The Roots of Comedy
07 February 2007 Filed in:
History
It was Brothmeir who brought us
together, the one who had the idea. It started as a joke--just a
simple joke. How could we have known that it would lead us into a
dark world we never imagined? The world of professional joke
writing.
Brothmeir's initial interest in jokes
was purely academic. He had attended the Purely Academy for four
years, majoring in jokes. "And yet," as he himself put it, "what
did I really learn?"
Travelling with just a notepad, a hand-held tape recorder, and seven-man video crew, he set out to discover--the Roots of Comedy.
He travelled through darkened nightclubs and to USO stations.
He sat through hours of television sitcoms, especially enjoying the funny "gay" characters, and the way they were accepted even though they were different; but not finding the source he sought.
He sat through hours of old-time radio shows, especially enjoying the funny "colored" characters and the way they were colored even though they were played by white people; but not finding the source he sought.
He watched "Coupling," and wished that some of them were either black or gay.
His search took him through the Catskills, where he perfected the cat skills for which he later became so well known. But he did not find the source he sought.
Finally, late in the summer of last year, deep in the Indiana Delta, he met a grizzled old man with an almost indecipherable accent. "I know vat seeken thee."
These words were the key to Brothmeir's discovery: The Amish.
Brothmeir: "Hidden away in the hills of Pennsylvania, work those industrious folk who still adhere to the Old World ways. Each joke individually hand-crafted using only Nature's own pure materials. Each antagonist, lovingly melded from Antiquity's classics. Each punchline, the work of a team of Masters and Apprentices, working together to devise laugh-getters that will last for generations to come. Although the Amish eschew a pun in much the same way that they disdain to use an automobile, they are an obliging people and will leave empty spaces in which comics can insert their own."
He had done it. He had discovered the roots of comedy.
And satisfied with a job well-done, he accepted the proffered professorship at his Alma Mater, married his long-time sweetheart, Alma Mater, and lived out his days teaching cat skills to America's brightest young kittens.
Travelling with just a notepad, a hand-held tape recorder, and seven-man video crew, he set out to discover--the Roots of Comedy.
He travelled through darkened nightclubs and to USO stations.
He sat through hours of television sitcoms, especially enjoying the funny "gay" characters, and the way they were accepted even though they were different; but not finding the source he sought.
He sat through hours of old-time radio shows, especially enjoying the funny "colored" characters and the way they were colored even though they were played by white people; but not finding the source he sought.
He watched "Coupling," and wished that some of them were either black or gay.
His search took him through the Catskills, where he perfected the cat skills for which he later became so well known. But he did not find the source he sought.
Finally, late in the summer of last year, deep in the Indiana Delta, he met a grizzled old man with an almost indecipherable accent. "I know vat seeken thee."
These words were the key to Brothmeir's discovery: The Amish.
Brothmeir: "Hidden away in the hills of Pennsylvania, work those industrious folk who still adhere to the Old World ways. Each joke individually hand-crafted using only Nature's own pure materials. Each antagonist, lovingly melded from Antiquity's classics. Each punchline, the work of a team of Masters and Apprentices, working together to devise laugh-getters that will last for generations to come. Although the Amish eschew a pun in much the same way that they disdain to use an automobile, they are an obliging people and will leave empty spaces in which comics can insert their own."
He had done it. He had discovered the roots of comedy.
And satisfied with a job well-done, he accepted the proffered professorship at his Alma Mater, married his long-time sweetheart, Alma Mater, and lived out his days teaching cat skills to America's brightest young kittens.