Portal:Comedy

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The Comedy Portal

Comedy is a genre that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term originated in ancient Greece: In Athenian democracy, the public opinion of voters was influenced by political satire performed by comic poets in theaters. The theatrical genre of Greek comedy can be described as a dramatic performance pitting two groups, ages, genders, or societies against each other in an amusing agon or conflict. Northrop Frye depicted these two opposing sides as a "Society of Youth" and a "Society of the Old". A revised view characterizes the essential agon of comedy as a struggle between a relatively powerless youth and the societal conventions posing obstacles to his hopes. In this struggle, the youth then becomes constrained by his lack of social authority, and is left with little choice but to resort to ruses which engender dramatic irony, which provokes laughter.

Satire and political satire use comedy to portray people or social institutions as ridiculous or corrupt, thus alienating their audience from the object of their humor. Parody subverts popular genres and forms, critiquing those forms without necessarily condemning them.

Other forms of comedy include screwball comedy, which derives its humor largely from bizarre, surprising (and improbable) situations or characters, and black comedy, which is characterized by a form of humor that includes darker aspects of human behavior or human nature. Similarly scatological humor, sexual humor, and race humor create comedy by violating social conventions or taboos in comic ways, which can often be taken as offensive by the subjects of the joke. A comedy of manners typically takes as its subject a particular part of society (usually upper-class society) and uses humor to parody or satirize the behavior and mannerisms of its members. Romantic comedy is a popular genre that depicts burgeoning romance in humorous terms and focuses on the foibles of those who are falling in love. (Full article...)

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Cold Feet is a British comedy drama television series produced by Granada Television for ITV. It was created by Mike Bullen, who also wrote most of the episodes, and produced by Andy Harries, Christine Langan and Spencer Campbell. The series began on 15 November 1998, following the successful one-off television film broadcast in 1997 and ran for 32 episodes before concluding on 16 March 2003. The series is set in Manchester and follows three couples, played by an ensemble cast, who have trouble with committing to each other however hard they try. The cast were not widely known before their appearances in the programme but their careers received significant boosts; most of the actors received British Comedy Award nominations and James Nesbitt won Best TV Comedy Actor three times. The series was and remains critically acclaimed, winning multiple British Comedy Awards, TRIC Awards, and the British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series. It maintained consistently high viewing figures, regularly beating other channels in head-to-head ratings battles.

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Credit: Cartoon: Charles Williams; Restoration: Adam Cuerden

Tameing a Shrew; or, Petruchio's Patent Family Bedstead, Gags & Thumscrews, an 1815 caricature based on William Shakespeare's 1623 play The Taming of the Shrew. The main plot depicts the courtship of Petruchio, a gentleman of Verona, and Kate, the headstrong, obdurate shrew. Initially, Kate is an unwilling participant in the relationship, but Petruchio tempers her with various psychological torments—the "taming"—until she is an obedient bride. In this cartoon, the husband engages in systematic spousal abuse, going far beyond what was considered acceptable at the time it was published.

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...that the stump speech of the blackface minstrel show was a precursor to modern stand-up comedy?

... that Bethany Black has been described as "Britain's only goth, lesbian, transsexual comedian"?

... that British sitcom pilot Campus, which was written by six of the same writers who wrote Green Wing, is set in a red brick university whose motto is "With wings"?

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There were two keys to the show [Seinfeld]. Our sense of humor is combustible together. There was no idea he [ Larry David ] would have that I couldn’t immediately get onto and say, ‘Yeah, then we’ll do that and then we’ll do that.’ We’re very combustible together. The other thing, equally as important to me, absolutely, if not more important, is we shared a relentless work ethic, both of us.

