tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post1154168628524050444..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: The Wright stuffBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-80410029381276311222021-01-13T08:48:11.987-08:002021-01-13T08:48:11.987-08:00The only comedian I ever paid to see. At the Ventu...The only comedian I ever paid to see. At the Ventura Theater in the late 80's. They oversold the show because he was so popular, and I had to stand in the balcony, because I arrived 20 minutes before show time. A true genius, and absolutely one of a kind.ventuckyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09294925035523816023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-18709780896951104902021-01-12T10:02:15.218-08:002021-01-12T10:02:15.218-08:00«The ice cream truck in my neighborhood plays Helt...«The ice cream truck in my neighborhood plays Helter Skelter».Tore from Norwaynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-3140848012366648772021-01-11T21:33:24.873-08:002021-01-11T21:33:24.873-08:00Steven bought a house on the median strip. It'...Steven bought a house on the median strip. It's nice but he has to leave his driveway at sixty MPH.<br />Steven got a little dog to do all his barking for him. Now he can sleep in every morning.<br />They told Steven he had to get a license for his dog. But it would probably be cheaper to just hide the car keys.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13685067885312854451noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-58234094344097372272021-01-11T19:14:54.581-08:002021-01-11T19:14:54.581-08:00"If at first you don't succeed, destroy a..."If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried."<br /><br />Paper shredder in the works already, baby.Ere I Saw Elbanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-72947133284800738472021-01-11T16:21:46.092-08:002021-01-11T16:21:46.092-08:00"I called Information and asked, 'Where a..."I called Information and asked, 'Where are my car keys?' The lady on the other end said, 'They're behind your couch.' [forehead smack]"Liggienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-27921988501938547602021-01-11T16:05:47.193-08:002021-01-11T16:05:47.193-08:00I edited him in a couple of stand-up specials. My ...I edited him in a couple of stand-up specials. My favorite: "I was a Caesarian baby. Cant really tell, except every time I leave the house I go out through the window." thevidiothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12675078560145080204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-43385928239096542432021-01-11T14:24:19.063-08:002021-01-11T14:24:19.063-08:00No way did Wright write most of these:
"If y...No way did Wright write most of these:<br /><br />"If you want the rainbow, you got to put up with the rain"<br /><br />Nope. I'd say about 5 are actual Steven Wright lines (the funny ones).<br />JBnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-41255380451954064982021-01-11T13:27:05.183-08:002021-01-11T13:27:05.183-08:00What if there were no hypothetical questions?What if there were no hypothetical questions?Jay Moriartynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-5162355612953862652021-01-11T13:21:19.608-08:002021-01-11T13:21:19.608-08:00Thanks for this post, Ken. I too love Steven Wrig...Thanks for this post, Ken. I too love Steven Wright. Unfortunately, I wasn't sure if he was still active. I haven't seen him in anything new lately. And I've stopped watching the late night talk shows, so if he has been on any of them I didn't see it.<br />I agree that his delivery is as much a part of the joke as the words themselves. I don't think many of his one liners would be funny if anyone else said them. There are a couple of exceptions above.<br />I'm not sure if this is actually a Wright line or merely attributed to him: "If you make instant coffee in a microwave do you go back in time?"<br /><br />M.B.<br /><br />P.S. Not an official F.Q., but DAVE HACKEL mentioned the "...chance to write for Wright's voice..." How important is it to be able to able to capture the voice of a character? Were some characters more difficult to write for? And were there any characters that you and David (Isaacs) just couldn't get right?Mike Bloodworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04755626259169126800noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-25451510045015479732021-01-11T12:29:50.692-08:002021-01-11T12:29:50.692-08:00My favorite: "I went to a restaurant that had...My favorite: "I went to a restaurant that had a sign that said 'Breakfast any time,' so I ordered French Toast during the Renaissance."Elfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10374380298273456994noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-77083513204927852122021-01-11T12:26:02.206-08:002021-01-11T12:26:02.206-08:00I'm not sure how he wound up doing so, but I s...I'm not sure how he wound up doing so, but I saw Steven Wright open for Bob Dylan in Chicago in about 1999. <br /><br />Paraphrasing but you'll get the idea:<br />"I went to a diner where the sign said 'Breakfast served any time. I said I'll have French toast during the Renaissance."