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INDEX
Aarhus, Denmark: McGraw and Warner’s visit to, 132–40
Abbas, Mahmoud, 160
Abraham (biblical person), 156, 171
Abu Ghraib prison (Iraq) photos, 124–25, 141
The Act of Creation (Koestler), 49
Adams, Hunter “Patch,” 181, 183, 186–87, 191, 192, 196, 211
Addams, Charles, 56
advertising
creating humor for, 43, 51–54
about Paradise Island show, 136, 139
See also alcohol: humor and
Africa
See Tanzania
age: humor and, 35, 95
“Aha!” moment, 56, 199
Ahmadinejad, Mahmoud, 145
Al-Abi, 157
alcohol: humor and, 62–66, 208–9
Allen, Melanie, 48
Amazon, trip to
benign violation theory and, 205
clown brigade and, 175–76, 181–94, 205
McGraw and Warner’s, 175–76, 181–94, 196, 205, 211
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 200, 205
Amelia (survivor of laughter epidemic), 84, 86–88
Anatomy of an Illness as Perceived by the Patient (Cousins), 122, 177
animals
laughter of, 79–81
Mohammad cartoons and, 143–46
Annual Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor Conference, 176–77, 178, 179, 180
Ansari, Aziz, 39–40
anthropologists: comedians compared with, 30
anti-Israeli jokes, 164–65
Arab comedy ladder, 158
Araki, Takahiro, 106, 116, 118
Ariely, Dan, 112
Aristophanes, 165
Aristotle, 6, 11, 84
Attardo, Salvatore, 26–27
attention-grabbing jokes, 54
audience: role of, 23, 32–34, 86, 200, 205
Awad, Manal, 160–61, 162, 165
Aykroyd, Dan, 27
Bartholomew, Robert, 90
batsu game, 116, 117
Bekoff, Marc, 81
Belén project (Peru), 181, 183–89, 191
Bell, Nancy, 129
Belushi, John, 27
benign violation theory
alcohol-humor study and, 63–66
Amazon trip and, 205
and balancing benign and violation, 200, 205–6
C.K.-McGraw discussion and, 18
creativity and, 49, 52
criticisms of, 11–12, 13
development of, 9–13
everyday life and, 212
fly-down experiment and, 128
and humor as coping, 189
Japanese humor and, 205, 208
and Just For Laughs Festival invitation, 203–5, 206–10
laughter and, 72, 78
and pain as source of humor, 154
Palestine trip and, 205
purpose of, 201
Sarah Silverman Strategy and, 12
Seinfeld Strategy and, 12, 15
timing and, 205–6
Warner’s thoughts about, 210
and what makes people funny, 18
and what makes successful comedians, 38–39
Berg, Alex, 39
Bergson, Henri, 157
Between Heaven and Mirth (Martin), 156
bin Laden, Osama, 160
Binder, McKenzie, 35
birth-control campaign, 52, 53–54, 167, 205
black comedians, 35
“black swan” arguments, 167–69
bladeless fans experiment, 120
Bloomberg, Michael, 42
Bodden, Alonzo, 201
boke (Japanese comedy partner), 106, 205
Boosler, Elayne, 20
Born Standing Up: A Comic’s Life (Martin), 30
bowling-ball cartoon (Kanin), 47, 55–58, 64–65
Brady, Jordan, 31
Brockovich, Erin, 90
Brooks, Mel, 163
Brown, Tina, 45
Bruce, Lenny, 25, 36, 63, 112, 120
Bucher, Lloyd, 153–54
Bukoba, Tanzania: McGraw and Warner’s visit to, 73–75, 83–85
Burgdorf, Jeffrey, 80–81
burlesque show, African, 75
Carell, Steve, 27
The Caricature Crisis (Larsen), 138
caricature.dk (website), 148
Carolla, Adam, 108, 109
Carr, Jimmy, 36
Carter, Erin Percival, 38
cartoons
aggressive, 124
“Aha!” moment for, 56
and aspiring cartoonists, 54–58
captionless, 49
context for, 56
and definition of cartooning, 47
disadvantages of, 142
fact-checkers for, 56, 58
as failures, 128–30, 132
Gruner’s views about, 123–24
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 206
Mohammad, 124–30, 131–32, 133–37, 138–39, 140
See also the New Yorker cartoons
The Cartoons that Shook the World (Klausen), 127
cat-as-sex-toy story, 9, 10
censorship, 130, 160
Center for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (CANVAS), 169
Central Casting (Los Angeles), 33–34
Chaplin, Charlie, 112, 113
charging woman: in Denmark, 119
Cheezburger Network, 13
Chesterfield, Lord, 123
children, 84–85, 193–94
See also laughter epidemics; Tanzania
church raffle–Hummer story, 4, 10
C.K., Louis, 17–18, 40, 72
“clash of two mutually incompatible codes,” 49–50
cleverness: creativity and, 50
Clinton, Bill, 63
Close, Del, 28
clowns
Amazon trip and, 175–76, 181–94, 205
benign violation theory and, 205
