There is no absolute definition for clean. Here's something you should never do...
I was on the road with this comedian from Salt Lake City and we got a call from a booker in the middle of the week to do a corporate show for a bunch of gold miners. It was a dinner and everyone was well dressed. The pay was $1000 for the headliner and $500 for the feature act.
When we got to the event this huge dude in a tuxedo comes up to us--There's something scary about a huge dude in a tuxedo. Like, first of all, what tuxedo company rents shirts with a 22-inch neck?
Anyway, he says to us, "We need this show to be clean because the wives are here." The comedian I was working with was told by some other comedian that when they want it clean all you have to do is ask the audience, "Do you want the clean stuff or the dirty stuff?"
So He got up onstage and said...
This could be the most important 9-minute comedy lesson of your life.
In the next 9 minutes you're going to learn a lot! I mean a ton! I'm calling this article my 9-minute Comedy Mastermind Session.
When it comes to comedy writing and theory, my argument always focuses on structure.
"Structure is king!" I'll usually say.
Getting to the point and getting the laugh with a strong point of view while saying something that actually means something is crucial but structure is where the laugh occurs, not just...
The opportunity for writing in Late Night T.V. continues to explode. We've never had more movement in that industry. There are more shows. And more shows need more content.
Who's going to provide that content?
Comedians and writers like you!
Got an email from a student today. It said...
"The lesson I learned tonight is that university students are PC to the point that it is unnatural. These are the people posting PC crap all over Facebook! At first I was confused about my inability to connect with the crowd. I felt it from my first joke (about marriage/children).
So how do we make this work?"
