Philosophy
It was a fleeting thought, quickly dismissed as I focused on an upcoming presentation. It was a presentation relating religious modes of thought to the physics of Newton and Einstein. I was scheduled in the Banners? series of lectures, concerts, and cultural events at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana where a good friend of mine teaches. Asked if I?d also speak to local schools, I agreed because I relish the chance to excite young people about science and it was nice to have more time to visit.
All went well and I found myself chummy with the folks running the series who invited me back the next year. When hearing of my comic adventure, they requested some stand-up when I came back. I knew a local bar had an open mic comedy night and I got a charge out of being able to pretend to be a real comedian playing on the road.
There was, however, a miscommunication. I had inadvertently agreed to a Banners event, a full show with an audience who would expect a professional comedian. Confronted with this by e-mail, I could have simply backed out. It was still floating in the ether of potentiality. It would mean writing forty-five minutes of quality comedy. That is a lot of jokes?a LOT of jokes. It would mean working them out in front audiences. That?s a lot of open mic nights. It is hard to be funny for ten minutes, three quarters of an hour is something else entirely.
But there is something magical about forty-five minutes. It is a complete set. In the old days, forty-five minutes of polished, rock solid material meant you could record an LP. That is where you transform from a comic to a comedian. This could be my only chance to emulate my childhood heroes. And I had an entire year. If I could do a fairly successful seven minutes with four week?s worth of preparation and no experience, developing five to six more short bits in twelve months shouldn?t be beyond me. So, I signed on for a year of living humorously.
- Daniel Tosh And The Limits Of Dealing With Hecklers
Putting up this weekend's Comedist post early. Been thinking about the Daniel Tosh situation and thought I'd add my two cents: Controversy engulfs comedian Daniel Tosh supposedly for telling a rape joke. The moral limits of comedy and whether...
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part Vii
My wife?s Grandmother is 100 years old. She has a very weak heart, any sudden shock could be it, so every year we wrap her Christmas presents in Saran Wrap.I wrote and edited, worked in front of the mirror, went over and over bits as I drove to and from...
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part Vi
David Vitter, the very socially conservative Senator from Louisiana, was caught in the DC Madame scandal. What makes it even more ironic is that the prostitute spoke with the press and told them that the Senator insisted on wearing diapers to their sessions....
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part Iii
It?s a good thing that Jesus? last miracle wasn?t to turn himself into a chicken before ascending up to heaven because then you could not serve the wafer with red wine. Jesus, the other white meat.The second ten-minute module came together. Start with...
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part I
Maybe the whole midlife crisis thing is a myth, maybe it isn?t; but just in case, I was going to try to preempt it. Entrenched in my life as a tenured philosophy professor, the iconic routes were closed off to me. Being happily married (not to mention,...
Philosophy
The Year of Living Humorously: A Stand-Up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part II
It turns out that Eskimos really do kiss by rubbing noses. I dated an Eskimo woman once. Well, she was half Eskimo and half French, so when we would make out she?d stick her tongue up my nose.Driving to work a few weeks later it hit me. ?I just bought a new car. What I really wanted was one of those GPS navigation systems, but I couldn?t afford it. Had to go with the next cheaper version, the PMS navigation system. It has three settings: random explosion, constant criticism, and passive aggressive where you?ll drive for twenty miles and it?ll refuse to say anything.? It was good, too good not to use.
It was a fleeting thought, quickly dismissed as I focused on an upcoming presentation. It was a presentation relating religious modes of thought to the physics of Newton and Einstein. I was scheduled in the Banners? series of lectures, concerts, and cultural events at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana where a good friend of mine teaches. Asked if I?d also speak to local schools, I agreed because I relish the chance to excite young people about science and it was nice to have more time to visit.
All went well and I found myself chummy with the folks running the series who invited me back the next year. When hearing of my comic adventure, they requested some stand-up when I came back. I knew a local bar had an open mic comedy night and I got a charge out of being able to pretend to be a real comedian playing on the road.
There was, however, a miscommunication. I had inadvertently agreed to a Banners event, a full show with an audience who would expect a professional comedian. Confronted with this by e-mail, I could have simply backed out. It was still floating in the ether of potentiality. It would mean writing forty-five minutes of quality comedy. That is a lot of jokes?a LOT of jokes. It would mean working them out in front audiences. That?s a lot of open mic nights. It is hard to be funny for ten minutes, three quarters of an hour is something else entirely.
But there is something magical about forty-five minutes. It is a complete set. In the old days, forty-five minutes of polished, rock solid material meant you could record an LP. That is where you transform from a comic to a comedian. This could be my only chance to emulate my childhood heroes. And I had an entire year. If I could do a fairly successful seven minutes with four week?s worth of preparation and no experience, developing five to six more short bits in twelve months shouldn?t be beyond me. So, I signed on for a year of living humorously.
- Daniel Tosh And The Limits Of Dealing With Hecklers
Putting up this weekend's Comedist post early. Been thinking about the Daniel Tosh situation and thought I'd add my two cents: Controversy engulfs comedian Daniel Tosh supposedly for telling a rape joke. The moral limits of comedy and whether...
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part Vii
My wife?s Grandmother is 100 years old. She has a very weak heart, any sudden shock could be it, so every year we wrap her Christmas presents in Saran Wrap.I wrote and edited, worked in front of the mirror, went over and over bits as I drove to and from...
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part Vi
David Vitter, the very socially conservative Senator from Louisiana, was caught in the DC Madame scandal. What makes it even more ironic is that the prostitute spoke with the press and told them that the Senator insisted on wearing diapers to their sessions....
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part Iii
It?s a good thing that Jesus? last miracle wasn?t to turn himself into a chicken before ascending up to heaven because then you could not serve the wafer with red wine. Jesus, the other white meat.The second ten-minute module came together. Start with...
- The Year Of Living Humorously: A Stand-up Philosopher's Pilgrimage - Part I
Maybe the whole midlife crisis thing is a myth, maybe it isn?t; but just in case, I was going to try to preempt it. Entrenched in my life as a tenured philosophy professor, the iconic routes were closed off to me. Being happily married (not to mention,...