and Glick’s Parkinson’s disease, 191–92
image of, 187
McGraw’s views about, 188–89
nose of, 182–83, 187, 196, 198, 211
as outsiders, 187
training for, 186
The Colbert Report (TV program), 62, 111
Colbert, Stephen, 27
Collins, Robert Merrifield, 120
comedians
audience relationship with, 23, 32–34, 86, 200, 205
earnings of, 35, 106
as inherently unhappy, 37
Jews as, 30
as outsiders, 30, 72, 199, 201
production process impact on, 59–62
therapy programs for, 36
and who is funny, 17–41, 199
See also specific person
comedy
“bibles” about creating, 48
and comedy writing as orgasm, 48
commonalities among types of, 29–30
comparison of American and Japanese, 117–18
compartmentalization of, 102
context of, 30–32, 103–4, 128
creation of, 41–66
diversity in, 93
emotions as key in, 60
and exceptionally difficult circumstances, 169–72
experience and experimentation as key to, 25, 40
failures of, 128–30, 200
formal instruction about, 25
humor differentiated from, 117–18
Koestler’s views about creating, 48–50, 51
performing environment for, 31–32
truth and, 28, 30
unexpectedness in, 7
worldwide popularity of, 113–15
See also humor; joke(s); laughter; type of comedy
“Comedy Bang Bang” (UCB stand-up show), 39–40
Comedy Central, 35, 105
comedy club
what is a, 31–32
See also specific club
Comedy at the Edge (Zoglin), 34
Comedy Nest (Montreal): McGraw’s stand-up comedy routine at, 197–202, 206–10
Comedy Store (Los Angeles), 19–21, 107
Comedy Store (Tokyo), 107
complaining, humorous, 190–91
computers: creativity and, 50–51
condom jokes, 53–54
conflict situations
improvisation and, 28
successful comedians and, 38
conservatives: sense of humor of, 112
context
for cartoons, 56, 128
of comedy, 30–32, 103–4, 128
of humor, 200
Cook, Dane, 104
Copenhagen
See Denmark
coping/relief, humor/jokes for, 7, 8, 12, 134, 163–64, 167, 173, 189–91, 200, 206
Cosby, Bill, 7
Coser, Rose, 85–86
Cousins, Norman, 122, 177, 179, 196
creativity
in advertising, 43, 51–54
benign violation theory and, 49, 52
“bibles” about, 48
as “clash of two mutually incompatible codes,” 49–50
cleverness and, 50
communal/team-based, 57, 199
complexity of, 128
computers and, 50–51
humor as help to, 50
Koestler’s views about, 48–50, 51
and mass-produced comedy, 41–62
and McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from travels, 199
New Yorker cartoons and, 41–46, 54–58
risk and, 144, 147
as solitary, 57
in stand-up comedy, 57
terrorism and, 60–61
cruel joke cycle, 135
culture
influence on humor of, 93–118
joking relationships and, 95
sense of humor and, 95
and worldwide popularity of comedy, 113–14
Cycowycz, Gizelle, 162, 163, 164, 170
Daiku, Tomiaki, 104–5, 106
The Daily Show (TV program), 54, 60, 62
dark humor, 119–48, 200
dating profiles: humor and, 109
David, Larry, 35
Davies, Christie, 95–99, 167
Davila-Ross, Marina, 79–80
Davis, Susan, 121, 122
“Day of Rage,” 126–27
Day, Spring, 107–8
dead-baby joke cycle, 135
dead-monkey joke, 8–9
Dean, Greg, 23–25, 26, 49
Debatable Humor: Laughing Matters on the 2008 Presidential Primary Campaign (Stewart), 111
DeLuca, Rudy, 19
Democrats: comedy and, 111–12
Denmark
charging woman in, 119
and “Day of Rage” activities, 126–27
derogatory jokes in, 169
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 119–21, 124–25, 130–42
Mohammad cartoons and, 124–30, 131–32, 133–37, 138–39, 140, 141, 142, 145
Muslims in, 125–26, 131–32, 138–40, 145, 148
Warner/McGraw–police exchanges in, 130, 132, 133
See also specific person
Denver Art Museum: as comedy club, 32
Denver, Colorado: Squire Lounge in, 1–2, 5–6, 13–15, 202, 209, 211
Denver Laughter Club, 178
derogatory jokes, 142, 169, 205
DEviaNT (Double Entendre via Noun Transfer) program, 50
Dice Clay, Andrew, 20
Dick, Andy, 35
dick jokes, 117, 118
DiGiovanni, Debra, 198–99, 206
“digit affair”
See Hawaiian good luck sign
Diller, Phyllis, 7
dirty jokes, 7, 11, 29, 121–22, 163
disparaging jokes, 142
doctor-wife joke, 24
Dotombori district (Osaka, Japan), 102–3
Downtown (Japanese comedy act), 106–7
Drescher, Fran, 33
Du Bois, W.E.B., 30
Duchenne, Guillaume, 77–78
dumb-blonde jokes, 96–97
