Can Comedians Laugh At Their Own Jokes?

A huge amount of credit to Jason Zinoman, whose article gave the video it's foundation:
www.nytimes.com/2017/03/03/ar...
We all know someone that cracks up at their own jokes like some delirious super-villain running around with a flame-thrower. But can comedians do it? More importantly, should they? A quick deconstruction on how comedians use laughter to change how the audience interprets their material.
For educational purposes only. You can support or donate to the channel at:
www.patreon.com/comedywithouterrors
Big thanks to Finn Davies who added a fine layer of polish to the video, making everything look far more professional than it had any right to be.
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[@Chargede]

Super underrated channel right here. The quality remains brilliant, hope to see more!

[@bellajezz1]

Agreed!! Where has this channel been my whole life?? 🤩😍

[@ellardclost5039]

Great to hear they have more good content. I subbed based on your comment.

[@aaronhelmsman]

Never think of James Acaster’s comedy as deadpan. It’s just a delightful story to me.

[@MoogDnB]

Damn that Kevin Hart laugh at the end felt painfully insincere.

[@willjones8111]

Not often you find a small channel with such well-researched and insightful stuff, please keep going!

[@jimfanning1770]

Just binged watched the entire library. I am declaring this is the only channel I am turning notifications of for.

[@pjetrs]

I always like Chapelles microphone-to-the-knee, it looks effortless and authentic, yet he has his own little 'badum tsj' drum

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

I absolutely hate it! Chappelle is one of my top 5 comedians and I love everything about his delivery, except the microphone slapping laugh. It’s super fake and he does it all the time. If he did it less I might be okay with it but it‘s too much.

[@willloman812]

@@BbGun-lw5vi Yeah, I feel so embarrassed when other comedians use it.

[@ishsichsjfke9267]

I’m so sure your channel is going to blow up

[@jamesonbornholdt7302]

It's too boring

[@roastedmarhmallow]

‘Find myself drawn away from comedians who’s laughter eclipses their material’. 1. Fully agree 2. Your writing and content is excellent. I just subscribed and am looking forward to your future videos

[@copaceticetal]

The little moments where Steven Wright actually breaks into a laugh or smile (mostly on talk show appearances) always felt very magical to me. Because it would often just be a single look before he regained his composure.

[@iaincamdk]

Great channel you've got here. If you fancy doing a bit of digging there's a Frankie Boyle show where he breaks (he does it regularly) and then you can find him on Live at the Apollo, and he breaks at exactly the same point. Absolutely identical. It's a show. You know it's a show, they call it a show, but it's still a shock to see how identical it is from show to show, while seeming so natural and spontaneous.

[@matty.r23]

I think you should make a video on Tim Minchin! He’s just got something that other comedians don’t have that makes him so much better than all the others.

[@chrisoliver3642]

...a piano?

[@alexengland-shinemercy]

I agree Tim Minchin os interesting and an analysis would be interesting. BUT this channel's analysis even of Mackintyre was interesting. The analysis of Bo Burnham s "Inside" answered a lot of questions for me - primarily "Why am I feeling all these feelings now?"

[@DylanOfSicily]

Duuude... I’ve seen 4 vids of yours now & your channel is a fkn gem! Editing so on point. Pacing & subject matter never bore!! It’s like you made 30 min vids then perfectly trimmed alllll their fat to perfection. Haven’t dug a channel like this since discovering Nerdstalgic or Kaptain Kristian! Keep it up!!

[@taylorleb]

Amazing content, as always

[@elizabethkingsford6945]

Bloody amazing stuff! keep it up!

[@rebeccakumi5369]

I honestly LOVE your videos. So insightful, well produced and killer music. Can’t wait for the next one.

[@kirby4230]

I love your videos mate! Keep up the great work!

[@SourabhVourabh]

Amazing videos. Love your channel man

[@gingerbreadYT]

Keep it up man, amazing content you’re producing!

[@danielhandl2489]

Man! these videos are awesome. Cant get enough of them. Keep it up! proud of you.

