Callback (comedy)
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This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. (May 2011) |
A callback, in terms of comedy, is a joke which refers to one previously told in the set. The second joke is often presented in a different context than the one which was used in the initial joke. Callbacks are usually used at or near the end of a set, as the aim is to create the biggest laugh at the end of a comic set. The main principle behind the callback is to make the audience feel a sense of familiarity with the subject matter, as well as with the comedian. It helps to create audience rapport. When the second joke is told, it induces a feeling similar to that of being told a personal or in-joke.
Example: In his monologue Dress to Kill, comedian Eddie Izzard goes into a non sequitur about Engelbert Humperdinck:
That's not his real name... His parents were not Mr. and Mrs. Humperdinck. They never said, "What shall we call our son so he does not get the shit kicked out of him at school? We shall call him Engelbert!" No, his name was Gerry Dorsey, and he released songs as Gerry Dorsey... And then his managers, obviously, said, "We're going to change your name, Gerry! It's the name that's the problem." And his name changed from Gerry Dorsey to Engelbert Humperdinck... And it worked! But he's dead now, you hear that? Yeah, today, on CNN. I heard it as I was just coming out. Very weird... [inhales deeply and exhales] It's not true, heh. [exhales] No, it is true. Yeah, he was L.A. Something happened... No, it isn't true. No, he was in a car in L.A. driving along and something hit him or something like that. [about 25 seconds of pauses and audience laughter, as Eddie nods and denies the truth of this statement] No no, no, he's all right, he's all right... I think he's got a cold, that's what they said.[1]
Much later, after moving on to other topics, Izzard is telling a story about having his masculinity impugned by his first sex partner:
It was... fucked me off, I tell you. But she's dead now, so... No, she isn't... No, she was in L.A., in a car, with Engelbert Humperdinck, and...[2]
The joke gets a bigger laugh because it calls back to his earlier confusion about whether Engelbert Humperdinck was dead, as well as drawing on his earlier claim that Humperdinck's name is ridiculous to make his own failure with the woman seem more humiliating.
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Television [edit]
In television, the term callback has come to mean a joke or line that refers to a previous episode (or sometimes, in rare cases, movies). Particularly in earlier sitcoms - though even until the early 1990s — callbacks were rare and often frowned upon by networks, because they threaten to isolate a viewer who is new to the series, or who missed episodes. Seinfeld was one of the first sitcoms to regularly use callbacks in its scripts, although on a level which would often be missed or disregarded by viewers. More recently 30 Rock has employed callbacks to reference fictitious movies and television programs created within the show. Arrested Development became well known by fans for its regular use of callbacks throughout all of its episodes.[3] Of course, the line between a callback and simple continuity can sometimes be ambiguous. The opening sequence of the season nineteen premiere of The Simpsons calls back to the events in the movie.
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ "cake or death: an eddie izzard site: DRESS TO KILL TRANSCRIPT". Auntiemomo.com. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
- ^ "cake or death: an eddie izzard site: DRESS TO KILL TRANSCRIPT". Auntiemomo.com. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
- ^ Flynn, Gillian (2008-07-18). "TV shows on the big screen | Arrested Development | Movie News | Movies | Entertainment Weekly". Ew.com. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
