Discussion:
Punctuation joke
(too old to reply)
occam
2020-01-07 12:13:52 UTC
Permalink
I heard a UK comic on BBC radio deliver this joke:

"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."

(Janet take note.)
Peter Young
2020-01-07 12:30:03 UTC
Permalink
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
<grin>

Peter.
--
Peter Young, (BrE, RP), Consultant Anaesthetist, 1975-2004.
(US equivalent: Certified Anesthesiologist) (AUE Hg)
Cheltenham and Gloucester, UK. Now happily retired.
http://pnyoung.orpheusweb.co.uk
Peter T. Daniels
2020-01-07 14:28:12 UTC
Permalink
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."

It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
Spains Harden
2020-01-07 21:01:20 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
Peter T. Daniels
2020-01-07 21:31:30 UTC
Permalink
Post by Spains Harden
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
Kids' jokes usually do work.

But if you look twice at this one, it doesn't actually make sense!
Spains Harden
2020-01-07 22:01:21 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by Spains Harden
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
Kids' jokes usually do work.
But if you look twice at this one, it doesn't actually make sense!
Only if you require your jokes to adhere to some advanced comprehension
test.
Quinn C
2020-01-07 22:50:34 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by Spains Harden
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
Kids' jokes usually do work.
But if you look twice at this one, it doesn't actually make sense!
That depends on what you mean by "kids' jokes".

I remember a program where between other parts, they read out jokes
written by kids - probably of about the age mentioned above. Those
didn't make any sense. It was interesting that the kids had obviously
picked up language and storytelling patterns of jokes and replicated
these, but then they didn't manage to fill them with meaningfully
connected content.
--
(\_/)
(='.'=) This is Bunny. Copy and paste Bunny into your
(")_(") signature to help him gain world domination.
RH Draney
2020-01-08 07:23:08 UTC
Permalink
Post by Quinn C
I remember a program where between other parts, they read out jokes
written by kids - probably of about the age mentioned above. Those
didn't make any sense. It was interesting that the kids had obviously
picked up language and storytelling patterns of jokes and replicated
these, but then they didn't manage to fill them with meaningfully
connected content.
Johnny Carson once told of a former writer on his show who wrote jokes
that had all the shape of a typical joke from Carson's monologue, but
made no actual sense...one example he gave was:

"It was so cold in New York City today that Mayor Lindsay was wearing
buckles on his shoes."

....r
Bozo Tonto Carl Sagan what's the Difference
2020-01-08 08:47:51 UTC
Permalink
Post by RH Draney
Post by Quinn C
I remember a program where between other parts, they read out jokes
written by kids - probably of about the age mentioned above. Those
didn't make any sense. It was interesting that the kids had obviously
picked up language and storytelling patterns of jokes and replicated
these, but then they didn't manage to fill them with meaningfully
connected content.
Johnny Carson once told of a former writer on his show who wrote jokes
that had all the shape of a typical joke from Carson's monologue, but
"It was so cold in New York City today that Mayor Lindsay was wearing
buckles on his shoes."
....r
Yeah but it was funny anyway just cuz Johnny Carson delivered it and I betcha it got a good laugh Too —— also cuz buckles starts with a B and it could've just as well been a Buick.
Mack A. Damia
2020-01-08 14:44:45 UTC
Permalink
Post by RH Draney
Post by Quinn C
I remember a program where between other parts, they read out jokes
written by kids - probably of about the age mentioned above. Those
didn't make any sense. It was interesting that the kids had obviously
picked up language and storytelling patterns of jokes and replicated
these, but then they didn't manage to fill them with meaningfully
connected content.
Johnny Carson once told of a former writer on his show who wrote jokes
that had all the shape of a typical joke from Carson's monologue, but
"It was so cold in New York City today that Mayor Lindsay was wearing
buckles on his shoes."
One of the biggest laughs came from when he said, "It was so cold, the
Statue of Liberty was standing like this......"