[@seantyson6021]

I always love these man!

[@lyricalloonytoon]

Your channel is wicked mate!! Keep up the quality work.

[@praiseyahweh777]

Love this channel

[@sammcleod998]

Amazing content

[@joesphorecchio5258]

Brilliant insight. And that goes for most of your other videos as well.

[@JohannesLabusch]

I remember the time when Chris D'Elia was "regularly caught .... laughing at his own jokes". He probably misses that time.

[@chuckshreve3866]

Just found your channel a week ago. You need to buy ads. Once people find out, this channel will blow up.

[@isaahwilder2346]

Your content is awesome and I friggin love it awesome stuff

[@WalterYeti]

Quite frankly .... I fookin love this channel 👍

[@mischiefner]

Brrrruuuuh.. Your editing skills are super captivating.. Content is great as well.. I really love when yt recommend channels like yours! :)

[@scaglia234]

I love your videos, I have become interested in stand up not long ago and now I discovered this channel and i really enjoy it. I hope you get the subs and views that you deserve. Greetings from Argentina

[@manyapandey953]

Man , this is god's work you are doing! really appreciate your content :)

[@christopherfiore6820]

Excellent dissection of the practice of performance. The last 6 months I have enjoyed seeing the art and play of stand up. Neat watching the growth of performers in their application of emotion.

[@aninkrahman]

this is nerdwriter channel level of thought and insight. keep going my man! you will have many replicas after this. just watched 3 in a row and all were very well put together

[@zavgod]

I love the subtle shade you throw in your videos lol

[@LiquidSpiral]

You were quite literally born to create videos on this topic. I can't wait to watch you grow!

[@nkanyisoinnocentkhwane3752]

*God Damn, this is absolutely Masterful* great video

[@crystalpetal25]

A damn good video my dude

[@user-wl1uz5sb9f]

Superb content

[@radical6905]

great vid man Connolly was the first to come to mind on this subject, i couldnt imagine his material without him cracking up throughout it Almost like he struggling to get through the joke

[@alexstorr3357]

What about Stewart Lee, the master of deadpan delivery?

[@ComedyWithoutErrors]

Next vids on Stew so thought I'd give him a break for this one haha. But you're not wrong!

[@alexstorr3357]

@@ComedyWithoutErrors ah, well that's great, I look forward to it!

[@jammin023]

He quite often appears to struggle to stay deadpan though - and it's not clear whether that itself is part of the act. I get the feeling it sometimes is - he can take the edge off saying something vicious by seeming like he's trying to suppress a smile - and sometimes isn't. But I don't know. And I like not knowing. Unlike most of the American comics featured here, where it's painfully obvious that their laughs are fake.

[@cliffjetson7645]

Bill and Nia ALWAYS get me going on the MMP when they crack each other up 👌👌👌

[@What_was_wrong_w_jst_our_names]

Anthony Jeselnik has the best jokes. They feel so formulaic, yet unpredictable.

[@timiadetayo1328]

Best channel on stand up comedy!

[@andreashley6084]

I’m frustrated with KZbin. Don’t they know I love quality analysis by now?! They should have recommended you ages ago! Love the work!

[@thelightisdarkness9457]

PLOT TWIST --------------------- 5:47 This punch line is David's entire spechial and then he's done.

[@shawnseguro5184]

My favorite type of content. I would like some analysis on newer comedians if i could suggest

[@PerrinPang]

Hi Comedy without Errors, I love your channel very much as I would love to go down the stand-up comedian path. I learnt a lot looking at your videos. I would love for you to do a video about Comedy songs and/or structured shows as I write a lot of songs and would like to enhance my craft somehow. Thanks !

[@padawansound6423]

Just started this video, so I'm not sure if you'll cover it, but Billy Connolly is an absolute delight when he laughs at his own jokes. Edit: Just finished, glad to see you snuck him in at the end! My favourite moment of his is where he falls to his knees with laughter after claiming he was holding his proctologists' hand. You can tell he just came up with that in the moment and it's absolutely cracking him up. Fantastic video over all, this is rapidly becoming my new favourite channel.

