Funny (title borrowed from the author)

A friend who makes me laugh a lot, has told me that he could never be a performer. I think he could go into humor writing. But only if he learns not to get so bogged down with the morality of what he says.

So I watched a little video he made using the xtranormal video template service. And I sent him a rambling note about the power of language to connect and the human capacity to search for the other. He responded: "I was just trying to make a joke."

Yep. We humans are good at connecting.

Here's what struck me about this video. As soon as I started it, I was expecting it to follow the common template of all of these xtranormal videos. Two people talking. One of them sees things as they are. One of them is stuck in a single perspective. The joke comes from the repetition of that perspective no matter what the other person says.

A: I see things this way.

B: There are many other perspectives.

A: I don't care. I like seeing things this way.

B: You need to open your mind to other possibilities.

A: I don't want to. I like seeing things this way.

B: You're not even listening, are you?

A: I like seeing things this way.

This is the standard. Take a quick look at the first one to get a lot of attention, iPhone customer; then the spin-off starring Sarah Palin; and the Stand Up Comedy is NOT Pretty series; and from just last week, So You Want to Get a PhD in the Humanities. They're pretty funny. And there are some good lines in there. I think my favorite is "It's in Alaska, where there are mooses and bears."

The success and draw of the template is probably because of the robotic repetition working well with the jagged and robotic intonation. And the calm frustration, or even anger, of the other talking head is stifled by the monotone delivery, creating a nice tension. But it's time for the formula to be put aside. Let's see if we can make up some funny dialogue that doesn't layer the repetition of lines on top of the repetition of a premise.

Expecting him to follow along in that mold, I was surprised and pleased to see that Casey was breaking free from the flock. (As a professor of literature who's also a political conservative, he's getting used to being the spotted lamb.) Even if I inferred a little too much sincerity in Casey's submission, the lines are pretty funny. And I laughed even when I thought he was serious. Enjoy it.