Portal:Comedy

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

The Comedy Portal

Comedy is a genre that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term originated in ancient Greece: In Athenian democracy, the public opinion of voters was influenced by political satire performed by comic poets in theaters. The theatrical genre of Greek comedy can be described as a dramatic performance pitting two groups, ages, genders, or societies against each other in an amusing agon or conflict. Northrop Frye depicted these two opposing sides as a "Society of Youth" and a "Society of the Old". A revised view characterizes the essential agon of comedy as a struggle between a relatively powerless youth and the societal conventions posing obstacles to his hopes. In this struggle, the youth then becomes constrained by his lack of social authority, and is left with little choice but to resort to ruses which engender dramatic irony, which provokes laughter.

Satire and political satire use comedy to portray people or social institutions as ridiculous or corrupt, thus alienating their audience from the object of their humor. Parody subverts popular genres and forms, critiquing those forms without necessarily condemning them.

Other forms of comedy include screwball comedy, which derives its humor largely from bizarre, surprising (and improbable) situations or characters, and black comedy, which is characterized by a form of humor that includes darker aspects of human behavior or human nature. Similarly scatological humor, sexual humor, and race humor create comedy by violating social conventions or taboos in comic ways, which can often be taken as offensive by the subjects of the joke. A comedy of manners typically takes as its subject a particular part of society (usually upper-class society) and uses humor to parody or satirize the behavior and mannerisms of its members. Romantic comedy is a popular genre that depicts burgeoning romance in humorous terms and focuses on the foibles of those who are falling in love. (Full article...)

Show new selections below (purge)

edit

Selected article

Kung Fu Hustle (Chinese: 功夫; pinyin: Gōngfu) is a 2004 Hong Kong martial arts film co-written, co-produced, directed by and starring Stephen Chow. The film is a humorous parody and a homage to the wuxia genre, and contains most of the characteristics of a typical wuxia movie with exaggerations, serious situations and comic plots. Set in 1930s Shanghai, it is a tale of redemption for the central character, portrayed by Chow, a petty criminal who is trying to join the city's most-powerful gang. The use of visual effects have been widely acclaimed and the cartoon style of the movie accompanied by traditional Chinese music is its most striking feature. Although the film features the return of a number of retired 1970s actors of Hong Kong action cinema, it is in stark contrast to recent martial arts films that have made an impact in the West, such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Hero. The film was released on 23 December 2004 after two years of production and received positive reviews from critics. It went on to become the highest grossing film in the history of Hong Kong, and the highest grossing foreign language film in the United States in 2005.

More selected articles...

More...

edit

Selected picture

Credit: Alfred Bryan (1852-99)

Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian era partnership of librettist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900). Together, they wrote fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance, and The Mikado are among the best known.

More selected pictures

Read more

edit

More did you know...

...that Edward Laurillard produced musical comedies in London and New York City in the early 20th century, in partnership with George Grossmith Jr.?

... that the satirist Stephen Colbert has a species of spider called Aptostichus stephencolberti named after him?
... that Golden Raspberry Awards founder John Wilson's marketing work has included publicity for the Academy Awards?

More did you know facts

edit

Selected quote

There are two thoughts that will ensure success in all you do; (1) Don't tell everything you know, and (2) until Ace Ventura, no actor had considered talking through his ass.

— Jim Carrey

More selected quotes

More at Wikiquote

edit

Selected biography

George Formby Sr (1875–1921) was known as one of the greatest music hall performers of the early 20th century. His comedy and songs played upon Lancashire stereotypes, and he was popular around Britain. His nickname, "The Wigan Nightingale", was coined because of the way he would use his bronchial cough as a comedic device. Born into poverty, he sang on street corners before starting a professional career in the 1890s, when he built up a following in Lancashire. He also developed a series of stage characters, including that of "John Willie", an accident-prone northerner. Formby had a successful recording career and made the transition from music hall to revue in 1916. He suffered from tuberculosis, and a stage accident in 1916 weakened him further; after he contracted influenza in the 1918 pandemic, he died in 1921 at the age of 45. Formby's act, and one of his costumes, inspired Charlie Chaplin to create the Tramp, his signature film character. Formby's son used parts of his father's act when starting his stage career and, once established, also changed his name to George Formby; he went on to become the top British male star in box office takings between 1937 and 1943.

More selected biographies...

More...

Did you know (auto-generated)

... that during a comedy routine Reuben Solo drew a graph plotting the audience's reaction to his routine?
... that the documentary comedy films Being Canadian and When Jews Were Funny explore the filmmakers' cultural identity through interviews with dozens of comedians?
... that when Luna Park opened in 1906, the first program included "comedy sheep"?
... that an Irish comedy group wrote the film Apocalypse Clown?
... that the live-action drama adaptation of the Japanese manga Setsuyaku Rock was reimagined as a buddy comedy?
... that U.S. presidential candidate Johnny Buss owns one of the oldest comedy clubs in the country?

edit

Related portals

edit

Main topics

Comedy

Terms: Black comedy • Comedian • Comedy club • Comedy of manners • Convention (norm) • Irony • Komos • Parody • Political satire • Race humor • Restoration comedy • Satire • Screwball comedy • Surreal humour • Taboo • Toilet humor

Comedy genres: Bouffon • Comedy film • Anarchic comedy film • Gross-out film • Parody film • Romantic comedy film • Screwball comedy film • Slapstick film • Comic novel • Dramedy • Improvisational comedy • Musical comedy • Stand-up comedy • Alternative comedy • Impressionist (entertainment) • One-liner joke • Comedy genres • Sketch comedy • Television comedy • Radio comedy • Situation comedy • Tragicomedy

History of theatre: Ancient Greek comedy • Ancient Roman comedy • Burlesque • Citizen comedy • Clown • Comedy of humours • Comedy of manners • Comedy of menace • Comédie larmoyante • Commedia dell'arte • Face • Jester • Restoration comedy • Shakespearean comedy • Dadaist/Surrealist • Theatre of the absurd

Comedy events and awards: British Comedy Awards • Canadian Comedy Awards • Cat Laughs Comedy Festival • Edinburgh Festival Fringe • Just for laughs • Halloween Howls Comedy Festival • Melbourne International Comedy Festival • New York Underground Comedy Festival

Lists: List of comedians • List of British comedians • List of Canadian comedians • List of Finnish comedians • List of German language comedians • List of Italian comedians • List of Mexican comedians • List of Puerto Rican comedians • List of Indian comedians • List of British TV shows remade for the American market • List of comedies • List of New York Improv comedians

edit

Featured content

This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Comedy}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.

Featured articles

Featured lists

Featured pictures

Bon-Ton Burlesquers2
Busterkeaton edit
George Grossmith as Reginald Bunthorne in Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience (1881)
George Romney - William Shakespeare - The Tempest Act I, Scene 1
John Opie - Winter's Tale, Act II. Scene III
Lonesome (1928)
Magistrate 1885 - Weir Collection - Restoration
Midsummer Night's Dream Henry Fuseli2
Safety Last (1923)
Taming of the Shrew
The Freshman
The General (1926)
The High Rollers Extravaganza Co. - Bend Her - c.1900
Utah Desert Monolith
W. S. Gilbert - Alice B. Woodward - The Pinafore Picture Book - Frontispiece
Webcomic xkcd - Wikipedian protester