(Carson slightly bent over with the torch under his bum)
Peter T. Daniels
2020-01-08 16:33:00 UTC
Permalink
Post by RH Draney
Post by Quinn C
I remember a program where between other parts, they read out jokes
written by kids - probably of about the age mentioned above. Those
didn't make any sense. It was interesting that the kids had obviously
picked up language and storytelling patterns of jokes and replicated
these, but then they didn't manage to fill them with meaningfully
connected content.
Johnny Carson once told of a former writer on his show who wrote jokes
that had all the shape of a typical joke from Carson's monologue, but
"It was so cold in New York City today that Mayor Lindsay was wearing
buckles on his shoes."
Galoshes used to have buckles ...

In his day, we actually had snow more than once a winter. '67 was one
of the famously big blizzards, going down in history alongside '88
and '45.
RH Draney
2020-01-08 19:58:24 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by RH Draney
Johnny Carson once told of a former writer on his show who wrote jokes
that had all the shape of a typical joke from Carson's monologue, but
"It was so cold in New York City today that Mayor Lindsay was wearing
buckles on his shoes."
Galoshes used to have buckles ...
In his day, we actually had snow more than once a winter. '67 was one
of the famously big blizzards, going down in history alongside '88
and '45.
Carson and whoever he was talking to when he told the story were able to
figure out what the poor writer had meant: winters were harsh in the
days of the Pilgrims, Pilgrims wore shoes with buckles, therefore buckle
shoes means cold weather...but they agreed that he had left out too many
steps in the reasoning in the formulation of the joke....r
Peter T. Daniels
2020-01-08 16:30:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by Quinn C
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by Spains Harden
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
Kids' jokes usually do work.
But if you look twice at this one, it doesn't actually make sense!
That depends on what you mean by "kids' jokes".
I remember a program where between other parts, they read out jokes
written by kids - probably of about the age mentioned above. Those
didn't make any sense. It was interesting that the kids had obviously
picked up language and storytelling patterns of jokes and replicated
these, but then they didn't manage to fill them with meaningfully
connected content.
Quite so.

I saw a bit of the new *Kids Say the Darndest Things*, wherein Tiffany
Haddish fails abominably at Art Linkletter's job -- they even cut in
clips of his shows from 50 years ago to point up the difference; I have
no idea why she's suddenly considered so great), and the point is that
the darndest things they say are _unintentional_. Also, she has ones
who are as old as 10 (his seemed not older than 8).

For a couple of seasons there was a series called *Child Support*, where
Fred Savage (former child star) emceed a quiz show for remarkably ill-
informed adults, who could be "saved" from a wrong answer by a right
answer from any of a panel of kids -- age 6 to 8, I'd guess -- in an
informal setting, around a table, where the questions were put by Ricky
Gervais. (Wisely, they always showed the kids' discussions even when
the contestant got the answer right.) The kids were quite creative when
the questions were about things they didn't have any knowledge of!
Peter Duncanson [BrE]
2020-01-09 11:57:25 UTC
Permalink
On Tue, 7 Jan 2020 13:01:20 -0800 (PST), Spains Harden
Post by Spains Harden
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).

Apparently the catchphrase came from an interchange between two people
roughly along the lines of:

A: (Why do people laugh) Frank Carson's jokes are not funny.

B: It's the way he tells them.

That catchphrase is mentioned by another NI comedian, Alan McKee, in an
interview:
https://www.culturenorthernireland.org/features/performing-arts/my-cultural-life-alan-mckee

There’s a saying that 'dying is easy but comedy is hard'. Would you
agree?

Frank Carson used to say, "It’s the way I tell them", and there’s a
lot of truth in that handy catchphrase. The performance goes a long
way to make a joke funny. We always say comedy is no laughing
matter.