[@onetimebear5681]

Honestly, Fire in the Maternity Ward is one of the best stand up specials of the last decade.

[@TheLambLive]

Check out 70s British comedian Ken Goodwin for what might be the pinnacle of the 'contagious laughter' trick.

[@nickwalker8839]

I love your videos, really fucking good.

[@ftfk7869]

Damn nice music selection

[@theace110013]

Can we get a video on Norm Macdonald?

[@roystonrubble7103]

When Dave Chapell slaps his knee and pretend laughs it takes me right out of his comedy

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

Same. It’s the only thing that I don’t like about his comedy. It’s so annoying and over the top.

[@kieranjohngale]

Really good videos dude! What do you think of Bo Burnham's work?

[@Snorbuckle]

The connection of James Acaster and Anthony Jeselnik reminds me of the highly memorable Jeselnik episode of the Off Menu podcast. I'm still not entirely sure what to think of that episode!

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

Can you please link it? I can’t find it and I’m curious after reading your comment? Thanks!

[@1faraday]

Whatever you think of him Jimmy Carr's laugh is an entity all its own

[@EggBastion]

Jimmy Carr's laughter is like the raw sound of three algorithms in a suit frightened the disguise is fooling no one. It's quite a spectacle and while I find it desperately grating many appear to like it a lot.

[@vines_footballworld]

Comedy Without Errors more like Comed With Errors 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@DrunkChimp]

Oh fuck, another element of Stand Up I'll be over-analysing next time I watch a live performance.

[@nycfunk]

A bit old school, but the first person I thought of as I read the Title of this video was Franklin Ajaye. He laughs at almost every punchline he delivers.

[@christopherfiore6820]

... "Space dolphin helium laugh" bwahahahahahah! Shit that is great

[@benfarrar3140]

Can you talk about the way that Russel Howard's good news was the same joke structure over and over and over and over? 😂

[@engurland]

Is that the 'a person said this weird thing to me, imagine that, do a quick act out' thing he does?

[@andrwarrior]

Some comedians laughing can rub me the wrong way and certainly detract from the authenticity of a story or joke. I find it stems from whether or not it's being paced by the audience's reaction, or by an intentional 'laugh break' by the comedian themselves. Jeremy Hotz was a great example in this video; he very intentionally paces his jokes slowly and breaks everything up with silence and voice cracks on his own terms, it serves to engage the audience a lot more. Kevin Hart, on the other hand, plays up the jokes and laughs to hype the crowd for what's to come. It feels phoned in. One that will always crack me up, RIP, is Patrice O'Neal's outbursts. Elephant in the Room, and his Nasty Show sets have some out-of-the-blue cackles post punch-line which seem so authentic to the crowd's reaction, but he reels them in so quickly that you can't help but feel enamored by his presence and confidence on stage.

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

Agree with everything you said. Patrice’s laughter just made him more endearing. I think it’s because it didn’t sound like he was laughing at his joke, more at the crowd’s reaction. What do you think of Chappelle’s laughter? I love the guy but his mic slapping laugh that he does all the time is too fake for me. I think he gets a pass for it cause his material is so good, plus he’s an icon now.

[@jchamice8733]

This is taken almost verbatim from a NY Times Jason Zinoman article from March 13, 2017. You ought to have given appropriate credit to the creator of this material. These are not your words!

[@6HO57]

thats Necro''s beat in the background

[@sleepybearoverwatch1152]

I wish I could laugh in around people.

[@Supreme_Lobster]

"9/11" - Norm McDonald

[@hitchikerspie]

_lightly whispers_ RJVP

[@joshdenton4445]

Andrew Schultz.. he laughs at his own jokes quite often and I like his stuff

[@willloman812]

I’m going to assume the omission of the biggest offender of own-joke-laughter and most successful comedian in the UK, Ricky Gervais, is a passive slight toward him? Do British stand-up fans hate Ricky Gervais? He laughs constantly during his act, but it feels so genuine it works. It creates an airy, “it’s all good, don’t worry, nothing matters, we’ll all die” atmosphere.