— Jerry Seinfeld

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Julie Deborah Kavner (born September 7, 1950) is an American film and television actress, comedienne and voice artist. Noted for her long-running role as Marge Simpson on the animated television series The Simpsons, she also voices other characters for the show, including Patty and Selma Bouvier. Born in Los Angeles, Kavner grew up in Southern California, attending Beverly Hills High School and later San Diego State University. Kavner was cast in her first professional acting role as Brenda Morgenstern in Rhoda in 1974. She received a Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Primetime Emmy Award in 1978 and several more award nominations for playing the character. Following Rhoda, Kavner was cast in The Tracey Ullman Show, which debuted in 1987. The Tracey Ullman Show included a series of animated shorts about a dysfunctional family. Voices were needed for the shorts, so the producers decided to ask Kavner to voice Marge. The shorts would eventually be spun-off into The Simpsons. Kavner has been described as "nearly reclusive"; part of her contract says that she will never have to promote The Simpsons on video. For her work as Marge, Kavner received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in 1992 and an Annie Award nomination for her performance as the character in The Simpsons Movie. In 1992, she starred in This Is My Life, her first leading role in a feature film. Kavner has also appeared in live-action roles in seven films written by Woody Allen and, most recently, Click.

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... that the live-action comedy series Community had a stop motion animated Christmas special?
... that real calf brains were used during the production of the 1988 comedy horror film Brain Damage?
... that the proposed third season of teen sitcom Sonny with a Chance was reworked into the sketch comedy series So Random! after the departure of its lead actor Demi Lovato?
... that a revival of the comedy series Lizzie McGuire was ordered in 2019, but canceled mid-production after Disney deemed it not family-friendly enough?
... that the live-action drama adaptation of the Japanese manga Setsuyaku Rock was reimagined as a buddy comedy?
... that an Irish comedy group wrote the film Apocalypse Clown?

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Main topics

Comedy

Terms: Black comedy • Comedian • Comedy club • Comedy of manners • Convention (norm) • Irony • Komos • Parody • Political satire • Race humor • Restoration comedy • Satire • Screwball comedy • Surreal humour • Taboo • Toilet humor

Comedy genres: Bouffon • Comedy film • Anarchic comedy film • Gross-out film • Parody film • Romantic comedy film • Screwball comedy film • Slapstick film • Comic novel • Dramedy • Improvisational comedy • Musical comedy • Stand-up comedy • Alternative comedy • Impressionist (entertainment) • One-liner joke • Comedy genres • Sketch comedy • Television comedy • Radio comedy • Situation comedy • Tragicomedy

History of theatre: Ancient Greek comedy • Ancient Roman comedy • Burlesque • Citizen comedy • Clown • Comedy of humours • Comedy of manners • Comedy of menace • Comédie larmoyante • Commedia dell'arte • Face • Jester • Restoration comedy • Shakespearean comedy • Dadaist/Surrealist • Theatre of the absurd

Comedy events and awards: British Comedy Awards • Canadian Comedy Awards • Cat Laughs Comedy Festival • Edinburgh Festival Fringe • Just for laughs • Halloween Howls Comedy Festival • Melbourne International Comedy Festival • New York Underground Comedy Festival

Lists: List of comedians • List of British comedians • List of Canadian comedians • List of Finnish comedians • List of German language comedians • List of Italian comedians • List of Mexican comedians • List of Puerto Rican comedians • List of Indian comedians • List of British TV shows remade for the American market • List of comedies • List of New York Improv comedians

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This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Comedy}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.

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A Date To Skate (1938)
Bon-Ton Burlesquers2
Busterkeaton edit
Escape from Camp Campbell - Camp Camp S1-E1
George Grossmith as Reginald Bunthorne in Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience (1881)
George Romney - William Shakespeare - The Tempest Act I, Scene 1
John Opie - Winter's Tale, Act II. Scene III
Lonesome (1928)
Magistrate 1885 - Weir Collection - Restoration
Midsummer Night's Dream Henry Fuseli2
Phyllis Diller by Allan Warren
Safety Last (1923)
Steamboat Willie (1928) by Walt Disney
Taming of the Shrew
The Bank (Charlie Chaplin, 1915)
The Cocoanuts (1929)
The Freshman
The General (1926)
The High Rollers Extravaganza Co. - Bend Her - c.1900
The Skeleton Dance (1929)
Utah Desert Monolith
W. S. Gilbert - Alice B. Woodward - The Pinafore Picture Book - Frontispiece
Webcomic xkcd - Wikipedian protester