Bill Burr Netflix

[fazer]

As Bill Burr says about his new show. “Paper Tiger”,  this is my last show ever.   

The only thing I can figure out is we need comedy to deal with our own ridiculousness. 

I wonder what Richard Pryor would say about today.   

I encourage you to watch his comedy special. 

 

[ruairioflaherty]

I encourage you to watch his comedy special.

Why?  I did and thought it was some of his weakest work, and he's an outrageously funny man.

What did you like about it?

Cheers,
Ruairi

 

[fazer]

Anything that challenges the correctness of thought according to the mob is ok with me.  He tackles some current taboo topics with comedy and I find that refreshing in the same vein as the great Richard Pryor.  In the end he is a paper tiger with the obvious love of his daughter and respect for women.  You need to lighten up.  Comedy is funny.  Or maybe not.  Also it was way funnier to me then the previous special.    Superb.

We live in a divide with untouchable topics and they need to be made fun of when things are untouchable. 

 

[JohnRoberts]

The comedian pushing the envelope of social taboos these days is Dave Chappelle. He seems to have irritated many people with his recent routine poking fun at several untouchable icons. 

I keep waiting for the PC bubble to deflate, but it appears to have a steady stream of hot air keeping it inflated. 

This is not a new concept and comedians like Lenny Bruce were jailed for breaking societal norms.

Later George Carlin tread that same path with his infamous routine "7 words you cannot say on television". That case went up to the supreme court who ruled FCC could regulate offensive speech, but did not opine on those specific words or define offensive. 

Richard Pryor was known for some incendiary stand-up routines.

Eddie Murphy and others have tried to channel their predecessors. I don't know if Dave Chappell is all that revolutionary, but maybe the room has gotten tougher for such comedy over recent years. He has certainly shocked them awake.

Many established comedians refuse to perform at modern colleges, that used to be a prime audience for them, because of the changed social climate.

Interesting times...

JR

PS: Humor and satire has long been a vehicle for social and political commentary, at least it was.  :

 

[JohnRoberts]

I am watching Bill Burr on David Spade late night talk show.. (recorded last night).  Burr seems to have his head on straight.

David Spade is not all that funny but so far his show has not gone low ball political sniping... like (all?) the other late night shows. Wonder if he can last?

JR

 

[MountCyanide]

I appreciated what Bill Burr was saying but it just wasn't funny. More like a timely rant rather than a comedy special. And I am a fan.
Bill's driving lessons on YouTube is pretty damn funny. And he's ranting, of course, but it's funny. I think with this latest special he's just running on the fuel of being fed up with this ridiculous twitter-run world.

Dave Chappelle's latest was indeed his GREATEST to me. A masterpiece. Watched it twice and I'll probably go in again soon. I'm holding him up there with Carlin now - who I thankfully got to see live three times.

And yep, the David Spade show isn't funny per se but he's got some good guests so I do enjoy it in the background.

 

[iomegaman]

I think there might be an assumption that "humor" should be universal...but frankly it is as much culture driven as your spice rack.

In terms of edgy social commentary, SouthPark has always been ahead of the crowd, making nothing sacred...

I also think pushing the envelope can get a little bit over-done...Tosh comes to mind...

I've never been a fan of table salt, never use it in my cooking...to each his own.

 

[fazer]

I think there might be an assumption that "humor" should be universal...but frankly it is as much culture driven as your spice rack.

Ya I suppose its just like music in that respect.  I've watch Chappelle before and found him funny then got bored after awhile.  The previous Bill Burr special on netflix hit me that way as well.  The newest one I found funny.  I'm with JR on late night TV shows  Just political rant more so than funny but thats the media model these days.  I would much rather watch American Adventure or some other show on PBS then that.  I'll check out Chappelle's newest,  I have heard its great from other people outside this forum.

 

[JohnRoberts]

Ya I suppose its just like music in that respect. 

Not (just) to be contrary, but comedy depends on common experience, recognizing situations or people described in jokes from our own life experience. Music appreciation benefits from familiarity but delivers unique pleasing auditory sensations... There are common rules about what is pleasing concerning harmony, dissonance, etc.. but music can be almost completely novel and still enjoyed, while comedy at best is a new perspective about a recognizable familiar situation. 

I've watch Chappelle before and found him funny then got bored after awhile.

Comedy routines are generally targeted to a specific audience. Chappell's target audience may vary from time to time.

The previous Bill Burr special on netflix hit me that way as well.  The newest one I found funny.  I'm with JR on late night TV shows  Just political rant more so than funny but thats the media model these days.

I used to record and time shift several late night shows daily... now I can't get more than a few minutes into the typical monologues before deleting. It isn't worth the bother to even record them any more.

I would much rather watch American Adventure or some other show on PBS then that.  I'll check out Chappelle's newest,  I have heard its great from other people outside this forum.