Dundes, Alan, 134–36
Dunham, Jeff, 104
earnings: of comedians, 35, 106
Ebert, Roger, 45
Edwards, John: Huckabee comment about, 112
Ellen DeGeneres Show (TV show), 32
Ellner, Jordy, 201
emotions: as key in comedy, 8, 60
“encrypted humor,” 111
Encyclopedia of 20th-Century American Humor, 13
Encyclopedia of Humor Studies, 6
everyday life
benign violation theory and, 212
how humor is used in, 29
laughter of, 72, 92
in Palestine, 173
evolution: of laughter, 76–79
“F” parking lot cartoon, 45
fact-checkers: for cartoons, 56, 58
failures, comedy, 128–30, 200
Fallon, Jimmy, 27
Farajin, Imad, 160
Farashat, Bashar, 171, 172–73
Feingold, Alan, 22
Fernbach, Phil, 35, 45, 53
Ferrell, Will, 27
Ferri, Sam, 55
Fey, Tina, 27
Fiqh Council of North America, 127
fireworks show gone wrong, 204
The Flamingo Resort and Casino (Las Vegas), 35
fly-down experiment: benign violation theory and, 128
football: Dundes’s views about, 134–35
Ford, Thomas, 142
Foxworthy, Jeff, 104
France
and French folklore, 135
and French love of Jerry Lewis, 97–98
and randy-Frenchmen bon mots, 96
free speech: Mohammad cartoons and, 130, 144–45
Freedom Theatre (West Bank), 165–66, 167, 169, 171
Freud, Sigmund, 6–7, 134, 164
Frevert, Louise, 136
Friedman, Josh, 20–21, 23, 40
Fry, William, 48
Gacy, John Wayne, 187
Galifianakis, Zach, 41–42
game: humor as a, 123–24, 141
game shows, Japanese, 116–17
Gaza Strip, 149–50
restrictions in, 157
“gelotophobia,” 124
gender
as bias in comedy, 108–10
and humor in dating/mating, 109
Japanese humor and, 107
joke-writing competition and, 110
and jokes about women, 108
laughter and, 89–91, 92
Martin’s studies of humor and, 108–9
political jokes and, 112
sense of humor and, 95
and what makes a successful comedian, 35
Gervais, Matthew, 76–79
Gesundheit Global Outreach, 181–82, 183–89, 191
See also Amazon, trip to: clown brigade and
Gesundheit! Hospital (West Virginia), 181
“Giggleometer,” 114
Glick, John, 181–82, 183, 187, 191–92
Goldstein, Dan, 37
The Goodies (sketch-comedy show), 129
Gordon, Rae Beth, 97
Gotham Comedy Club (New York City), 38
Gottfried, Gilbert, 61
Gough, Jacob, 166, 169, 171
Great American Lawyer Joke Cycle, 97
Greengross, Gil, 37, 38
Greeves, Lucy, 36
Grey New York (advertising company), 63–66, 208–9
grief: humor and, 194–96
Groupon (website), 58
Gruner, Charles, 123–24, 141
HAHAcronym Generator, 50
“Haiti” text experiment, 60–61
“Hakuna matata” (“no worries”), 70, 73, 92
Hall, Arsenio, 20
Hall, Edward, 104
Halpern, Charna, 28
Hammerschlag, Carl, 192–94
Handey, Jack, 112
Handler, Chelsea, 104
Hanson, Todd, 59–60, 61–62, 205
Harlan, Patrick, 110
Harman, Jennifer, 38
“Harold” technique, 28
Harris, Sidney, 55
Harvard Lampoon magazine, 47
Hawaiian good luck sign, 154, 155, 190
health: humor and, 175–96, 200
Heaven Spa (Osaka, Japan), 102
Hebron (West Bank): McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 171–73
Hempelmann, Christian, 89
Hicks, Bill, 112
Hitchens, Christopher, 108
Hodzic, Nihad, 139, 140, 141, 148
Holocaust, 162, 163–64, 170, 173
homophobic jokes, 141
Hook, Theodore, 140–41
Hotz, Kenny, 203–5
Huckabee, Mike, 111–12
Huh, Ben, 13
human rights, 124, 204
humor
Adams’s views about, 186–87
as balance of pleasure and pain, 210
cause of, 52, 154
comedy differentiated from, 117–18
comparison of American and Japanese, 117–18
complexity of, 210–11
as coping/relief tool, 134, 163–64, 167, 173, 189–91, 200
creation of, 41–66
dark side of, 119–48, 200
enjoying your own, 189, 193–94, 200
evolutionary origins of, 109
as a game, 123–24, 141
health and, 175–96, 200
Koestler’s definition of, 49
McGraw’s thoughts about, 212
purpose of, 6–7
selling of, 51–54
as subversion tool, 165, 173
team-based, 201
universal, 114–15, 118, 200
See also comedy; joke(s); laughter; sense of humor; specific topic; type of humor
HUMOR (quarterly publication), 6, 8, 9, 13, 26, 89
Humor Research Lab (HuRL) (University of Colorado)
benign violation theory development at, 10–13
birth control campaign study by, 53–54, 167, 205
and dark side of humor, 120
founding of, 2
and “Haiti” text experiment, 60–61