During the rehearsal period you get to a place where you’ve said the
lines so many times that you may lose all sense of spontaneity. It
feels awful. You’ve performed the gag so many times that it’s just
words. It’s then when you must have faith in the performance
element. You reduce it down to an almost mechanical level where it's
about the execution of moves and the delivery of lines.
--
Peter Duncanson, UK
(in alt.usage.english)
Bozo Tonto Carl Sagan what's the Difference
2020-01-09 12:49:04 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
On Tue, 7 Jan 2020 13:01:20 -0800 (PST), Spains Harden
Post by Spains Harden
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
Apparently the catchphrase came from an interchange between two people
A: (Why do people laugh) Frank Carson's jokes are not funny.
B: It's the way he tells them.
That catchphrase is mentioned by another NI comedian, Alan McKee, in an
https://www.culturenorthernireland.org/features/performing-arts/my-cultural-life-alan-mckee
There’s a saying that 'dying is easy but comedy is hard'. Would you
agree?
Frank Carson used to say, "It’s the way I tell them", and there’s a
lot of truth in that handy catchphrase. The performance goes a long
way to make a joke funny. We always say comedy is no laughing
matter.
During the rehearsal period you get to a place where you’ve said the
lines so many times that you may lose all sense of spontaneity. It
feels awful. You’ve performed the gag so many times that it’s just
words. It’s then when you must have faith in the performance
element. You reduce it down to an almost mechanical level where it's
about the execution of moves and the delivery of lines.
--
Peter Duncanson, UK
(in alt.usage.english)
And yet this is where somebody can either say "Hey I don't get it!" OR "GET IT!?
Peter Moylan
2020-01-09 13:54:57 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
Apparently the catchphrase came from an interchange between two people
A: (Why do people laugh) Frank Carson's jokes are not funny.
B: It's the way he tells them.
I imagine we've all heard about the small community where the jokes were
so well known that they were referred to only by number.

"Why did nobody laugh for '46'?"
"They'd heard that one before."
"And why was '32' so successful?"
"It's the way he tells it."
--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW, Australia
Peter T. Daniels
2020-01-09 15:02:28 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
On Tue, 7 Jan 2020 13:01:20 -0800 (PST), Spains Harden
Post by Spains Harden
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned
him to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke
was written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
It made me smile PTD. Don't be so ungracious.
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
Apparently the catchphrase came from an interchange between two people
A: (Why do people laugh) Frank Carson's jokes are not funny.
B: It's the way he tells them.
That catchphrase is mentioned by another NI comedian, Alan McKee, in an
https://www.culturenorthernireland.org/features/performing-arts/my-cultural-life-alan-mckee
There’s a saying that 'dying is easy but comedy is hard'. Would you
agree?
Frank Carson used to say, "It’s the way I tell them", and there’s a
lot of truth in that handy catchphrase. The performance goes a long
way to make a joke funny. We always say comedy is no laughing
matter.
During the rehearsal period you get to a place where you’ve said the
lines so many times that you may lose all sense of spontaneity. It
feels awful. You’ve performed the gag so many times that it’s just
words. It’s then when you must have faith in the performance
element. You reduce it down to an almost mechanical level where it's
about the execution of moves and the delivery of lines.
See the aforelinked Jerry Van Dyke clip for a perfect example.

Also, the dirty version of "Who's On First?" -- I doubt that Abbott and
Costello ever committed it to film, but I was lucky enough to see it
done by Joey Faye (sort of a poor man's Stubby Kaye), in the Costello
part, and a partner at the Lamb's Club in 1972 (that summer I was working
at a theater-district residential hotel, where Faye lived; he had lost
his wife earlier that year and was more severely affected than most --
she had been a Christian Scientist and medical treatment would probably
have been successful -- and when he was ready to reenter the showbiz world, he invited the staff to the party at the Club.
Tony Cooper
2020-01-09 17:19:34 UTC
Permalink
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".

The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny, but
Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the telephone book
and make me laugh.
--
Tony Cooper - Orlando, Florida
Peter Young
2020-01-09 17:45:34 UTC
Permalink
Post by Tony Cooper
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".
The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny, but
Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the telephone book
and make me laugh.
From "The Yeomen of the Guard": An accepted wit has only to utter "pass
the mustard" and they roar their ribs out.

Peter.
--
Peter Young, (BrE, RP), Consultant Anaesthetist, 1975-2004.
(US equivalent: Certified Anesthesiologist) (AUE Hg)
Cheltenham and Gloucester, UK. Now happily retired.
http://pnyoung.orpheusweb.co.uk
Anders D. Nygaard
2020-01-09 18:58:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter Young
Post by Tony Cooper
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".
The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny, but
Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the telephone book
and make me laugh.
From "The Yeomen of the Guard": An accepted wit has only to utter "pass
the mustard" and they roar their ribs out.
One of the great tragedies of the Danish stage was Dirch Passer
(who in his time had the same effect on people) He desperately wanted
to also be recognized as a serious actor.
His Lenny in "Of Mice and Men" was not a success.

