Who's Funnier and Why?
Podcaster, comedian and recent Ricochet Podcast guest Adam Carolla is on the Twitter hot seat after this New York Post interview. Here's where the fury comes from:
Q. The lesson you learned from a sexual harassment seminar was “Don’t hire chicks.” Do you hate working with women?
A. No. But they make you hire a certain number of chicks, and they’re always the least funny on the writing staff. The reason why you know more funny dudes than funny chicks is that dudes are funnier than chicks. If my daughter has a mediocre sense of humor, I’m just gonna tell her, “Be a staff writer for a sitcom. Because they’ll have to hire you, they can’t really fire you, and you don’t have to produce that much. It’ll be awesome.
As one who listens to his podcast, I agree with him and here's why. First, a cursory look at the comedy podcast section on iTunes tells you it's dominated by men. Go back and think about all the comedians you grew up listening to and most of them are men. And a few of the most famous comediennes have had male-like qualities. Maybe men pursue a living out of it more than women, but some evidence to support him is there. While it's my guess that his last statement to his daughter is a bit of exaggeration, he's expressing in perhaps not the most delicate way the problem of Diversity For Diversity's Sake. But he misses there because I'm sure women are welcome on writing staffs because of the Seinfeldian problem of how to write for a female character. Here's the other reason. When you're a boy growing up, competing for the affection of a girl, you've got to bring something to the table. And all those years of performing to make girls laugh builds comedy muscles. Dudes are funnier than chicks because dudes have had to be funny, funnier than other dudes who are competing for those chicks. Can I say chicks on Ricochet?
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Comments:
Dec '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
I've said that for years.
Sometimes you have to sacrifice "nice" for "funny".
Jun '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Mollie Hemingway, Ed.: I don't entirely agree with Carolla, but I'm certainly not offended by it. I don't think grouping comedy writers or comedians by sex is the best metric, though. For much of my life, my favorite funny guys were guys. My favorite comedy writers these days are definitely female -- including Tina Fey and Kristen Wiig. Mindy Kaling is my favorite writer on the office and she's also a hilarious actress. I think Lena Dunham is a genius -- and hilarious. Carrie Brownstein on Portlandia is great. While Young Adult was off tonally, it was also really funny and it was written by the same chick who wrote Juno (funny). The internet is full of funny women, including Julianne Smolinski and the Go Fug Yourself girls.
And all of my friends are funny and a good number of them are female.
I judge people on their ability to make me laugh, male and female.
Anyway, my point is that I don't agree with Carolla but I don't really care. · 12 hours ago
So, only anecdotal analysis, I see. Typical.
Jun '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
And if you want funny people, you'll probably get that, too.
Apr '11
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Being funny is attention seeking. It's a tool to get both peers and the opposite sex to notice and appreciate you. Women are as capable of being funny as men, but they possess other attention getting devices that are more powerful. They're called breasts. When nature provides you with an obviously appreciated asset you're less likely to spend considerable time honing a less necessary skill.
Aug '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
I am a recovering Adam Carolla addict. I was a huge fan of his podcast. I talked about him to my friends and family frequently. I shared his jokes with friends who were also fans. I bought his latest book.
Then, I went to a live show just before Father's Day. I heard him say that what fathers really want on Father's Day is for their wives and children to "leave the house and leave them the **** alone." I probably laughed at this.
Afterwards, in the autograph line, I saw that for photos taken with fans, Adam put on a smiling mask, but when talking one-on-one, he was grim, miserable-looking, and seemingly annoyed. When my time came to meet Adam, he was rude to me, and I thought, "Why am I poisoning myself with this negativity?"
During the weekend, I watched my daughter and son, respectively, play violin in a recital and play baseball in a championship game. And I deleted Adam Carolla from my iPhone, TiVo, and Twitter.
My friends who are Carolla fans think I am just being sensitive. But I think my "conversion" is deeper than that. At least, I hope so.
Edited on June 20, 2012 at 5:43pmFeb '11
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
One of the things I love about Carolla's humor is that he insists upon bludgeoning modern PC sensibilities, mercilessly. His style is harsh and brutal. Some like that, some don't. He kind of reminds me of a modern Don Rickles.
Aug '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
If you've never read an advice column (and how many men do?), you might picture advice-column writers as being serious sad-sack sobs sisters, but in my experience, the best advice columnists are also funny, from Miss Manners (funny in that gently dry, Austenesque way) to Amy Alkon (the "Advice Goddess").
I don't share Amy Alkon's moral ideal, or agree with all her advice (a goodly portion of it is good, though, which I think is rare in a modern advice columnist). But at least the woman has a moral ideal -- and my, is her sarcastic beautiful:
Life is a comedy of manners.
Edited on June 20, 2012 at 6:04pmRe: Who's Funnier and Why?
Kevin Walker:
Afterwards, in the autograph line, I saw that for photos taken with fans, Adam put on a smiling mask, but when talking one-on-one, he was grim, miserable-looking, and seemingly annoyed. When my time came to meet Adam, he was rude to me, and I thought, "Why am I poisoning myself with this negativity?"