and importance of information to funniness, 128
McGraw-Warner’s first meeting at, 2–3
McGraw’s founding of, 2
New Yorker cartoon study by, 45
purpose of experiments at, 3, 15
Humor Research Team (HuRT), 2–3, 110
See also specific person
Humorous Behavior Q-sort Deck, 28–29
HUNT-2 study, 180
hunter joke, 114–15
The Hurricane Club (New York City): alcohol-humor study at, 63–66
Hurricane Sandy, 170
Hutcheson, Francis, 123
I Am Comic (documentary), 31
Ibrahimi Mosque (Hebron), 172–73
Improv Olympic Theater (iO) (Chicago), 28
improvisation, 27–28, 29–30, 37–39, 40
Ince, Elise Chandon, 97
incongruity theory, 7, 8, 12, 206
infants: laughter of, 84–85
Inoue, Hiroshi, 99, 100
instincts: and what makes comedians, 18
intangibles: and what makes a person funny, 22–23
International Humor Conference (Copenhagen, 2006), 124
International Society for Humor Studies (ISHS), 6, 13, 44, 95–96, 123
intifadas humor, 158–59, 164, 165
“Into the End Zone, Trying to Get a Touchdown” (Dundes), 135
Iquitos (Peru)
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 176, 183–85, 186, 188, 192–94
Punchana neighborhood in, 193–94
See also Belén project (Peru)
Irish jokes, 98
Irving, Washington, 98
Isen, Alice, 50
Israel: and anti-Israeli jokes, 164–65
Israeli-Palestinian friendship, 173
Jackson, Victoria, 111
Japan
benign violation theory and, 205
characteristics of humor in, 95, 99
compartmentalization of comedy in, 102
Davies comment about, 99
as homogenous, 103
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 200, 205
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 93–94, 205, 211
political jokes in, 110
samurai as central to humor in, 99, 100
U.S. influence on, 113
See also Osaka, Japan
Japan Society for Laughter and Humor Studies, 99
Japanese Humor and Laughter Society, 93–94, 102
JAPE (Joke Analysis and Production Engine) (robo-jokesters), 50
Jenin (West Bank): McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 165–67, 169
Jerichow, Anders, 130–32, 137
Jerusalem, McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 162–64
Jewish humor, 164
Jews: as comedians, 30
“Jihad Jane” (aka Colleen Renee LaRose), 145, 146
joke-writing
of Dean, 24–25
gender and, 110
of Raskin, 24–25
joke(s)
boring, 129–32
characteristics of, 141
as coping/relief tool, 134, 163–64, 167, 173, 189–91, 200
culture and, 95
dark, 148, 159
delivery of, 201
difficult circumstances and, 169–72
as failures, 128–29
as a game, 123–24, 141
offensive, 129–32
Palestinian, 158–59
purpose of, 134
for self-preservation, 163–64
in Soviet Union, 154–55
stereotypes and, 141
translations of, 104
world’s funniest, 114–15
See also type of joke
Jokes and Their Relation to the Unconscious (Freud), 6–7
“Jon Stewart Effect,” 54
Just for Feet commercial, 53
Just For Laughs Comedy Festival (Montreal)
and McGraw-Warner decision to participate in, 15
McGraw and Warner’s invitation to participate in, 203–4, 206
McGraw’s stand-up comedy routine for, 197–202, 206–10
Singer as talent scout for, 21
Jyllands-Posten (Danish newspaper)
incendiary imagery in, 134
Mohammad cartoons in, 124–30, 131, 133
survey about immigrants by, 138
threats against, 131
Kahneman, Daniel, 4
Kamala, Jason, 69–71, 88
Kan, Christina, 190
Kanaana, Sharif, 158–59, 161, 164, 165, 171
Kanin, Zachary, 46–48, 49, 51, 54, 55–58, 64–65
Kansai University (Osaka, Japan), 100
Kaplan, Bruce Eric, 43
Kashasha, Tanzania
laughter epidemic in, 68–69, 74, 83, 89
Rugeiyamu visit with McGraw and Warner in, 88–91
Katagelasticists, 124
Kataria, Madan, 178–79
Kaufman, Andy, 20
Keltner, Dacher, 140
Kinison, Sam, 20
Kiroyera Tours, 70
Klausen, Jytte, 127
Klegman, Sarah, 21, 22
Klikushestvo shouting manias, 90
Klovn (TV comedy show), 136
knock-knock jokes, 6
Koestler, Arthur, 48–50, 51
Koran, 156–57
Koziski, Stephanie, 30
labor unions, for comedians, 20
Ladonia (micronation), 146–47
LaMont, Alf, 19, 20
LaRose, Colleen Renee “Jihad Jane,” 145, 146
Larsen, Rune, 137–39
Las Vegas, Nevada: McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 34–37
Laugh Factory (Los Angeles club), 36
LaughLab (website), 114
laughter
of animals, 79–81