/Anders, Denmark.
occam
2020-01-10 09:39:51 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter Young
Post by Tony Cooper
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".
The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny, but
Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the telephone book
and make me laugh.
From "The Yeomen of the Guard": An accepted wit has only to utter "pass
the mustard" and they roar their ribs out.
Well, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean, Black Adder etc) can have the same
effect by simply uttering "Bob" in his inimitable way.


Adam Funk
2020-01-10 16:32:09 UTC
Permalink
Post by occam
Post by Peter Young
Post by Tony Cooper
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".
The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny, but
Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the telephone book
and make me laugh.
From "The Yeomen of the Guard": An accepted wit has only to utter "pass
the mustard" and they roar their ribs out.
Well, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean, Black Adder etc) can have the same
effect by simply uttering "Bob" in his inimitable way.
I've never found Mr Bean funny, although I've always been a big fan of
Black Adder/Blackadder.
Post by occam
http://youtu.be/wOdfNwD9cEA
--
By filing this bug report, you have challenged my
my honor. Prepare to die!
---Klingon Programmer's Guide
Tony Cooper
2020-01-10 16:56:29 UTC
Permalink
Post by Adam Funk
Post by occam
Post by Peter Young
Post by Tony Cooper
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".
The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny, but
Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the telephone book
and make me laugh.
From "The Yeomen of the Guard": An accepted wit has only to utter "pass
the mustard" and they roar their ribs out.
Well, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean, Black Adder etc) can have the same
effect by simply uttering "Bob" in his inimitable way.
I've never found Mr Bean funny, although I've always been a big fan of
Black Adder/Blackadder.
I consider myself to be a person with a good sense of humor, but Rowan
Atkinson leaves me cold. He's in the group with the Americans Jim
Carey and Adam Sandler whose presence in a tv show or movie makes that
tv show or movie one I will not watch.

I'm not saying those three are not funny, but that their style of
being funny does not appeal to me.
--
Tony Cooper - Orlando, Florida
Adam Funk
2020-01-10 19:58:55 UTC
Permalink
Post by Tony Cooper
Post by Adam Funk
Post by occam
Post by Peter Young
Post by Tony Cooper
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of his
catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".
The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny, but
Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the telephone book
and make me laugh.
From "The Yeomen of the Guard": An accepted wit has only to utter "pass
the mustard" and they roar their ribs out.
Well, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean, Black Adder etc) can have the same
effect by simply uttering "Bob" in his inimitable way.
I've never found Mr Bean funny, although I've always been a big fan of
Black Adder/Blackadder.
I consider myself to be a person with a good sense of humor, but Rowan
Atkinson leaves me cold.
For me, it depends on the show. I don't think I would've found Mr
Bean funny with another actor either.

Atkinson was also good in _Not the Nine O'Clock News_, especially as
the bishop defending the General Synod's _Life of Christ_.


Post by Tony Cooper
He's in the group with the Americans Jim
Carey and Adam Sandler whose presence in a tv show or movie makes that
tv show or movie one I will not watch.
I'm not saying those three are not funny, but that their style of
being funny does not appeal to me.
--
I understand about indecision
But I don't care if I get behind
People living in competition
All I want is to have my peace of mind ---Boston
RH Draney
2020-01-10 20:45:59 UTC
Permalink
Post by Adam Funk
Post by Tony Cooper
Post by Adam Funk
Post by occam
Well, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean, Black Adder etc) can have the same
effect by simply uttering "Bob" in his inimitable way.
I've never found Mr Bean funny, although I've always been a big fan of
Black Adder/Blackadder.
I consider myself to be a person with a good sense of humor, but Rowan
Atkinson leaves me cold.
For me, it depends on the show. I don't think I would've found Mr
Bean funny with another actor either.
Atkinson was also good in _Not the Nine O'Clock News_, especially as
the bishop defending the General Synod's _Life of Christ_.
http://youtu.be/asUyK6JWt9U
He's also suitably smarmy in "The Tall Guy" (which incidentally includes
one of the funniest and most awkward sex scenes in movie history),
barely tolerable in the "Johnny English" series, nearly invisible in
"Rat Race" (where he plays a role I'm convinced was originally meant for
Roberto Begnini), and absolutely hilarious in this:



