Vaginas Make Me Laugh

There's an inherent prejudice against women that often labels them as inferior to men in their ability to make us laugh.  It's a sentiment that will likely never go away.  That being said, it's also common knowledge that the comedic female lead is seldom one that sees the light of day in most mainstream fare (and when it does, it's usually not very funny unless you think Whoopi Goldberg dressed up as a Caucasian man is HI-larious).  Perhaps it's a result of empathy on my part, but I especially enjoy witnessing a woman who can make me laugh without remembering the unfortunate "handicap" that shadows so many female comedians and actresses.

There's a reason that so many female stand-up comedians generally aren't funny.  Despite the fact that I've been raised in a unusually fresh time of comedic awareness - one that relies heavily on meta-irony and complex satire - women who have gladly accepted the term "comedienne" or [the possibly even less flattering] "funny lady" often deliver material that comes off stale, contrived, and regurgitated.  In other words, Caroline Rhea is as boorish as Richard Jeni, Rita Rudner is as tragic as Joe Rogan, Lisa Lampanelli is as predictable as Dane Cook, and so forth.

However, when Tina Fey, Sarah Silverman, Jackie Clarke, Amy Poehler, or the girls from Variety Shac perform, it's not only enjoyable because they're naturally funny.  Rather, these women are, in a sense, acting subversively and - in the smartest of instances - taking advantage of the fact that they are, by default, facing a greater challenge than their male colleagues.  Therein lies the extra ounce of enjoyment.  When they regard the fact that they do, indeed, have vaginas and incorporate a level of self-satire, nothing could be funnier.  The joke then merges physical humor with societal commentary.

Veering away from the gray, scientific breakdown of why ladies are funny, I should also note that some women, whether or not they're thinking about it, are naturally hilarious.  The underused, underrated Jan Hooks, a former SNL cast member during its cultural resurgence in the late eighties (and then wasted on Designing Women and Third Rock From The Sun), is a woman so natural, so flexible and comedically gifted, that she often outshined her male counterparts. 

Below is a clip from the short-lived  where, as Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford, respectively, Carvey and Hooks spark an undeniable chemistry not seen since...Regis and Kathie Lee.  Carvey, naturally, tries to steal as much face time as possible (he's moderately funny, but am I the only person who finds constant manic behavior somewhat of a ploy?), but Hooks really steals the scene.  Between her whispered pronunciation of Peabo Bryson's name and the exaggerated vibrato she utilizes while singing to a monkey, she is flawless.  But nothing - NOTHING - makes me happier than watching a fake Kathie Lee Gifford grow unabashedly abrasive toward her producer, so much that she chokes up with WASPy-voiced fury while yelling at him like a misbehaved dog ("Gelman, DON'T YOU START!").

And, yes, the guy playing Gelman is exactly who you think it is.

Comments

[Cap'n Guthrie]

I don't have time to watch the gootube but splendid post. Phoebe gets pissed about people not thinking women are funny, because shes funny. - beans

[billdiggity]

Tina Fey isn't funny-- as her sitcom demonstrates weekly. Neither is Sarah Silverman-- but she is REALLY racist. Amy Poehler? HIlarious.

[Eliot Glazer]

I think Tina Fey is either loved or hated, but Sarah Silverman isn't actually racist. She's being subversive and satirical, which is what I find makes it so enjoyable.

[Alyssa]

Jan Hooks is my favorite comedian of all time...I've seen almost everything thing she's done, but sadly that's not much. I miss her so much, where is she???