benefits of, 178–79
benign violation theory and, 72, 78
in children/infants, 84–85
as contagious, 68, 73, 86, 88–89, 200
difficult circumstances and, 169–72
as “disabling” mechanism, 76
Duchenne and, 77–78
in everyday life, 72, 92
evolution of, 76–79
gender and, 89–91, 92
Gervais and Wilson’s views about, 76–79
and good versus bad audience, 33–34
health and, 175–96
madness and, 71
as mass hysteria, 89–90
McGraw and Warner as practicing, 33–34, 86, 205
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned about, 205
mimicked, 78
as mysterious, 68
as pathological, 74
as protest, 89–90, 168–69
Provine’s explanation of, 71–73
purpose of, 76–79, 92, 199–200
at self, 199, 200, 201
as signal that things are okay, 83
social power of, 72–73, 85–86, 92
solitary, 72
stand-up comedy and, 72
stress and, 90–91, 92
tickling and, 79–80
uncontrollable, 71, 74
Laughter: A Scientific Investigation (Provine), 71, 89
laughter epidemics, 67–71, 73, 74, 83–85, 87, 88–90, 91–92
Laughter in Hell: The Use of Humor During the Holocaust (Lipman), 163–64
Laughter Universities, 179
laughter yoga, 178–79, 212
laughtivism, 168–69
lawyer jokes, 97
Le Roy, New York: student outbursts in, 90
Lear, Norman, 48
Lee, Judith Yaros, 44
Legman, Gershon, 121–22, 124
Leno, Jay, 20
Leonard, Bridget, 97
Leore (Israeli cabdriver), 150, 152
Letterman, David, 20
Levity (comedy agency), 21
Lewis, Jerry, 97–98, 124
Lewis, Richard, 20
liberals: sense of humor of, 112
Lichtenstein, Donnie, 9
Life Studies of Comedy Writers (Fry and Allen), 48
lightbulb jokes, 136
lighting: role in comedy of, 31–32
Limbaugh, Rush, 111
linguistic theory of humor, 24
Lipman, Steve, 163–64
Lorena (Argentinian clown), 189
Los Angeles, California
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 199, 205, 206
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 17–41, 211
See also Central Casting; Comedy Store; Santa Monica Playhouse; Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCB); specific person
Los Angeles Comedy Awards, 23
Louie (FX series), 17
Lubetkin, Steve, 20
Lutz, Chip, 177
Mad Men (TV show), 62, 107, 208
madness: laughter and, 71
Malin, Elisabeth, 112
Mamet, David, 56
Man Show (TV program), 142
Mankoff, Bob, 43–44, 45, 46, 47, 54–58, 64
manzai (two-man comedy style), 106, 107, 110, 113, 117, 205
Mark (Amazonian clown), 193
marriage: humor and, 75–76
Martin, James, 156
Martin, Rod, 108–9, 179, 180
Martin, Steve, 20, 25, 30
Marx, Groucho, 36
Masada, Jamie, 36
mass hysteria: laughter as, 89–90
mass-market jokes/comedy
creation of, 41–62
risks involved with, 58–59
See also the New Yorker cartoons
mass motor hysteria, 90
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): idea generation study at, 50
Massou, Khalid, 160
Mauss, Shane, 201
Mazzilli, Chris, 38
McGhee, Paul, 85
McGraw, Kathleen (mother), 3, 194–96
McGraw, Peter
educational background of, 3, 4
first attempt at stand-up comedy by, 1–2, 5–6, 13–15
impact of global expedition on, 212
personal background of, 3–4
personality of, 4
second attempt at stand-up comedy by, 197–203, 206–10
Warner first meets, 2–4
Warner’s relationship with, 211–12
See also specific topic
McGraw, Shannon (sister), 3, 195
McNally, Martin J., 137
medicine
laughter as best, 175–96
See also health: humor and
Mehdawi, Rami, 161, 171
Mer-Khamis, Juliano, 165–66, 167, 169
Metzger, Darwyn, 27–28
Miller, Dennis, 111
Mitchell, Alex, 129
Mohammad cartoons, 124–30, 131–32, 133–37, 138–39, 140, 141, 142, 143–46, 147, 148, 149
Montreal, Canada
See Just For Laughs Comedy Festival (Montreal)
moral violations
McGraw’s interest in, 4
See also benign violation theory
Morishita, Shinya, 94, 100
Morreall, John, 123
Muslims
in Denmark, 125–26, 131–32, 138–40, 141, 145, 148
humor and, 157
in Sweden, 145
See also Mohammad cartoons; Palestine
Muslims in Dialog, 139, 141
Myers, Mike, 27
“N+V Theory,” 8–9
Nagashima, Heiyo, 94, 102, 103
The Naked Gun study, 63
Namba Grand Kagetsu (Osaka, Japan), 107
Nasser, Latif, 90
National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, 52, 53–54, 167, 205
New Star Creation (comedy school) (Tokyo), 104–6, 107, 110
