I love comedies, but most of them don’t make me laugh. I wish I was an easier audience, but I’m not. However, there is a certain character recipe that zaps my laughter buds every single time.
a pinch of my mood
a dash of my age
a teaspoon of location
4 cups of who I’m watching with
9 gallons of originality
3 tablespoons of satire
some secret ingredient of brilliance that I don’t understand yet
Here are a few of the characters recipes that have succeeded. (in no particular order)
Borat in Borat
Clark Griswold in all National Lampoon Vacation movies
Barry in High Fidelity
Lloyd Christmas in Dumb and Dumber
Buck Laughlin in Best in Show
Donkey in Shrek
Ron Burgundy in Anchorman
Tags: barry, best in show, borat, buck, clark griswold, donkey, high fidelity, ron burgundy, shrek
Dumb and Dumber for the win!
sadly, it doesn't take much to make me laugh..so my input wouldn't necessarily mean much… but i just saw Bedtime Stores and was dying with Adam Sandler's sidekick Mickey (Russell Brand). He made the movie for me.
you cannot forget H. I. McDunnough from Raising Arizona…i totally agree with Navin and Marty too…anything with John Cusack….i also realllllllly loved Bill Murray in What about Bob.
Ummmm……what about the guy that sits on the cooler in Back to the Beach?
How did I forget him? No one is funnier.
These are strong. The test is how timeless they are. If they hold up YEARS later, you know you've got a good one. I personally feel you are missing the following:
+ The Dude in The Big Lebowski (Walter Sobchak getting "Honorable Mention")
+ Navin Johnson in The Jerk
+ Bluto from Animal House
+ H. I. McDunnough from Raising Arizona (Gail Snoats coming in 2nd – John Goodman can't catch a break)
+ Harry Dunne in Dumb & Dumber (the bathroom scene was cinema magic!)
+ Farva in SuperTroopers
+ Pat Healy in There's Something About Mary
+ Marty Blank in Grosse Pointe Blank (personal fave – may catch flames for that)
+ Carl Spackler in Caddyshack
great call on Harry, Marty Blank, and Navin Johson
what about cheep humor? Cheep humor gets everyone! A crotch kicking or farting joke?
Some men go for blondes, others for redheads; looks to me like your funnybone has got a thing for brunettes.
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Good list. Ricky Bobby would be added to mine.
Donkey is hilarious. Do cartoons count? I enjoy Peter Griffin from Family Guy.
I limited my list to movie characters. But I'm with you on Peter Griffin.