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Jokes can be elaborate or short, with a humorous punchline. One-liners are witty remarks that create a funny situation or make an ironic remark. Borscht Belt comedians like Henny Youngman became known for their vast repertoire of short jokes, while modern comedians like Steven Wright and Mitch Hedberg use observation in their one-liners.
Many traditional jokes begin with a premise, transition into a set-up, and end with a humorous punchline: “A panda walks into a bar. He eats a hamburger, then takes out a gun and shoots into the air. Then he runs out of the bar yelling “I’m a panda, look for him!” The bartender takes out an encyclopedia and finds this entry: Panda — Eats shoots and leaves. Some jokes, however, don’t need an elaborate premise or setup to be funny. Such a short joke or witty remark is known as a joke.
A joke creates a funny situation or makes an ironic remark within a sentence or two. “I once invested in toilet paper and turnstiles, but was blown away before I could turn around.” it would be a classic example of a one liner from the days of vaudeville or burlesque. Many Jewish comedians of the early 20th century honed their comedic skills by performing wide-ranging jokes and gags at resorts located in New York’s Catskills Mountains, a region known in the comedy world as the “borscht belt.”
A Borscht Belt comedian named Henny Youngman has become known as the “King of the One Liner” due to his vast repertoire of short jokes and impeccable comedic timing. His most memorable line, “Take my wife… please,” relied heavily on the audience’s expectation of a much longer joke. Other comedians such as Jack Benny, Mort Sahl, Jackie Berman and Rodney Dangerfield have also become known for their memorable jokes and self-deprecating humor. Dangerfield’s one line “I was so ugly as a kid, my mother used to tie a pork chop around my neck so the dogs would play with me” embodies the economy of thought involved in an effective joke.
A number of modern comedians, including Steven Wright and the late Mitch Hedberg and George Carlin, have turned the traditional one-liners into a wry comedy of observation. Wright once remarked, “It’s a small world, but I wouldn’t want to paint it,” while Hedberg regularly remarked to audiences that his shirt was “dry clean only, which means it’s dirty.” The modern one liner may not look like its Borscht Belt ancestor, but audiences still respond well to short gypsies like Yo’ Mama’s jokes and wry observations about the world around them.
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