I don't much care for Bean either...it's a weak imitation of M Hulot,
much weaker than Ernie Kovacs's similarly silent "Eugene" character....r
Madhu
2020-01-12 16:32:11 UTC
Permalink
Post by Adam Funk
Post by Tony Cooper
Post by Adam Funk
Post by occam
Post by Peter Young
Post by Tony Cooper
On Thu, 09 Jan 2020 11:57:25 +0000, "Peter Duncanson [BrE]"
Post by Peter Duncanson [BrE]
There was a Northern Irish comedian named Frank Carson. One of
his catchphrases was "It's the way I tell 'em!" (referring to
his jokes).
We've just finished watching the new season of "The Marvelous Mrs
Maisel" in which Jane Lynch plays the part of comedian "Sophie
Lennon". "Sophie"'S catchphrase is "Put that on your plate".
The audience (in the show) roars with laughter every time that
catchphrase is delivered. I can't understand why that's funny,
but Lynch is one of those actors who could read from the
telephone book and make me laugh.
From "The Yeomen of the Guard": An accepted wit has only to utter
"pass the mustard" and they roar their ribs out.
Well, Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean, Black Adder etc) can have the same
effect by simply uttering "Bob" in his inimitable way.
I've never found Mr Bean funny, although I've always been a big fan
of Black Adder/Blackadder.
I consider myself to be a person with a good sense of humor, but
Rowan Atkinson leaves me cold.
For me, it depends on the show. I don't think I would've found Mr
Bean funny with another actor either.
Atkinson was also good in _Not the Nine O'Clock News_, especially as
the bishop defending the General Synod's _Life of Christ_.
I haven't found Atkinson funny but I remember bursting out into laughter
when I saw a photo of a scene from The Life of Brian. (probably
prophets in the marketplace). It was just the look on the faces and the
aspects that did it. This was without watching the film or without
reading the transcripts

I think there is a sort of humour-charisma which triggers the laughter
response. Like there are teachers who have a masterful-charisma (I
wouldn't say they had a masterful personality - but they could walk into
a boistrous unruly class and the class would fall silent) - there is
something similar with humour. (Not with Rowan Atkinson for me anyway)
b***@aol.com
2020-01-08 20:42:11 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Sometimes a comedian will follow something like that with "That joke was
written by my 8-year-old daughter."
It doesn't even rise to the category of "dad joke"!
To the "dud joke" one, maybe?
Tristan Miller
2020-01-08 09:22:08 UTC
Permalink
Greetings.
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
Some more comma jokes (with no warranty as to the quality):

What's the difference between a cat and a comma? One has claws at the
end of its paws and one is a pause at the end of a clause.

People who think semicolons and commas are the same are missing the point.

What's the difference between a comma and a coma? The length of the pause.

Bob, a semicolon, and an Oxford comma walk into a bar. They both have a
great time.

Did you know that commas can change the meaning of a sentence? For
example, "John is in a hurry" vs. "John is in a comma".