<br />"When I was a kid my teacher asked what I'd like to be. I said a bird. She said 'So you can fly?' I said 'No, so my shit would be white.' "Tomnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-48092574387485715882021-01-11T11:54:17.807-08:002021-01-11T11:54:17.807-08:00"When I was a kid, I heard Smokey the Bear sa..."When I was a kid, I heard Smokey the Bear say that 'only you can prevent forest fires.' I thought, my God."Armando De Avilahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06680737295156124807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-55387374010729813702021-01-11T11:45:13.646-08:002021-01-11T11:45:13.646-08:00Part of what I love about Steven Wright is that hi...Part of what I love about Steven Wright is that his hangdog, depressive demeanor is the exact opposite of how someone doing standup is supposed to present himself. So you start laughing the instant you see him. And then his jokes are so well crafted, you keep laughing all the way through. That extra instant it takes for your brain to figure them out makes them even funnier.Ted.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-69286991581205783312021-01-11T11:38:09.948-08:002021-01-11T11:38:09.948-08:00"Why aren't there any decaf coffee tables..."Why aren't there any decaf coffee tables?"Garynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-87424283137642771782021-01-11T11:24:11.299-08:002021-01-11T11:24:11.299-08:00I bought an irregular telephone. It doesn't h...I bought an irregular telephone. It doesn't have a 5. <br />My friend asked me, "Hey, why don't you call me anymore?" <br />I said, "I can't just call anyone - my phone doesn't have a 5."<br />He said, "That's so weird. How long have you had that?"<br />I said, "I don't know. My calendar has no 7s."Neil Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15528943694211521533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-43145836405822095792021-01-11T10:48:02.399-08:002021-01-11T10:48:02.399-08:00Many of these aren't Stephen's. He commen...Many of these aren't Stephen's. He comments on lists like this occasionally in interviews, wondering how anyone could think he'd say some of them. George Carlin did the same - he had a rant about it on his web page. Andrew15https://www.blogger.com/profile/00708704048141991600noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-82706544963619941672021-01-11T10:17:11.653-08:002021-01-11T10:17:11.653-08:00The Steven Wright joke that always sticks in my me...The Steven Wright joke that always sticks in my memory is: I have a friend who's a radio announcer. When he walks under a bridge, you can't hear him talk.Kosmo13noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-63528472770996169652021-01-11T10:15:51.921-08:002021-01-11T10:15:51.921-08:00I love Stephen Wright, let there be no mistake. BU...I love Stephen Wright, let there be no mistake. BUT if I have a complaint it's that he is not a story teller. He's all deserts, no entrees, a series of unconnected one-panel cartoons. Thing is, I love coconut cream pie. Maybe I just haven't seen enough of him in longer sets.<br /><br />-30-Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-71788294334983703392021-01-11T09:43:50.865-08:002021-01-11T09:43:50.865-08:00My favorite Stephen Wright bit was an episode of &...My favorite Stephen Wright bit was an episode of "Mad About You" where he played (I think) Paul Reiser's assistant. Jerry Lewis guest-starred as a millionaire who thought he could buy Paul's friendship with gifts. At one point, Jerry enters Paul's apartment holding Ringo Starr's drum kit, complete with the "Beatles" logo on the front. Stephen's response: "Oh, no, now they'll NEVER get back together!"<br /><br />He also had a funny guest-starring role on the short-lived Bob Newhart sitcom BOB.Steve Baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07460010481523481647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-21774134889558854732021-01-11T09:31:37.967-08:002021-01-11T09:31:37.967-08:00My fave Wright-ism: "I'd like to put a hu...My fave Wright-ism: "I'd like to put a humidifier and a dehumidifier in a room and let them fight it out".RyderDAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00980791636129598607noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-2673695126700301752021-01-11T09:30:34.913-08:002021-01-11T09:30:34.913-08:00According to his wikipedia page, he has seen websi...According to his wikipedia page, he has seen websites with lists of his jokes and a lot of them were not his. Some he wished he had thought of and others are so bad he is embarrassed that people think they are his.Michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-42374091729347731652021-01-11T09:07:44.996-08:002021-01-11T09:07:44.996-08:00If Leonard Barr and Jackie Vernon had a kid and it...If Leonard Barr and Jackie Vernon had a kid and it bumped his head, it'd sound something like Steven Wright. Wonderfully funny stuff. He also had a nice recurring role in "Mad About You".Brianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17850672682992802562noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-27899731155534589482021-01-11T08:43:40.282-08:002021-01-11T08:43:40.282-08:00Saw him on Carson about a month ago. I was laughi...Saw him on Carson about a month ago. I was laughing so hard I was crying. <br /><br />Total comedy genius. Cowboy Surferhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07703914886255967601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-35900500062441697582021-01-11T08:38:10.804-08:002021-01-11T08:38:10.804-08:00Love Steven Wright. I'd also suggest looking ...Love Steven Wright. I'd also suggest looking up Mitch Hedberg (RIP :() A somewhat similar perspective on things.Sammy Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03171585735960658439noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-79734418525341909492021-01-11T08:18:01.873-08:002021-01-11T08:18:01.873-08:00"I dreamt that someone stole everything out o..."I dreamt that someone stole everything out of my apartment and replaced it with exact replicas."Buttermilk Skyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07430011403223875192noreply@blogger.com