Quotes About Comedy

What we're trying to do is take these words and soften them. I'm an African-American comic. I use the b-word in my act.

Up until 'Bridesmaids', the general consensus was that women preferred comedy a bit softer.

Unfortunately, it's the new normal to get divorced - and divorced with children is its own soil rich with land mines. There's a lot of comedy but a lot of heartache, too.

My generation grew up on 'The Daily Show.' Jon Stewart gave me solace. He was the only person who I felt defended Muslims when crazy things were happening; the only place you could find a nuanced take on Iraq was Jon Stewart's show.

I sold my house to Jerry Seinfeld.

I remember, after the Pamela Anderson roast, being told, 'You're sold out - you can add two more shows.'

I've heard stories about movies that are really maybe difficult and really dramatic and good, but they are being sold as romantic comedies. All it's going to do is just... that's hurting the work, because that just makes it impossible for anyone to see it correctly.

In the 70s I started doing my Big Night Out on stage when I was at art school. A friend of mine owned a comedy club and sold it to me. I worked out quite quickly that if I did the comedy myself I'd make more money.

In comedy, when you bomb, especially at The Comedy Store in front of a sold-out house? I think it would have been way worse if I bombed there than losing a UFC fight.

I set out to do a horror film with 'Dog Soldiers,' and what I came out with at the end of the day was something that was more of a cult movie, more of a black comedy with some horror elements in it. It kind of went over the top.

The decision as to what's funny and what is not funny shall rest solely with Mr. Freberg.

If I focus solely on developing new material, then I can get a new 45 minute to an hour in about six months. Then I'll work on it and work on it and can make it killer within another six months or so.

Teaching is so solid and reliable, comedy is not.

Before the Polaroid commercials, my image was that of a solid actress, a theater actress who could do anything. But the Polaroid commercials were high comedy... Through them I was finally noticed as a comedian.

It's just a lovely way to do comedy, where you have the freedom to try stuff, but then you also have a really strong, solid script to go back to if you're brain dead and tired.

Writing a sitcom compared with writing a novel is a bit like the difference between going on a big, noisy group holiday compared with a solitary march to the South Pole.

Normally, with stand-up, it's quite solitary, you write the material on your own, you perform it on your own, it's all very much on you. Your own thoughts. You have to sort of modulate your own performance.

People want their actors to do comedy, too. They don't want any comedians next to the actor. They want one solo hero and want to see everything in him.

I like working solo and it was a lot of fun joking around with the audience, saying things. I'm only just learning how to do certain things.

Most stand-up comics relish performing 'in one' - solo. They like the autonomy.

For the second series of 'Luxury Comedy', I tried to drop the 'Noel Fielding' from it. I thought that would make it less like a solo project and more like a show. Also, it would probably have been easier to take the reaction to the first series if it had been a project rather than my name and face!

When I was on 'SNL,' I was getting weirdly anxious about being on camera, which I had never really done before. And so my solution was just to not watch my stuff. And then I found out that other actors do it, too, and I felt less weird about it.

I think that all comics or humorists, or whatever we are, ask questions. That's what we're supposed to do. But I not only ask the questions, I offer solutions.

My comedy isn't going to solve problems; I'm not that deep.