New York City
alcohol-humor study in, 62–66, 208–9
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 199, 205, 206
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 41–66, 211
See also Gotham Comedy Club; the New Yorker cartoons; specific person
the New Yorker cartoons
cartoonist open-call day for, 54–58
contest for, 41–42, 45, 54–58
database of, 57
gender responses to, 108
HuRL study of, 45
and Kanin’s bowling-ball cartoon, 47, 55–58, 64–65
laughter at, 71
and selling of mass-market humor, 51
uniqueness of, 44–45
The New Yorker Festival, 42
nicknames: McGraw’s act about, 14
Nilsen, Don, 12–13
Nimis (Vilks sculpture), 146–47
“911 Café” (Ramallah), 158
No Laughing Matter (Legman), 122
North Korea: USS Pueblo incident and, 153–54, 170, 190
Norway: HUNT-2 study in, 180
nose, clown, 182–83, 187, 196, 198, 211
Nshamba, Tanzania: McGraw and Warner’s visit to, 83–85
Nulman, Andy, 203–4, 206
Nutty Professor experiment, 97
Obama, Barack, 111, 160
O’Brien, Conan, 27
“Ogata Impossible” (Power Purin variety show), 116–17
Ogata, Takahiro, 116–17
Ojibwe Native Americans, 95
Old Testament: humor in, 123
Olympic gymnast joke, 103
omuneepo
See laughter epidemics
Onion (film), 61–62
The Onion News Network (web broadcast), 61
The Onion (newspaper), 59–60, 61–62, 205
Only Joking: What’s So Funny About Making People Laugh? (Carr and Greeves), 36
orgasm: comedy writing as having an, 48
Oring, Elliot, 7, 164
O’Rourke, P.J., 111
Orwell, George, 165
Osaka, Japan
benign violation theory and, 208
as comedy capital of Japan, 100, 107, 208
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 99–104, 203, 208
post–World War II, 100–101
rakugo performance in, 94–95
silence in, 101
smallest bar in the world in, 103, 104
Osaki, Hiroshi, 112–13, 116
Otpor! (Serbian youth movement), 168–69
pain, 154, 173, 210
See also dark humor
Pakkun Makkun (manzai act), 11
Palestine
benign violation theory and, 205
censorship in, 160
geography and economy of, 150–51
Israeli-Palestinian friendship in, 173
Israeli settlers in, 171
as laughter-free zone, 170–71
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 200, 205
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 149–53, 155–62, 164, 205, 211
Ramadan in, 150–52, 156, 159
restrictions in, 157
See also Gaza Strip; Hebron (West Bank): McGraw and Warner’s trip to; Ramallah (West Bank): McGraw and Warner’s trip to; West Bank
Panksepp, Jaak, 80
Paradise Island (show): advertising about, 136, 139
Paramount Theatre (Denver), 17–18
Parkinson’s disease: Glick and, 191–92
Pascal, Blaise, 7
penis questions, 18, 19
The Peregrine Penis (Legman), 122
performing environment, 31–32
See also context
personality: and what makes comedians, 18, 37–38
Peruvian Air Force, 175, 176
PET (Danish intelligence service), 132, 133
Pew Research Center: Mohammad cartoon survey by, 127–28
Philip, P. J., 68, 74, 83
Philogelos (joke book), 98
Pickering, Lucy, 26
Pinsker, Sanford, 44
Pirates of the Dotombori (Osaka, Japan), 99
Pirates of Tokyo Bay (Tokyo, Japan), 99
Plato, 6, 122–23
play fighting: incongruity theory and, 7
pleasure: humor as balance of pain and, 210
Plucker, Alvin, 154, 170
Poehler, Amy, 27
Polish jokes, 98, 135–36
politics/political jokes, 95, 110–12, 167
See also Mohammad cartoons
Politiken (Danish newspaper), 130–31
Popovic, Srda, 168–69
positive-humor movement, 122
post-traumatic stress disorder, 170
Power Purin (Yoshimoto variety show), 116–17
pranks/practical jokes, 140–41
“prejudiced norm theory,” 142
The Primer of Humor Research (Raskin), 13
protest: laughter as, 89–90, 168–69
Provine, Robert, 71–73, 89
Pryor, Richard, 20, 25, 36
The Psychology of Humor (Martin), 108, 179
punch lines
Dean’s views about, 25
delivery of, 201
everyday laughter and, 212
incongruity theory and, 7
Japanese humor and, 103
and Koestler’s views about creating humor, 49
linguistic theory of humor and, 24
in Soviet Union, 157
and who is funny, 26–27
puns, 7, 11, 49, 51, 123
Qualtrics, 97, 115
Rabbo, Yasser Abed, 160
race
jokes about, 141, 142
political jokes and, 112
and what makes a good/successful comedian, 35
