It's long been a truism that people often laugh at completely unfunny things when they think they're meant to laugh. There are tons of unfunny stand up comedians who get laughs because the audience likes the person or shares their political views. This is why George Bush was such a popular target with comedians. It didn't matter how lame the joke was, tell it to a liberal audience and they would make themselves laugh just because they approved of the sentiment.

Saturday Night Live has ALWAYS been the kind of program people make themselves laugh at even when it's clearly not funny. Letterman exposed that by telling a 10 minute monologue without a single joke in it. He said nothing funny and did nothing funny but people laughed anyway because they thought they should. Letterman didn't realize it, but what he exposed there was how most of his laughs are not earned. This goes for some films as well. Do not always take an audience at face value. Just because they're laughing doesn't mean you're being funny. Just because they applaud, doesn't mean you're good. This is not a dig at Letterman, he seems like a nice guy. It's more a general point about audiences kidding themselves.

midnightmover said:

Delivery. Look up the definition.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

There is a difference between charming and funny. Like I said, nothing against Letterman, but his monologues are never really funny. When people like someone they will often tell themselves something is funny when it isn't. Some of the skits on SNL are awful too, yet people pretend to laugh at them.

midnightmover said:

I'll agree on SNL. People laugh out of discomfort because they don't know what else to do but lots of the ways letterman told the story was humorous.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

I agree, I thought Dave was hilarious.

Vendetta1 said:

well remember when Jerry Seinfeld and Michael whatever his name is did the letterman show after his racial comments, the audience was laughing at that also. When you go to one of those shows you going thinking everything is suppose to be funny, a joke, a bit even when its not.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

And I'm sure there are people who will swear up and down that SNL is funny too. It's been on air for 30 years after all, but it's not funny.

It's kind of like politicians and preachers who are charismatic can say something that is ridiculous and people will fall for it just because the person who said it is so likeable.

The style may be great, but if the content's not there, I just don't laugh. That doesn't mean I can't still watch these things after a long day just to unwind. But I just don't kid myself that it's really funny. Mildly amusing yes, but not funny.

midnightmover said:

The truth is, SNL has had some funny bits, but at best it's only mildly humorous. The same can be said for Jay Leno, David Letterman, and Jimmy Kimmel, and while I love watching The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, they don't always connect with their humor. Everyone talks about how SNL really sucks, and that it hasn't been funny since the original cast came out in the 1970's, but there's a lot of revisionist history going on. Even though the original cast was very good, even then, not all of the skits were very funny. And stuff that was an absolute laugh riot back then would be considered lame or dated now.

While I'll admit that SNL usually sucks most of the time, the skits with Tina Fey impersonating Sarah Palin was some of the best comedy I've seen in years. And the Palin rap by Amy Poehler was classic.

728huey said:

The real problem with SNL after the original cast left was that it lost its Cutting edge, at the time it was balls to the walls, even bits that didnt work were out there. I remember the Uncle Pervy bit bout Buck babysitting his neices sitting on a glass table top while he took pics underneath. That's edgy. Nowadays making fun of Barry lightly is a complete bore.

728huey said:

Agree with every word.

I have been to a few tapings of Letterman and the audience is pretty much coached to participate. It is a comedy show and the best one on television now that Conan moved.

People laugh because Letterman is funny.

Not sure what the point of this thread is.