April 30, 2007
Humor is a funny thing
Written by Shirley Karr in Jaunty PostRobyn’s post a couple weeks ago about favorite movie lines got me thinking about my favorite funny movie lines. Then I started thinking about why they’re funny, or at least funny to me.
Humor is a funny thing — some things that will make me crack up barely get a smile from my husband, and vice versa. (I totally don’t get the Farrelly brothers’ humor, but he does.) Then there’s the scene in Bruce Almighty of Steve Carrell trying to deliver the evening news while Jim Carrey is offstage doing his thing, making poor Steve speak total gibberish. We both laughed so hard we just about wet our pants watching it.
Content, Context, and Delivery:
Sometimes what’s funny is funny all by itself, regardless of anything else — like Steve trying to deliver the news. Sometimes it’s only funny in context. The line, “I’ll have what she’s having,” is certainly no cause to crack up and might even be something you’ve said while eating out with friends. But in context — delivered by director Rob Reiner’s mother in When Harry Met Sally in the diner scene after Meg Ryan’s, uh, climactic performance for Billy Crystal — it’s darn funny.
Part of the reason for the phenomenal success of family-friendly fare like Rocky & Bullwinkle and Toy Story is humor that works on multiple levels. Kids laugh when Mr. Potato Head (voiced by Don Rickles) says “What are you lookin’ at, ya hockey puck?” because he says it to a hockey puck, but adults laugh because they’re familiar with Rickles’ brand of insult humor.
I once heard that the difference between a comedian and a comic is that one says funny things, and the other says things funny. For the performances of Serious Actors like Robert Stack and Lloyd Bridges in Airplane, the humor is derived from their pokerfaced delivery of outrageous lines. Leslie Nielsen reinvented his entire career with such deadpan delivery of outrageous content. (Naked Gun, anyone?) Andy Griffith also realized the humor and power of playing things straight when he got his own TV show, after being discovered doing standup comedy. Andy was originally supposed to be the goofball, not Barney Fife.
Then you have a performer like Paul Lynde. Practically everything he said was funny, either by the words or his delivery but usually both. Much as I loved him as Uncle Arthur on Bewitched and his zingers as center square on the original Hollywood Squares, my favorite role of his was in the 1979 western, The Villain. This film is probably better known for being Arnold Schwarzenegger’s big-screen debut, playing a Dudley Do-Right type character called Handsome Stranger. (”My mama named me after my daddy.”) In a film loaded with funny and quirky characters, perhaps the funniest is Paul’s Indian chief, Nervous Elk. Kirk Douglas plays the title character, a determined but inept villain with a horse named Whiskey that’s smarter than he is. After observing the difficulties the villain gets himself into, Nervous Elk replies to a town elder’s request regarding the villain by saying, “He doesn’t need to be watched, he needs to be looked after.”
Here’s some of my favorite funny movie lines — let’s see how many you recognize. If they’re from the same movie they’ll be listed as A and B.
As a hint, some of the movies are older than I am, and one hasn’t been released yet but is highly anticipated. 
1a. Put … the candle … back.
1b. Abby someone. Abby Normal, I think.
2a. Yes, I know, Ensign Hornswallow can be such a pig.
2b. We sank a truck!
3. Mother Goose is requesting a chaplain.
A chaplain? Good heavens, he’s killed her.
No, sir. They want to get married.
Married? Goody Two-Shoes and the Filthy Beast?
4. Well then, this would be more, wouldn’t it?
5a. You seem somewhat familiar. Have I threatened you before?
5b. There’ll be no living with her after this.
6. Juuuuust a bit outside.
7a. My eyesight’s as good as ever, just so you know.
7b. That outfit does not flatter you at all. It should be a dress
or nothing. I happen to have no dress in my cabin.
8. Inconceivable!
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you
think it means.
9. Surely you can’t be serious.
I am serious, and don’t call me Shirley.
10a. Did no one come to save me just because they missed me?
10b. You’re mad.
If I wasn’t, this would probably never work.
I’ll check in later to see how you do.
6:15 am | Share This
Shana Says:
#8 is from The Princess Bride. #9 is from Airplane, according to USF. He also says #6 is from Major League.
Robyn DeHart Says:
I got those too, Shana. Numbers 1 belong to Young Frankenstein and numbers 5 are our dear Shirley’s favorite bad boy, Johnny from Pirates.
Margo Maguire Says:
I know #3 - Cary Grant and Leslie Caron … Father Goose.
ladydawgfan Says:
#1 - Young Frankenstein (That’s Frahnk-en-steen!)
#2 - Operation Petticoat - Gotta love Cary Grant!!
