Just about anyone past the 6th grade can tell you that a punchline is the funny part of a joke.
And you don’t have to be a comedian to know that a punchline contains an unexpected element of surprise. But here’s the big question…
How does that information help any comedian produce punchlines in their stand-up comedy material that actually work to get laughs? The reason that I ask is because…
You usually don’t get much more information about punchlines than that from most stand-up comedy books, workshops or classes (you will get exposed to examples of punchlines — check out the ones I have for you below and make a note if providing those punchline examples help you in any way).
Related Video:
In the very first lesson in my online course, I transcribed two brief stand-up comedy bits word for word as delivered by popular, “household name” comedians.
Each transcribed bit is presented BEFORE the YouTube video of each bit is presented. Then, one of the four questions I ask after each transcribed bit is:
Can you tell which lines are the punchlines?
You may be able to pick out one or two punchlines from BOTH bits combined, but overall – I will bet my shirt that most people won’t be able to pick out most of the punchlines as they “read” – word for word, I might add.
Let me give you a punchline from the first bit that is a powerful, big laugh, one word punchline:
“Bacon”
So, here’s my next question:
What valuable information can you glean from studying that one word punchline that will help you develop punchlines in your stand-up comedy material that will get laughs?
Not much? That’s probably because it’s just a one word punchline, right?
So, here’s a longer punchline that got a huge laugh in the second video:
“Nice job cleaning up”
So, let me ask the question again — what valuable information can you glean from studying that punchline that will help you in any way develop punchlines in your stand-up comedy material that will get laughs?
Here’s my point:
If you don’t really know what a punchline is as it relates to you, your sense of humor and the content you want to share with an audience…
How are you supposed to generate punchlines that actually work to get laughs?
Actually, if you DON’T have actionable information about what a punchline really is as it applies specifically to you, your sense of humor and what you want to talk about and express on stage…
Then you are left with blind trial and error, just like most every other comedian out there trying to somehow “write” their way to being funny on stage without really knowing what a punchline really is or how to produce punchlines that get big laughs.
If you don’t believe that, just go to any stand-up comedy open mic and see for yourself what happens when a comedian is clueless about what a punchline really is or how to generate punchlines that actually work to get laughs, much less big laughs.
Related Article: 10 Questions You MUST Be Able To Answer In Order To Produce Stand-up Comedy Material That Works
About Steve Roye
Leading stand-up comedy educator and trainer, providing proven 21st century strategies and techniques for individuals who wish to become comedians on a professional level. For a detailed stand-up comedy resume go to: Steve Roye's Stand-up Resume.
Whether its business or sports or performing arts, you can never place a value on having a good understanding of the mechanics of the trade. And while some books out there will devote sometime to mechanics, its almost as if its for filler or just to say it was covered. Steve actually takes the time over and over again throughout the links on this website to continue to emphasize not only the importance of mechanics. He goes the extra mile and emphasizes the importance of applying these mechanics to your individual approach and brand of comedy. It is a vast canvas of different breeds of comic, and Steve makes sure not to overlook that
Interesting. I never like when comedy is taught through a mechanical way. I always believe that comedy for me is something that you feel. This article really shows that you just cannot just focus on one part in comedy. Comedy is about the whole, “the sum is greater than the parts” as they say.
I believe you CAN learn from written words, but you might not learn what your searching for. I used to let my friends read my stand-up, but a couple were honest enough to say this stuff isn’t funny. However, they would laugh when i actually performed the same set they read. Body language and expressions are very important in your delivery. I think reading material alone is hard to gleen info from, but if you can read a word for word transcript and then watch the performance, i think you can gain much more insight into the thought process of how the person constructed the joke. And then you might be able to apply the same techniques into your joke writing.
I challenge anyone to read the transcripts from Bill Cosby Himself, good luck reading his beer walk or his mothers deformed finger point. I work with the public and when I talk dead pan and joke with people, they take me seriously, not when I inflect my voice, laughter.
I’m taking your challenge… I hope the transcripts are on google… Cosbyology is one of my favorite reads, and Bill has a way of making everyday mundane stuff funny. I’m developing a clean set right now for corporate use this Christmas season on the corporate party circut, so your challenge is great for my research. Thanks C.W.
I agree, attempting to use a transcript of a live performance for joke analysis is an exercise in futility. A ‘live’ joke cannot be brought back to life by the written word. There is much more communication in a live performance that makes the humor happen which just doesn’t translate across the written page.