rakugo (Japanese storytelling), 94–95, 116
Ramallah (West Bank): McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 155–62, 164, 170–71
Ramiro (Amazonian clown), 188
randy-Frenchmen bon mots, 96
Rankin, A. M., 68, 74, 83
Raskin, Victor, 13, 24–25, 206
Rasmussen, Anders Fogh, 126, 138, 139
rat-tickling experiments, 80–81
Rationale of the Dirty Joke (Legman), 121–22
Refn, Lars, 125–27, 128–29, 133, 148
refugee camp, Palestinian, 165–67
Reilly, Bill, 99–100, 101, 102
relationships: sense of humor and, 75–76, 212
relief: humor/jokes as, 7, 8, 12, 134, 163–64, 167, 173, 189–91, 200, 206
religion: humor and, 156–57
Remnick, David, 65
Republicans: comedy and, 111–12
Richards (Keith) story, 12
riffs, 25
risk
creativity and, 144, 147
mass-market comedy and, 58–59
Robbins, Tony, 24
robo-jokesters, 50
robots: and creation of funny, 50–51
Rock, Chris, 30, 35
Rock, John, 194
Roll Me in Your Arms and Blow the Candle Out (Legman), 122
Rose, Flemming, 130
Ross, Harold, 44, 54
Rubondo Island National Park: McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 79–80, 81–83
Ruch, Willibald, 124
Rugeiyamu, Kroeber, 88–89
Rutta, William (Tanzanian guide), 70, 73, 74–75, 79, 81–82, 83, 84, 86–88, 91, 92
Saatchi & Saatchi, 53
safari, African: McGraw and Warner on, 79–80, 81–83
safety valves
See coping/relief
Sahl, Mort, 36
samurai: Japanese humor and, 99, 100
Santa Monica Playhouse, 23, 25
Sarah Silverman Strategy, 12
sarcasm, 11, 99
satire, 134, 160, 164, 167
Saturday Night Live (TV program), 52, 60, 65, 111, 116
Scandinavia
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 200
See also Denmark; Mohammad cartoons; Sweden; specific person
“Scattered Pearls” (Al-Abi), 157
Schiro, Julie, 32, 53
Schneider, Abby, 37
schools: laughter epidemics in, 68–71, 83–85, 89–90, 91–92
science: comedians’ use of, 40
Second City (Tokyo), 113
Seinfeld, Jerry, 35, 37
Seinfeld Strategy, 12, 15
Seinfeld (TV program), 17, 43–44
self
censorship of, 130
and enjoying your own humor, 189, 193–94, 200
making fun of, 199, 200, 201
self-preservation jokes, 163–64
Sellers, Peter, 97, 98
selling: of mass-market humor, 51–54
Semantic Mechanisms of Humor (Raskin), 24
Semmerling, Jeff, 182–83, 187
sense of humor
definition of good, 22
factors influencing, 95
HUNT-2 study and, 180
measurement of, 22
politics and, 112–13
relationships and, 75–76
self-rating of, 22
September 11, 2001, 60–61, 205
Serbia: and “black swan” argument, 168–69
set-ups
everyday laughter and, 212
linguistic theory of humor and, 24
and who is funny, 26–27
settlers, Israeli: humor about, 171
sex, 75, 141, 142
See also dirty jokes; gender
Shakur, Tupac, 79
Shilimpaka, Margaret, 91
Shore, Mitzi, 19
Shore, Sammy, 19
sick jokes, 134
Sikh put-downs, 98
silence: in Osaka, 101
Singer, Jeff, 21, 22–23
Skelton, Red, 179
sketch comedy
See Watan ala Watar
slapstick: superiority theory and, 6
smallest bar in the world (Osaka, Japan), 103, 104
Smalls, Biggie, 83
Smith, Moira, 140–41
Soviet Union
collapse of, 167
jokes in, 154–55, 157, 167
Spa World (Osaka, Japan), 101–2
Spiegelman, Art, 127
Squire Lounge (Denver), 1–2, 5–6, 13–15, 202, 209, 211
St. Claire, Lisette, 33–34
stand-up comedy
audience-comedian relationship in, 23
creativity in, 57
Dean’s class about, 23–24, 25
experience as key in, 25, 199
improvisation compared with, 29–30, 37–38
laughter and, 72
and McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from travels, 199, 206
McGraw’s first official attempt at, 1–2, 5–6, 13–15
McGraw’s preparation for, 199–202
McGraw’s run-through for, 202
McGraw’s second official attempt at, 197–203, 206–10
Osaki’s views about American, 116
personality and, 37–38
politics and, 112
at Squire Lounge (Denver), 1–2, 5–6, 13–15
Zoglin’s views about, 34–35
See also specific comedian
STANDUP (System to Augment Non-speakers’ Dialogue Using Puns) (robo-jokester), 50
“Stars and Bucks Café” (Ramallah), 158
Steinberg, Saul, 56
Step by Step to Stand-Up Comedy (Dean), 25
stereotypes, 36, 141
Stewart, Jon, 111, 112, 165
Stewart, Patrick, 111
Storytelling
experiment with, 38–39