Regards,
Tristan
--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Tristan Miller
Free Software developer, ferret herder, logologist
https://logological.org/
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
RH Draney
2020-01-08 10:09:49 UTC
Permalink
Post by Tristan Miller
Greetings.
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
What's the difference between a cat and a comma? One has claws at the
end of its paws and one is a pause at the end of a clause.
People who think semicolons and commas are the same are missing the point.
What's the difference between a comma and a coma? The length of the pause.
Bob, a semicolon, and an Oxford comma walk into a bar. They both have a
great time.
Did you know that commas can change the meaning of a sentence? For
example, "John is in a hurry" vs. "John is in a comma".
I propose a new punctuation mark, consisting of two plain dots and a
third dot with a tail...it shall be called the sesquicolon....r
Adam Funk
2020-01-08 10:20:52 UTC
Permalink
Post by RH Draney
Post by Tristan Miller
Greetings.
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
What's the difference between a cat and a comma? One has claws at the
end of its paws and one is a pause at the end of a clause.
People who think semicolons and commas are the same are missing the point.
What's the difference between a comma and a coma? The length of the pause.
Bob, a semicolon, and an Oxford comma walk into a bar. They both have a
great time.
Did you know that commas can change the meaning of a sentence? For
example, "John is in a hurry" vs. "John is in a comma".
I propose a new punctuation mark, consisting of two plain dots and a
third dot with a tail...it shall be called the sesquicolon....r
Stacked vertically, or like "therefore" with a tail?
--
I only regret that I have but one shirt to give for my country.
---Abbie Hoffman
RH Draney
2020-01-08 20:01:04 UTC
Permalink
Post by Adam Funk
Post by RH Draney
I propose a new punctuation mark, consisting of two plain dots and a
third dot with a tail...it shall be called the sesquicolon....r
Stacked vertically, or like "therefore" with a tail?
A little soon to start faction-splitting, I think...but in fact I
pictured the former....r
Athel Cornish-Bowden
2020-01-08 20:52:30 UTC
Permalink
Post by RH Draney
Post by Adam Funk
Post by RH Draney
I propose a new punctuation mark, consisting of two plain dots and a
third dot with a tail...it shall be called the sesquicolon....r
sesqui is a nice prefix, but it's not used enough. Maybe we should drop
"ten days" in favour of sesquiweek. And sesquiyear fits very well with
the age usually treated as a turning point for young childen.
Sesquifortnight, on the other hand, seems a bit artificial.
Post by RH Draney
Post by Adam Funk
Stacked vertically, or like "therefore" with a tail?
A little soon to start faction-splitting, I think...but in fact I
pictured the former....r
--
athel
RH Draney
2020-01-09 03:50:40 UTC
Permalink
Post by Athel Cornish-Bowden
sesqui is a nice prefix, but it's not used enough. Maybe we should drop
"ten days" in favour of sesquiweek. And sesquiyear fits very well with
the age usually treated as a turning point for young childen.
Ten days isn't a sesquiweek, it's a megasecond....r
s***@gmail.com
2020-01-09 05:37:32 UTC
Permalink
Post by RH Draney
Post by Athel Cornish-Bowden
sesqui is a nice prefix, but it's not used enough. Maybe we should drop
"ten days" in favour of sesquiweek. And sesquiyear fits very well with
the age usually treated as a turning point for young childen.
Ten days isn't a sesquiweek, it's a megasecond....r
Close, but a bit short. By less than the amount that
a megasecond is short of a fortnight.

/dps
Anders D. Nygaard
2020-01-09 19:04:34 UTC
Permalink
Post by Athel Cornish-Bowden
sesqui is a nice prefix, but it's not used enough. Maybe we should drop
"ten days" in favour of sesquiweek. And sesquiyear fits very well with
the age usually treated as a turning point for young childen.
Sesquifortnight, on the other hand, seems a bit artificial.
You left out sesquimonth - a school summer holiday.

A sesquistone is close to a myriagram.