#3 - Not sure, but Margo says Father Goose, so I’ll go with her answer.
#4 - Ghostbusters? (but I’m not really sure)
#5 - Pirates of the Caribbean
#6 - Major League (Wild Thing!!)
#7 - No idea at all
#8 - Princess Bride (and Carey Elwes still does strange things to me when I see him . . . must be the smirk)
#9 - Airplane!
#10 - I know that I have seen this one at one time or another, but I can’t think of the title . . . darn it!!
Dorothy Says:
1 - Young Frankenstein
2 - Operation Petticoat
3 - Father Goose
4 - A League of their Own
5 - POTC 1
6 - Major League
7 - POTC 2
8 - Princess Bride
9 - Airplane
10- POTC 3
Dorothy Says:
oops….I forgot to write anything. These are some of my most favorite movies!! Operation Petticoat and Father Goose being two of my very favorites!!
Kimberly Lane Says:
1.Young Frankenstein(1974) (Inga)
(Dr.Frankenstein)
2. Operation Petticoat
3. Father Goose (Lt. and Commander)
4. A League of their Own{Ernie)
5. Pirates of the Carribean: Curse
of the Black Pearl(Jack Sparrow)
6. Major League (Uecker)
7.Pirates of the Carribean 2: Dead
Man’s Chest(Jack Sparrow)
8.Princess Bride(Vizzini and Inigo)
9. Airplane (Striker and Rumack)
10.Pirates of the Carribean 3: At
Worlds End (Jack Sparrow)
Lois Says:
The only one I recognized was Airplane. . . probably because that’s the only one I saw!
Lois
ShirleyKarr Says:
Dorothy and Kimberly Lane are both correct! (Though it’s Igor who says the Abby Normal line.) Even funnier is the way the horses nervously whinny every time Frau Blucher’s name is mentioned, but I couldn’t spell the sound effect.
In Pirates 3, the funniest bit in the trailer when Jack asks “did no one came to save me because they missed me,” is that everyone looks blank (or “are you kidding me?”)except the monkey, who raises his hand. And *that’s* funny (as well as the change of expression on Jack’s face) only if you know of the animosity between the two in P2 — the monkey stealing Jack’s hat, Jack wanting to shoot him all the time, etc.
25 days to go until the premiere of Pirates 3:At World’s End! :-0
Dorothy Says:
Shirley–I absolutely LOVE that part of the trailer when Jack asks ‘did no one come to save me because they missed me?’ and everyone looks blank. I can’t wait for this movie. I’ve already decided that I’m going to the midnight showing and taking the next day off from work. Yes, I am strange!! lol
ShirleyKarr Says:
What’s strange, Dorothy? I’m planning to go to the midnight showing, too — just like we did for Pirates 2. And I had to work the next day!
This time I don’t have to work but going to the midnight show means we have to reschedule the yard sale we’d planned to hold that weekend. My mom and hubby rolled their eyes when I told them but you understand, right?
Haven Rich Says:
Those are too cute! And shockingly enough, I knew them all, but saw in the comments that they’ve already been outed.
My favorite POC2 line is: Hide the rum!
ShirleyKarr Says:
Hey, Haven! Or how ’bout the look of dismay on the crewmen’s faces when Will says to load the rum in the net when they’re out of gunpowder, and Gibbs says “Aye, the rum, too!” and looks like he’s going to cry? Or Jack muttering “Why is the rum always gone?” then staggers, and says “Oh, that’s why.”
I didn’t use any of the rum lines because that would have made it far too easy.
And one that would have been too difficult was a line used in the trailer for P2 but cut from the theatrical release and DVD: “I was merely an almost innocent bystander.”
Haven Rich Says:
Yeah the rum comments are always a hoot and tag-worthy!
I doubt they’ll leave those out in POC3.
I’ve heard that line! It was on a bonus footage thingy I found online.
Another favorite in POC2, where Will asks where Jack is and how they’ll wait on him, then see him running toward the ship…priceless!
I can’t wait for the release of part 3.
georgia_peach Says:
Bloody ‘ell! No fair. I knew every one of those! *looks around* Well, I knew the “Princess Bride one”, “Airplane”, and “POTC” ones.
I find British humor funnier than any American I can think of. I love their sense of humors; a bit on the dry sarcastic side. Like Eddie Izzard. And the accents are a plus.
Kimberly Lane Says:
I can’t wait to watch POTC 3. My son has already bought the DVD’s of the other 2 movies. I love going to the movies tho for the big screen and sound effects.
Dorothy Says:
Shirley…I completely understand. I’m doing the same thing for the Harry Potter book and movie!! lol