See also rakugo (Japanese storytelling)
stress: laughter and, 90, 92
stupidity jokes, 98–99, 137
subversion: humor as tool for, 165, 173
successful comedians: what makes, 34–35, 37–38
Superiority Theory, 6, 8, 12, 122–23, 141, 206
Supreme Court Building, U.S.: Mohammad image in, 127, 140
survival humor, 163–64
See also coping/relief
Svebak, Sven, 180
Sweden
derogatory jokes in, 169
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 143–48, 211
Swift, Jonathan, 165
Syria: reactions to Mohammad cartoons in, 131–32
“Take my wife—please” quip, 26
Tanganyika
See Tanzania
Tanzania
laughter epidemic in, 67–71, 73, 74, 83–85, 87, 89–91
McGraw and Warner’s lessons learned from, 199–200
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 67–92, 211
sense of humor in, 95
teasing, 6, 140
terrorism
creativity and, 60–61
See also September 11, 2001
Terry (McGraw’s friend), 202
theory of verbal humor, 13
therapeutic humor movement, 176–78, 180
therapy programs: for comedians, 36
“ThriftOnline” (fictional company): creating advertising headlines for, 43
Thurber, James, 56
tickle robots, 11
tickling, 7, 11, 79–80
timing
and benign violation theory, 205–6
difficulty of, 60
and humor in tragedy, 60–61
Japanese humor and, 99
and “too soon” jokes, 61
and who is funny, 26–27
Tokyo, Japan
McGraw and Warner’s visit to Yoshimoto in, 112–17
New Star Creation comedy school in, 104–6
The Tonight Show (TV program), 17, 20
“too soon” jokes, 61
tragedy
humor and, 60–61
See also type of tragedy or specific tragedy
translations of jokes, 104
trickster motif, 113–14
truth: comedy and, 28, 30
Truth in Comedy: The Manual of Improvisation (Halpern), 28
tsukkomi (Japanese straight-man), 106
Twain, Mark, 60, 154
tweets: about Hurricane Sandy, 170
“two-ness,” 30
Uganda: McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 67
Understanding Humor In Japan (Milner-Davis et al.), 113
United Nations, 124
United States
diversity of humor in, 103–4
influence on Japan of, 113
political jokes in, 111–12
See also Los Angeles, California; New York City; specific comedian
universal humor, 114–15, 118, 200
University of California, Berkeley: Folklore Archive at, 135
University College London: tickle robot at, 11
University of Colorado
See Humor Research Lab (HuRL)
University of Sheffield: clown study at, 187
University of Southern California: academic comedy concentration at, 19
Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCB) (Los Angeles), 27–28, 37–38, 39, 115
USS Pueblo incident, 153–54, 170, 190
variety shows, 113
vaudeville, 113
Veatch, Thomas, 8–9
Venn diagrams, 63–66, 208–9
Vilks, Lars, 143–46, 147, 148
Vohs, Kathleen, 110
Wallace, George, 35–37
Warner, Gabriel (son), 4, 182, 188, 210
Warner, Joel
family background of, 150–51
impact of global expedition on, 210–12
personality of, 4
See also specific topic
Warren, Caleb, 9–10, 12, 32, 43, 52, 110, 128, 170, 190
Watan ala Watar (TV comedy show), 150, 159–61, 162, 164, 165
Wengert, Joe, 27, 29–30, 38
West Bank
McGraw and Warner’s trip to, 149, 150, 152–53, 165–66
restrictions in, 157
See also Ramallah (West Bank): McGraw and Warner’s trip to
Westergaard, Kurt, 133–37, 139, 143, 148
Westword (Denver newspaper), 2, 5
White, E. B., 207
Why the French Love Jerry Lewis (Gordon), 97
Wiig, Kristen, 27
Williams, Lawrence, 128, 170
Williams, Robin, 20
Wilmer Grace and His Dog (made-up movie): Warner in, 27–28
Wilson, David Sloan, 76–79
Wilson, Pam, 180
Wilson, Steve, 180
Wiseman, Richard, 114, 115
With, Aaron, 58
wolfman in a barbershop (cartoon), 41, 43, 46–48
wood-mill accidents study, 190
World Humor and Irony Membership (WHIM), 6
World Laughter Tour, 15, 180, 210–12
See also specific nation or city
world’s funniest joke, 114–15
Wright, Steven, 34
Yelp.com: study of business ratings on, 190–91
“yo mamma” jokes, 36
yoga, laughter, 178–79, 212
Yorihiro, Aki, 106, 116
Yoshimoto Kogyo (Japanese comedy company), 105–6, 107, 112–16
Youngman, Henny, 26, 27
Zamen (Ramallah cafés), 156, 157, 161
Zebra (Danish artist co-op), 125
zingers, 50–51, 110, 114, 201
Zoglin, Richard, 34
Zubeidi, Zakaria, 165, 169