I watch far too many old movies from the 30s/40s... The social justice crowd's heads would probably explode from what was considered acceptable behavior back then. I am surprised they haven't been more widely targeted by SG warriors yet... they probably will be.  IIRC they did go after a song lyric a while back ( "Baby its cold outside" ).

JR

 

[john12ax7]

I like both Burr and Chappelle,  but would also say Burr's latest wasn't his best,  Chappelle's was much better imo.

For late night Conan is best.

 

[JohnRoberts]

For more about comedy, a few decades ago I read a short science fiction story that suggested all jokes follow one of a small handful of "joke formulas, or strategies". The real gotcha to this story was that these handful of joke formulas were extraterrestrial in origin. I don't recall who wrote that short story but it was an interesting concept. 

Along those lines, one popular old joke formula is "flipped perspective". I heard a new comedian's joke routine the other night and one good example of flipped perspective was a rant about "lost pets". If a dog can smell home from 12 miles away how could it ever actually be lost? More likely any lost dog is running away after it escaped from its owner.  ;D

JR

 

[JohnRoberts]

I don't know if this is ironic or just sad but the new kid hired for SNL then fired over old comedy routines suggests that Chappell would never get hired for SNL...

Now that's a little funny. 

JR

 

[JohnRoberts]

accidentally discovered another late night comedy show that isn't all political talking point... Jim Jeffries fom Oz. He seem willing to ridicule the cancel culture and other topical PC trends.

===

I had to find the south park episode where they FU China for banning them. Admittedly they don't have as much skin in the game as Nike, apple, or NBA, but they put their ideals ahead of economic cost, so good for them.

JR 

 

[boji]

They say pop lyrics take the pulse of a country's state of mind.  It would be interesting to run statistics on word choice for lyrics like brokerage houses do with tweets to guess market trends.

Was being politically correct always the silencing mechanism of the left? I used to believe it was the free-spirited liberal that pushed the boundaries, while the crusty conservatives were the group most ready to take offense...

 

[JohnRoberts]

They say pop lyrics take the pulse of a country's state of mind. 

I hope not, but there are lots of un-pc lyrics to analyze (or over-analyze like "baby its cold outside".)

It would be interesting to run statistics on word choice for lyrics like brokerage houses do with tweets to guess market trends.

Not sure this is a leading indicator, perhaps coincident, or even lagging.

Was being politically correct always the silencing mechanism of the left? I used to believe it was the free-spirited liberal that pushed the boundaries, while the crusty conservatives were the group most ready to take offense...

It is an odd transformation of the university campus. University was supposed to be a zone for free thought and free expression of ideas, any ideas. Lately it appears the generation in college administrations are resistant to any challenge to their strict ideology.

Ironically perhaps comedians are the canary in the coal mine who fall first, because cutting edge comedy routinely challenges the status quo, to extract humor from shared common experience with risqué or sometimes shocking observations.

JR

 

[fazer]

Ironically perhaps comedians are the canary in the coal mine who fall first, because cutting edge comedy routinely challenges the status quo, to extract humor from shared common experience with risqué or sometimes shocking observations.

Sad state when the PC police can't laugh.  Its just a few steps away from the Peoples republic of the USA. 

Being a boomer, life changed in the late 50's early 60's when the idea of tuck and cover (when you see a mushroom cloud), changed everything.  The odds of survival became clear and so the boomer "anything goes" created a new perspective on everything that now is turned into the narcism of my generation movement. 

The next generations have Climate change and  an equality movement that for many is their answer to tuck and cover anything goes.  Whats funny for one generation is poison for the other. 

I watched Burr again and found it to be funny,  due to the OMG factor that others find offensive for their generation.  Hope comedy survives.  I'll laugh at home and try to be mindful in public.

I watched about half of Dave Chappell.  Had to run and do somethings but plan on finishing it.  It's also funny.  The Alphabet riding in a car is great but I hear that it offends lots of people.  Whatever is untouchable deserves comedy to make buried feeling come to the surface to be further processed. 
Why am I laughing at this is a good question to ask yourself. 

Seriously the world can get to serious sometimes. 

 

[JohnRoberts]

Today I have been pondering what future historians will make of this particular time (right now... I know too early to start drinking).

I can't get past the first episode of some new TV shows when they bend over backward to prove how woke they are.

Adam Silver the NBA commissioner took a principled stand over (something-something ) bathrooms in NC yanking the all star game from them... Now when China tells him to snap to and not support Hong Kong protests, he appears less principled. Of course the NBA is not the only big business shutting down speech to preserve  market access. In fact it may be Nike telling the NBA to jump and how high. Many players have big shoe deals.

Perhaps like the #metoo movement we are only now noticing all the hypocrisy around us. Lebron James and Kaepernick have yet to speak out criticizing China over Hong Kong, perhaps because Nike knows it could cost them tens of $B in Chinese shoe sales, while alternately criticizing the US has been good for sales .

Or not ....

JR

 

[Sender]

I keep waiting for the PC bubble to deflate, but it appears to have a steady stream of hot air keeping it inflated. 

Maybe because it's not a bubble...  :