(Credits: Far Out / YouTube Still)
Of all the types of theater, comedy is always the most difficult to master. It may seem difficult to make people cry when they see you portray a character, but getting someone to drop their stomach in their chair while you speak is a greater challenge when they expect it from the start . Tom Hanks was more than capable of balancing his light and dark sides on screen, but he believed that there was a specific lineup from which all comedians drew their acts.
It’s one thing to be good at what you do, but making an impact in the world of comedy seems almost impossible. Comedy itself has always been a reactionary genre that, more often than not, goes beyond the times someone lives in, so how on earth are you supposed to create something that will resonate for years to come?
It turns out, however, that comedy took a different turn after World War II. While many people like to forget the extremely racist attempts at comedy from the 1800s to the 1930s, Hanks hadn’t seen anyone as funny in the post-war boom as Richard Pryor. Sure, he made jokes that many grandmothers wouldn’t have approved of, but he knew how to keep the audience engaged by making them angry just enough to keep them on their toes.
While Hanks went on to tell David Sheff that Pryor was “one of the most influential stand-up comedians,” he also had affection for what Lenny Bruce was doing. Compared to Pryor’s aggressive approach, Bruce was more interested in who he made laugh with. The goal was the same, but it was about trying to be lighter on what constituted being funny.
Comedy isn’t always about being light. For some, all good comedy is based on some form of misery, and Steve Martin knows this kind of routine like the back of his hand. Whether it’s because of his arrogant nature Planes, trains and automobiles or him annoying just about everyone like The asshole, Hanks knew he was seeing brilliance, explaining, “Martin is the one who changed stand-up the most. I think he’s the cause of the furore in comedy clubs today.”
Of all the guys who made their mark in comedy, Robert Klein was one of those who could go back and forth. To be a funny presence, you have to know a thing or two about acting, and Klein went from being one of the funniest men of his generation to working on serious dramas like Law and order And The good wife I feel like that shouldn’t be possible.
Hanks might argue that he does well as a comedic actor, but Pryor, Bruce, Martin, and Klein each constitute a piece of his comedic foundation. Despite all the jokes that didn’t pan out, there are still a few that still resonate today.
Take Pryor, for example. The aggressive comedy genre may have worked at the time, but it only gets stronger watching everyone from Kevin Hart to Bill Burr. And considering how good Martin was at pointing out the subtle elements of society that drove him crazy, there are still traces of him in everyone from John Mulaney to Paul Rudd’s comedic roles. Not every joke they made might make everyone laugh, but even if you don’t find any of them funny, you probably liked someone who was influenced by their work.
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(Credits: Far Out / YouTube Still)
Of all the types of theater, comedy is always the most difficult to master. It may seem difficult to make people cry when they see you portray a character, but getting someone to drop their stomach in their chair while you speak is a greater challenge when they expect it from the start . Tom Hanks was more than capable of balancing his light and dark sides on screen, but he believed that there was a specific lineup from which all comedians drew their acts.
It’s one thing to be good at what you do, but making an impact in the world of comedy seems almost impossible. Comedy itself has always been a reactionary genre that, more often than not, goes beyond the times someone lives in, so how on earth are you supposed to create something that will resonate for years to come?
It turns out, however, that comedy took a different turn after World War II. While many people like to forget the extremely racist attempts at comedy from the 1800s to the 1930s, Hanks hadn’t seen anyone as funny in the post-war boom as Richard Pryor. Sure, he made jokes that many grandmothers wouldn’t have approved of, but he knew how to keep the audience engaged by making them angry just enough to keep them on their toes.
While Hanks went on to tell David Sheff that Pryor was “one of the most influential stand-up comedians,” he also had affection for what Lenny Bruce was doing. Compared to Pryor’s aggressive approach, Bruce was more interested in who he made laugh with. The goal was the same, but it was about trying to be lighter on what constituted being funny.
Comedy isn’t always about being light. For some, all good comedy is based on some form of misery, and Steve Martin knows this kind of routine like the back of his hand. Whether it’s because of his arrogant nature Planes, trains and automobiles or him annoying just about everyone like The asshole, Hanks knew he was seeing brilliance, explaining, “Martin is the one who changed stand-up the most. I think he’s the cause of the furore in comedy clubs today.”
Of all the guys who made their mark in comedy, Robert Klein was one of those who could go back and forth. To be a funny presence, you have to know a thing or two about acting, and Klein went from being one of the funniest men of his generation to working on serious dramas like Law and order And The good wife I feel like that shouldn’t be possible.
Hanks might argue that he does well as a comedic actor, but Pryor, Bruce, Martin, and Klein each constitute a piece of his comedic foundation. Despite all the jokes that didn’t pan out, there are still a few that still resonate today.
Take Pryor, for example. The aggressive comedy genre may have worked at the time, but it only gets stronger watching everyone from Kevin Hart to Bill Burr. And considering how good Martin was at pointing out the subtle elements of society that drove him crazy, there are still traces of him in everyone from John Mulaney to Paul Rudd’s comedic roles. Not every joke they made might make everyone laugh, but even if you don’t find any of them funny, you probably liked someone who was influenced by their work.
