The beginnings of his stand-up career in Greenwich Village. Richard Lewis’ journey into the world of stand-up comedy began in the early 1970s in the vibrant and culturally rich neighborhood of Greenwich Village, New York City. It was here, in the cradle of the American folk music movement and the beatnik scene, that Lewis took his first tentative steps into the world of comedy. In 1971, Lewis decided to try his hand at stand-up during an open-mic night in Greenwich Village. This initial foray into comedy was the spark that ignited his passion for the craft. By the following year, he was writing and regularly performing stand-up while maintaining a day job as a copywriter for an advertising agency. His performances in the village’s comedy clubs were characterized by his dark, …show more content…
Here is a paraphrased version. By the mid-1970s, Jerry Lewis had become a regular guest on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson." Media outlets like the New York Daily News and New York Magazine recognized Lewis as part of a new generation of stand-up comedians. Lewis' comedy reflected his influences, which included Buster Keaton, Woody Allen, Lenny Bruce, and Richard Pryor. This group included comedy legends like Robert Klein, Lily Tomlin, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Andy Kaufman, Richard Belzer, and Elayne Boosler.. His performances blended aspects of dark comedy, surreal humor, and introspective examinations of human neuroses and eccentricities. Greenwich Village was more than just a place for Lewis to perform; it was a proving ground that shaped his comedic voice. The eclectic and open-minded audiences of the village provided him with the perfect environment to refine his craft. The neighborhood’s history of fostering artistic expression allowed Lewis to experiment with his material and delivery, ultimately leading to the development of a unique comedic style that resonated with
At 17, he took his first steps toward becoming a stand up comedian. When he took the stage at a Boston comedy club, he found he was a natural comic. He nurtured his talent while at New York
John Belushi was a well-known comedian, but was hiding a troubling life. Belushi first began his career as a comedian in 1971 when he joined The Second City comedy group in Chicago. In 1973, Belushi began airing on The National Lampoon Radio Hour which was a half-hour comedy program played across the United States. Belushi achieved national fame for his work on Saturday Night Live. Once he turned 30, Animal House was the number one film in the United States, The Blues Brothers: Briefcase Full of Blues was the number one album, and Saturday Night Live was the highest rated late night television program. Even with all his success and fame, Belushi had a different lifestyle and behavior that was not seen by the people watching his shows (Peele 2011).
In 1801 President Thomas Jefferson asked Meriwether Lewis to act as his private secretary. Meriwether Lewis was a skilled frontiersman and an amateur scientist. Around 1804 Thomas Jefferson made Meriwether Lewis another offer, he asked him if he would led an expedition into the lands west of the Mississippi. Lewis asked one of his closet friend, William Clark, if he would join Lewis in this expedition; William Clark agreed to be his co-captain. Meriwether Lewis was an extraordinary man for the things he's accomplished as a frontiersman, amateur scientist, an intellectual and a explorer.
Located on the third-floor, arched ceiling, Edward Laning’s mural Prometheus watches over the many travelers, students, and New Yorkers who visit the New York Public Library in Manhattan. This mural was created in 1942 under the New Deal’s Work Progress Administration and was never part of Laning’s original collection, The Story of the Recorded Word, that adorned the McGraw Rotunda. Prometheus was a mural that was later added to the rotunda ceiling in January 1942, but unlike the other murals, it did not depict the story of the recorded word. This mural instead showed the myth of Prometheus, the Greek Titan who stole the fire from the gods at Mount Olympus and gave it to mankind. In this mural, we see Prometheus in the middle flying above a
Richard Pryor has a key influence on many modern comedians because he took standup comedy to greater heights. Pryor is well-known for his colorful language and his efforts to knock down the racial barrier. He was such a shock to the world because he said things that no one dared.
The name of the stand-up comedy was Aloha Fluffy, but not only had he done stand-up comedy he stars in movies as well as Magic Mike. During his routine, his attention getter was jokes about his weight and about his Hispanic heritage. He knows by making fun of his weight people will laugh. He is also known for his stories about his life that are based on true events. His energy during the act was a high energy. He is very bubbly person and seems like he is like that 24/7. I could tell he really likes making people laugh. He is very detailed about his jokes and uses different voices to make it hilarious.
