Hi!

One of the secrets of getting a laugh is. . .

. . .timing

Here is a quote from an actor and comedian named Kevin Burke, who performed Rob Becker’s solo show “Defending The Caveman” for 7 years in Las Vegas:

“You know that tiny delay between when you throw the switch on an LED bulb and when it actually goes on?  That’s what comedy timing is.”

Sometimes that “beat” is longer and more exaggerated.  A comedian named Jake Johannson out of San Francisco in the late 1980’s and 1990’s used a longer pause just before delivering punchlines that influenced a whole generation of comedians.

Why do you think that is effective? Hint: we already talked about it a bit.

Also here is the OED definition of standup comedy that I mentioned:

OED Definition: stand-up comedy  Comedy that generally is delivered by a solo performer speaking directly to the audience in some semblance of a spontaneous manner.

One final thought - you may have noticed that there are a lot of big personalities in this class;  if you are not one of them, please don’t be intimidated hahaha. Everybody has their own contribution to make.  The reason we can watch and listen to multiple people talk about the same topics is that no two humans are exactly the same (even identical twins!), like snowflakes if you will.  Which means that every human brings something new and unique into the wold.

Looking forward to seeing all of you tomorrow.

Ron