Not to downplay your experience, but I've found that almost all comedians are miserable and, in a way, messed up. I suppose it's this pain that creates the keen insight into the unspoken feelings many of us hold and can only explore via humor.
Mar '11
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Men tend to work in generalities and women in specifics.
A man will work from the premise that all women are nuts. Everyone knows at least one woman who is nuts so the audience can then connect his jokes to their own personal experience. (Oh that is so Mabel!)
A woman will work from the premise that her boyfriend Joe is nuts. If you know someone like Joe then you'll find her funny. If not, she loses you.
Men are funny to a broad audience. Women are funny to a narrow audience.
Mar '11
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
I could imagine how having to say "Look up here, I'm telling a joke!" would really throw off one's comedic timing.
Mar '11
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Kevin Walker:
Afterwards, in the autograph line, I saw that for photos taken with fans, Adam put on a smiling mask, but when talking one-on-one, he was grim, miserable-looking, and seemingly annoyed. When my time came to meet Adam, he was rude to me, and I thought, "Why am I poisoning myself with this negativity?"
It is often dangerous to meet a performer or writer that you enjoy face-to-face. The encounters can often change the way you perceive their work in a fundamental way. This has happened to me on several occasions because I'm a nerd who likes to meet people at sci-fi conventions. It's often disastrous.
Apr '12
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Mollie, I love your little comments said in such a positive way. They make me chuckle.
Aug '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Really? A woman who doesn't learn, sooner or later, to take herself less seriously is just screwing herself up in our crazy world. Men, though... Men are routinely self-important in ways that rarely occur to women. They may make fools of themselves deliberately. They may make fools of themselves accidentally. But it doesn't diminish their self-importance.
I think it more likely that both sexes tend to notice the other sex's self-importance more than their own.
You can also opt to play the fool without losing your sense of self-seriousness, not that it always works. I've got a relative like that. He's the one who thinks it's funny to bring a kazoo at a Christmas carol party thrown by serious musicians and shatter a beautiful moment with tooting. He's the one with the potty jokes. He's also the least funny person in his family. We put up with it, though, since he's far too self-serious about his japery to handle being told it isn't funny.
Edited on June 20, 2012 at 6:47pmSep '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Mollie Hemingway, Ed.
Kevin Walker:
Afterwards, in the autograph line, I saw that for photos taken with fans, Adam put on a smiling mask, but when talking one-on-one, he was grim, miserable-looking, and seemingly annoyed. When my time came to meet Adam, he was rude to me, and I thought, "Why am I poisoning myself with this negativity?"
Not to downplay your experience, but I've found that almost all comedians are miserable and, in a way, messed up. I suppose it's this pain that creates the keen insight into the unspoken feelings many of us hold and can only explore via humor. · 27 minutes ago
I can't hear you: I have my finger in my ears.
Sep '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Kevin Walker:
Then, I went to a live show just before Father's Day. I heard him say that what fathers really want on Father's Day is for their wives and children to "leave the house and leave them the **** alone." I probably laughed at this.
Afterwards, in the autograph line, I saw that for photos taken with fans, Adam put on a smiling mask, but when talking one-on-one, he was grim, miserable-looking, and seemingly annoyed. When my time came to meet Adam, he was rude to me, and I thought, "Why am I poisoning myself with this negativity?"
My friends who are Carolla fans think I am just being sensitive. But I think my "conversion" is deeper than that. At least, I hope so.
I'm a big fan but I don't really want to meet him. It has to be difficult to always put up with the same thing from people, even though they like you, it's always the same. And who among us can handle being serially nice to people hours on end? How was he rude to you? Dismissive, hostile, mocking, what? I'm interested.
Aug '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Casey
I could imagine how having to say "Look up here, I'm telling a joke!" would really throw off one's comedic timing.
A bigger fail is wearing a long strip of masking tape labeled, "Look up!" across your "devices".
Casey:
Men are funny to a broad audience.
What is that? Some sorta joke?
Feb '11
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
The idea that the Y chromosome contains the humor gene is frankly ridiculous. There are differences between males and females (obviously), but being funnier is not one of them. There are just too many funny females out there.
Nov '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Yes, but you should do it in a more tortured, self-conscious and apologetic way. Just sayin'.
Nov '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
I never really thought about whether chicks are funnier than dudes, in general. I've always thought that chicks are generally way, way, way more insecure than dudes. Perhaps there's a connection there. For example, dudes are more prone to address their insecurity through humor, while chicks are more prone to do so by making dudes miserable. Just a thought.
Edited on June 20, 2012 at 7:11pmNov '10
Re: Who's Funnier and Why?
Edward Smith: Nothing to add, Chazzy Star, but my thanks.
This was a good Post, and the Thread also very good.
Mind if I Follow you? · 3 hours ago
Not at all, and I you? But you better be hilarious.