
The Aristocrats Joke
The Aristocrats is an exceptionally transgressive dirty joke that has been told by numerous stand-up comedians since the vaudeville era. Steven Wright has likened it to a secret handshake among comedians, and it is seen as something of a game in which those who tell it try to top each other in terms of shock value. It is rarely told the same way twice, often improvised, and was the subject of a 2005 documentary film of the same name. It is thought of as a badge of honour among expert comedians and is notoriously hard to perform successfully. Throughout its long history, it has evolved from a clichéd staple of vaudevillian humor into a postmodern anti-joke.
South Park – Cartman’s Version of The Aristocrats Joke
________________________________
The Aristocrats Joke – Wikipedia
The joke was the subject of a 2005 documentary film of the same name. It received publicity when it was used by Gilbert Gottfried during the Friars’ Club roast of Hugh Hefner in September 2001.
This joke almost always has these elements—alternative versions may change this form.
Setup: A family act going in to see a talent agent; either the whole family or just one family member (usually the father).
The agent asks what they do.
If the whole family is present, the act is performed for the agent; otherwise it is described.
Act: It is described in as much detail as the teller prefers.
While most tellings follow one of a few basic forms, the description of the act is meant to be an ad lib.
Traditionally, the description is tasteless, and ribald. The goal is to significantly transgress social norms. Taboo acts such as incest, rape, coprophilia, coprophagia, bestiality, necrophilia and murder are common themes.
Punch line: The shocked (or intrigued) agent asks what the act is called, and the proud answer (sometimes delivered with a flourish) is: “The Aristocrats!”
The humor of the punch line is usually considered to derive either from the extreme discordance between the group’s sophisticated name (and the regal “flourish” when stating it) and the vile acts they perform, or as a form of social satire aimed at the decadence of the aristocracy.
In a 2005 interview, comedian Barry Cryer claims to have heard the joke “fifty years ago”.
A film called The Aristocrats premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. It’s based on hours of digital video taken over several years, featuring comedians and others in the know talking about and telling their versions of the joke. “The Aristocrats” was Johnny Carson’s favorite joke. Because of this, and because Carson died days after the film was screened at Sundance, Penn Jillette decided to dedicate this film to his memory. The Aristocrats features performances and commentary from some of Hollywood’s biggest power players in comedy, TV and film.[3] Included in the film is a mostly unedited recording of Gottfried’s Friar’s Club performance from 2001, which had been deleted from the TV broadcast.
Rumors cited in this film suggest that Chevy Chase used to hold parties at which the goal was to tell the joke for an hour, without repeating any of the acts contained in its performance. Jillette states in the movie that no one has ever been able to listen to Chase for an hour.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436078/ IMDB – The Aristocrats (2005)
Billy the Mime (as Billy the Mime)
Robin Williams
George Carlin
Bob Sagat
Tim Conway
Phillis Diller
Richard Lewis
Gilbert Godfried
Back Story – 2001 – Connection from LA to World Trade Center
Gilbert Gottfried: The Aristocrats
_____________________________
JOC – Questions, Comments and Reviews
Follow on Twitter @Comedy_Journal
https://twitter.com/comedy_journal
Leave a review on iTunes which I will read here on Journal Of Comedy
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/journal-of-comedy/id979787667
Email Us:
JournalOfComedy@gmail.com
Leave a Voice Message on Journal of Comedy which I can read or play on the Journal Of Comedy podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download