He spent some time doing stand-up in L.A., where former Saturday Night Live star Dennis Miller caught his act. Miller spoke to producer Lorne Michaels about him, and Adam Sandler was soon working for SNL. At first, he was mainly a writer who appeared on the show occasionally. However, his appearances were so popular (ie: Operaman, Canteen Boy) that his status soon changed to that of a regular player. During the early 90s, he was by far the most popular and entertaining cast member and the one credited with keeping the show going, despite falling ratings and criticism that SNL had passed its prime.
At the age of eleven Lopez knew that he was going to have his own standup comedy show one day when he was all grown up. He would often practice his comedian skills daily by teasing and joking and having fun with his kids in his class at school. Every day he had to put up an imaginary wall to deflect the emotions of pain and suffering for essentially being left for dead. He loved humor because it helped with the
performances. Jerry used a form of comedy that no one had ever seen before. He
The shows play a major role in developing the comedic basis for African American entertainers even today. As referred to in the modern day, “Black Comedy” is extremely favored by the populus. Famous black comedian Dave Chappelle, once played a role as a “racial pixie”. Chappelle performed as an oddly dressed pixie on the shoulders of African Americans and sang, danced, and encouraged the individual to give into the stereotypes of society (4).
Another major contender in the comedy genre was Harold Lloyd. He had an unpredictable style of comedy at first. For a long time he wanted to model himself after Charlie Chaplin until he came into his own unique style. Chaplin’s clothes were too big for him, so Lloyd wore clothes that were too small for him. However, it was not as simple as reversing Chaplin’s style. One day someone put him in oval wire glasses and it somehow became part of his persona. Lloyd eventually evolved on his own and claimed his own unique style. “At times he would seem meek but then would explode suddenly with force and anger” (Cousins, p. 73). He became most famous for his incredible stamina and ability to perform outrageous stunts, known as his “human fly” act. In Safety Last he is seen climbing the side of a building, along the way running into many obstacles that would threaten to push him off. He was unparalleled in the way he performed such dangerous stunts all for the sake of comedy.
Television’s rise in popularity throughout the fifties saw the emergence of the situation comedy, a style that captivated audiences by presenting a story with a beginning, a middle, and a happy end. One of the most popular of these shows, I Love Lucy, continues to appeal to both young and old some forty years later -- and counting. For most people, the answer to how I Love Lucy continually and effectively draws viewers to the screen is that "It’s funny." There is more to this funny show than meets the eye.
He started using comedy and humor to make friends and entertain his classmates. Immediately after high school, he began attending college. He first studied political science at Claremont Men’s College where he started taking improvisation courses. When he discovered his love of comedy and improvisation, he switched colleges to attend the College of Marin to study acting. It was there that he also received a Scholarship to Juilliard in New York City (Robin Williams American Actor and Comedian). Using the knowledge he gained at college, he left to pursue a career in acting.
He needed to make people laugh, to make them happy, because it made him happy and he knew what it felt like to not be content with his life. Over time though, that need turned into him being funny only to other people. He referred to himself as ‘funny’ Robin, which seemed like he made a character for himself, to entertain people. From 1982 to 1983, Williams tried to change his life, “Williams used to be a big-drinking cocaine addict, but quit both before the birth of his eldest son in 1983, and stayed sober for 20 years. On location in Alaska in 2003, however, he started drinking again” (Strategies).
One of the most famous types of television comedy is the sketch comedy style. Greg M. Smith, in his article “Red Skelton, The Crack-up, and the Quick- change” explains how the move of vaudeville acts to television created the template for all sketch comedies. A small number of performers, often only one or two, “depended on interchangeable acts that could be juggled into different configurations for a show, the sketch necessarily is narratively compartmentalized. Plot elements from one sketch do not carry over to the next, necessitating that the performer slip from one role to another as he/she moves from sketch to sketch.” (n pag) Today’s sketch comedies continue to run independent multiple short sketches per episode. Although they may now have recurring characters, frequently still, only a single-time character is played. Just as there is a prevalence of one actor playing multiple roles per episode, so also are the situations, locations, and interactions often differentiated completely from one scene or show to the next. Some or all of these elements can be found in such shows as Monty Python's Flying Circus, Saturday Night Live, The Whi...