COMEDY TODAY...IS IT TOTALLY CRAP? BY DAVE "I AM THE ONLY TRUE COMIC OF THE 90`S" DIAMOND Well it`s time for part 3 of my "is - today totally crap" feature and this time it`s comedy. Comedy has been around since day one where eve said to adam "i hope this thing doesn`t come between us" well o.k it`s not that good but you get the idea. Many people would say that the comedians around in the 60`s and 70`s were the true masters because of their originality and that anyone else who came there-after from the 80`s onwards were just ripping them off but with gimmicks or vulgarlarity. I`d say that this is true,now i`m not fussed on tony hancock or the old faces that appeared on the black and white tv screens at that time so i will concentrate on my era..the 1980`s. Comedy was simply the best back then,why? because the comics didn`t rely on proffanity or smut the jokes were understood by all because of the body language or the comics expressions. Lets take some of the comedians i like and discuss why they were so popular in their time. CARRY ON FILMS -------------- Surely every reader of this zine must have at least caught a glimpse of a scene where common innuendo rules the waves,even today it seems as if the makers ae crossing the line with remarks like `oh thats a big one etc` for me innuendo is simply fantastic as i laugh or snigger at the innocent of puns. When carry on columbus came out in the 90`s however,the julian clary gags based on exactly the same genre seemed repulsive and dirty quite simply because HE had crossed the line. BENNY HILL ---------- Again bordering on sauce with scantly clad women and all but ben who mostly kept to silent comedy seemed to churn out classics every time,even the songs he sang we not without humour and the overall cast and blend of laughter and variety makes benny one of the most envied comedians of all time,many have tried to emulate his style,the mot obvious one who springs to mind is freddie starr who had the same formula and music but failed miserably because everyone saw benny and NOT this poor substitute. Benny used to be on itv but the producers scrapped his show despite ratings beating coronation street which at that time pulled in over 20 million viewers,ben`s highest rating was 22 million viewers PER WEEK! The itv AGAIN messed up...now look at them! KENNY EVERETT ------------- The most craziest and nicest guy one could wish to meet,again verging on sauce but none of these comedians crossed the line to be vulgar,kens characters drew you into their world,sid snot,cupid,marcle roe (who`s mime tricks still baffle me today some 15 years on) all were superb,it was like this man couldn`t fail at anything,he even poked fun at his boss`s the bbc (or the beeb as everyone now calls it). The bbc hated this and scrapped his highly successfull programme,ironically after kenny died of aids the beeb decided to show a tribute of ken`s work...only 3 shows months after his death....i consider that to be an insult and not done in the best possible taste. Loads more came and went even in the 70`s that i loved,the grumbleweeds,the goodies,terry and june,george and mildred,man about the house and not forgetting the awesome only fools and horses which still pulls in over 10 million viewers even when repeated after 10 years! the list goes on and on,but what about todays efforts,can they keep the same rapour that the latter had with the audience and also keep things tastefull and enjoyable? Chubby brown although not for everyone was i suppose the only blue comedian that passed as enjoyable for my generation,other of my favourites were hale and pace,ben elton,the young ones,filthy rich and catflap,red dwarf,victoria wood and only a few more. But hang on! let have a gander at this list,nearly all have crossed the line with the exception of red dwarf and victoria wood and if you look at the comedy,sorry "so called comedy" on tv today around 95% will venture into the 9 o` clock watershead,simply meaning that something will offend. Men beaving badly was fun at first but gets cruder every season,coogan is viel,every single new comedian around from 1993+ is pathetic because jokes we heard in the seventies have just been revamped to include celebrities and swearing,so the old generation had it right! Only a few comedy shows make it on my tv these days,goodnight sweetheart,red dwarf (if it`s ever given a 8th series),3rd rock from the sun (american) are the only ones i can think of reccomending today. Joe pasquale has to be the worst comedian in the history of the world...EVER! So once again we can deduce that comedy today really is crap and i for one am looking forward to any 1980 comedy repeats. Dave Diamond /\ \/ <> .