/Anders, Denmark
Peter Moylan
2020-01-09 20:55:46 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders D. Nygaard
Post by Athel Cornish-Bowden
sesqui is a nice prefix, but it's not used enough. Maybe we should
drop "ten days" in favour of sesquiweek. And sesquiyear fits very
well with the age usually treated as a turning point for young
childen. Sesquifortnight, on the other hand, seems a bit
artificial.
You left out sesquimonth - a school summer holiday.
A sesquistone is close to a myriagram.
If a hen and a half laid an egg and a half in a day and a half, what
would the chicken say?
--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW, Australia
RH Draney
2020-01-10 00:09:14 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter Moylan
Post by Anders D. Nygaard
Post by Athel Cornish-Bowden
sesqui is a nice prefix, but it's not used enough. Maybe we should
 drop "ten days" in favour of sesquiweek. And sesquiyear fits very
well with the age usually treated as a turning point for young
childen. Sesquifortnight, on the other hand, seems a bit
artificial.
You left out sesquimonth - a school summer holiday.
A sesquistone is close to a myriagram.
If a hen and a half laid an egg and a half in a day and a half, what
would the chicken say?
Nothing, silly...chickens can't talk!...r
b***@aol.com
2020-01-08 20:43:06 UTC
Permalink
Post by RH Draney
Post by Tristan Miller
Greetings.
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
What's the difference between a cat and a comma? One has claws at the
end of its paws and one is a pause at the end of a clause.
People who think semicolons and commas are the same are missing the point.
What's the difference between a comma and a coma? The length of the pause.
Bob, a semicolon, and an Oxford comma walk into a bar. They both have a
great time.
Did you know that commas can change the meaning of a sentence? For
example, "John is in a hurry" vs. "John is in a comma".
I propose a new punctuation mark, consisting of two plain dots and a
third dot with a tail...it shall be called the sesquicolon....r
That's a non-sesquitur.
Janet
2020-01-08 14:57:24 UTC
Permalink
In article <qv4701$qkb$***@dont-email.me>, ***@nothingisreal.com
says...
Post by Tristan Miller
Greetings.
Post by occam
"A man has been found guilty of overusing commas. The judge warned him
to expect a very long sentence."
(Janet take note.)
What's the difference between a cat and a comma? One has claws at the
end of its paws and one is a pause at the end of a clause.
People who think semicolons and commas are the same are missing the point.
What's the difference between a comma and a coma? The length of the pause.
Bob, a semicolon, and an Oxford comma walk into a bar. They both have a
great time.
Did you know that commas can change the meaning of a sentence? For
example, "John is in a hurry" vs. "John is in a comma".
Thankyou, Tristan, I shall treasure those.

Janet
Peter T. Daniels
2020-01-08 16:41:48 UTC
Permalink
Post by Tristan Miller
What's the difference between a cat and a comma? One has claws at the
end of its paws and one is a pause at the end of a clause.
Lewis Carroll?
Post by Tristan Miller
People who think semicolons and commas are the same are missing the point.
What's the difference between a comma and a coma? The length of the pause.
Bob, a semicolon, and an Oxford comma walk into a bar. They both have a
great time.
I don't get it -- the "Oxford comma" is the one that _is_ there, contrary
to historic Brit usage?

Oh, now I get it. "A semicolon" is taken as an appositive to "Bob."
There are three reasons the joke doesn't work! [See below, as a sort
of spoiler alert.]
Post by Tristan Miller
Did you know that commas can change the meaning of a sentence? For
example, "John is in a hurry" vs. "John is in a comma".
.
.
.
.
.
.
(1) "Walked into a bar" jokes normally have three, not two, walkers.
(2) One walker having a name and the other one not also violates the form.
(3) Omitting the Oxford Comma doesn't make it clearer. "Bob, a semicolon
and an Oxford comma walk into a bar" -- because of both (1) and (2) --
makes "Bob" into a vocative, not a walker.
s***@gmail.com
2020-01-08 22:46:17 UTC
Permalink
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by Tristan Miller
What's the difference between a cat and a comma? One has claws at the
end of its paws and one is a pause at the end of a clause.
Lewis Carroll?
Post by Tristan Miller
People who think semicolons and commas are the same are missing the point.
What's the difference between a comma and a coma? The length of the pause.
Bob, a semicolon, and an Oxford comma walk into a bar. They both have a
great time.
I don't get it -- the "Oxford comma" is the one that _is_ there, contrary
to historic Brit usage?
Oh, now I get it. "A semicolon" is taken as an appositive to "Bob."
There are three reasons the joke doesn't work! [See below, as a sort
of spoiler alert.]
Worked fine for me!
Post by Peter T. Daniels
Post by Tristan Miller
Did you know that commas can change the meaning of a sentence? For
example, "John is in a hurry" vs. "John is in a comma".
.
.
.
.
.
.
(1) "Walked into a bar" jokes normally have three, not two, walkers.
That is, in fact, what makes one do a double-take.
It's IS what makes the joke work.
Post by Peter T. Daniels
(2) One walker having a name and the other one not also violates the form.
In the spring.
Post by Peter T. Daniels
(3) Omitting the Oxford Comma doesn't make it clearer. "Bob, a semicolon
and an Oxford comma walk into a bar" -- because of both (1) and (2) --
makes "Bob" into a vocative, not a walker.
Not certain I agree, but it's already beside the point.

/dps
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