[@poppyd429]

yes I've always noticed this with Greg Davies he does it so often it kinda ruins it

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

Yes! Same with Chappelle. Love his delivery but that mic slapping knee laugh annoys me.

[@shadowprince4482]

Schulz is probably the most difficult to examine.

[@nahum3557]

I think Andrew Shulz falls victim to laughing to much at his own joke

[@thumbthumb5998]

4:37 I sea what you did there

[@midiochre]

Kevin Hart is the Justin Bieber of comedy.

[@milessm1]

I love you

[@jdrizzledrizzle1087]

I don't mind being manipulated to make me laugh, it is their job after all

[@Aperki2010]

Enjoying this channel, got some really good content on here. However, I cannot in good faith compliment you any further due to the severe lack of Bob Mortimer. He could be a good case study in when the humour is found in the way often mundane things are said, particularly in the rhythm of certain words. For me he's a master who's funny even when he's not.

[@bossfan49]

D'Elia's laughter is off-putting. It's too self-congratulatory. And Hotz is just a clown..very annoying. Chappelle maybe does it the best. Even though it's the most animated, it's always clear he's not laughing at his joke...he's laughing at the ridiculousness of the subject matter. Burr and Gaffigan use it well too. It always seems very self aware, yet natural and unintentional. Also- I'm glad you included the psychological notes about laughter in a communal setting as opposed to alone. I so tired of seeing comments from people bitching about the laugh tracks in sitcoms. First they assume every laugh is from a can--as if no shows have a live audience. Second they pretend to be so evolved and sophisticated...yet they're so easily annoyed by it.

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

I agree with all your examples except Chappelle. I’m always surprised he gets a pass on that over the top fake laugh, always slapping his knee with the mic and running. His material is so good that it’s really not necessary and just annoys me. I prefer Chappelle to Burr but I agree that Burr’s laugh sounds natural.

[@mydogsnameislucy768]

A Necro beat on this one. Are you actually my best friend?

[@Boozer13]

Britain’s sure do love The Simpsons.

[@dominicportelli7468]

Is it not a good sign when a comedian finds something so funny he loses it! To make others laugh you gotta have a great sense of humour yourself. Case in point one of the funniest men on the planet: Billy Connolly.

[@madisonvandergriff4635]

who says that analyzing jokes takes away the comedy? (not me I love you videos!)

[@sdot7641]

Let me start off by saying I enjoyed the video, but how do you talk about laughs without bring up Patrice O’Neal? You better not forget him when you inevitably make one about crowd work. Otherwise I enjoyed it

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

I’m split on this issue. I don’t mind it when they only do it occasionally. But take Chappelle. He is one of my top 5 comedians and I love everything about his delivery, except the microphone slapping laugh. It’s super fake and he does it all the time. If he did it less I might be okay with it but it‘s too much. Same with Michael Che on Weekend Update. He has good jokes but that laugh ruins them for me.

[@iangpark]

Take the blooper reel of comedy television series. In my head, almost universally funnier than the show itself, but of course, provides absolutely no real long-lasting intellect, premise or message. Comedians laughing can make a joke funnier but wont add to the context of the set.

[@MazLad]

How fake it comes across can be really jarring. Every see Dave Gorman doing his found poems with the acted laughs? Almost unbearable.

[@AA-hg5fk]

This video is terrible, (pause) NOT!

[@devlinbearra8897]

No. It's a cheap gimmick. It tries to cover up unfunniness. A sign of a comedian stuck in mediocrity.

[@dominicportelli7468]

Rubbish.

[@thomasgambroadamsson3650]

Found your channel linked on the Stewart Lee subreddit. This is some twilight zone shit that your background music is from Gory Days Edit: "Underground", from his first record