Your favorite comedian? (spam on subject)

[fable]

Originally posted by Silur
Someone worth mention, although he's not really a favourite of mine is Groucho Marx. The guy was way ahead of his time in terms of satire and witty political criticism.

I don't know that he was particularly political in his humor during his heyday, back in the 1920s-50s. Marx only really started making the occasionally trenchant political comment during Nixon's years in the White House. In fact, Nixon kept a list of 100 people he wanted the FBI to discredit. The list was leaked to the press at one point, and Groucho's name was on it.

I remember watching a William F Buckley interview program aired on US public television back in the 1980s. Groucho Marx was the guest. Now, I greatly dislike Buckley, not for his politics--I'm capable of finding many points in common with just about anybody located anywhere on the political spectrum--but because he plays debating games to confuse his audience and score points. What made that show a delight, that day, was that he couldn't put anything over on Marx. Buckley pulled his usual number of reading from a guest's work ("It says here, that you wrote, back in 1962...") a passage that was extremely controversial. Marx just looked him straight back in the eye and said, "So what? I was wrong."

Buckley couldn't believe this. No guest had ever acted in such a fashion, before, apparently. "You mean you changed your mind?" He responded in disbelief.

"Yeah, not that you've ever done it," Marx said. "I think what I wrote then was wrong. You should try saying something like that sometime." All Buckley could do was cover with an embarassed laugh. The audience was in stitches.

[Galuf the Dwarf]

Me, I'd have to go with

- Gallagher (his jokes as well as his props and Sledge-o-Matic stuff)
- Jeff Foxworthy (love all his specials)
- Greg Fitzsimmons (sp?)
- Greg Proops (mainly his gig on 'Comedy Central Presents')
- Lewis Black (both the episode of 'Comedy Central Presents' he was on, AND on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart)

And then there was this other guy I saw on Comedy Central where he made various funny sound affects including a literal cat fight for a joke about the Jerry Springer show, and made impressions of commercials for movies with Arnold Schwartzenaegger (sp?) and Keanu Reeves (including vocal impressions of the actors themselves). He was dressed rather plainly in an oatmeal-colored t-shirt and black jeans, and had a buzz cut (iow, he was about as bald on top as Aaron Lewis of Staind). Anyone recognize who I'm talking about?

[speedball]

Brian Regan (sp?) is one of the few "clean" comedians that I really like.

I'll also second Ned on Greg Giraldo.

And, a guilty pleasure... Jim Norton.

Not as overall funny as Regan or Giraldo, but he has some GREAT lines.

[Silur]

Originally posted by fable
I don't know that he was particularly political in his humor during his heyday, back in the 1920s-50s. Marx only really started making the occasionally trenchant political comment during Nixon's years in the White House. In fact, Nixon kept a list of 100 people he wanted the FBI to discredit. The list was leaked to the press at one point, and Groucho's name was on it.

Well, I was thinking more in the lines of moral injustice, problems in society, and so on. Come to think of it, Chaplin was the more political one. Wasn't he banned from making movies in the US after the end sequence of "The dictator", being labeled a communist or something?

"Yeah, not that you've ever done it," Marx said. "I think what I wrote then was wrong. You should try saying something like that sometime." All Buckley could do was cover with an embarassed laugh. The audience was in stitches.

I would love to have seen that. Witty rebukes are really an artform. I wish I were better at it myself, but I think too slow

[Scayde]

I am surprised no one has mentioned Red Skelton


He was a brilliant man who could entertain children and their parents one each of their respective levels and at the same time, He could give you child like innocence, or be as naughty as you want with out ever resorting to vulgarities. He was a treasure.