont agree with.
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Kathy Griffith used to be funny. She stopped being funny when she got preachy during her "comedy" routine.
Russell Howard is funny on TV shows, but live he's a fucking bore. His live shows are half funny and half vaginalist cuckery.
