Funny Stuff
A hundred years of great writing, curated for The New Yorker’s centenary.
Joan Rivers Gives a Happiness Seminar
Preaching to a crowd of acolytes at a New York Crowne Plaza hotel, the tough-as-nails comedian offers a self-help message: “You’re victors, not victims!”
Who’s the Funniest Rabbi on the Upper West Side?
In a basement standup club, religious leaders compete, and also worry: Are their parking places orthodox?
Robin Williams Works Out
Telling jokes in night clubs, the comedian says, “peels away all pretension. It’s like running in an open field.”
Lily Tomlin at the Circus
At The Bitter End and under the big top, Lily Tomlin’s shape-shifting comedy meets childhood memories, class riffs, and clowns.
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Buster Keaton Visits the “Today” Show
At sixty-eight, the comedian reflects on his vaudeville beginnings and the best kind of pie for throwing: double crust, raw filling, with whipped cream on top.
Press Agents I Have Known
There is the fellow who has been a circus press agent and can’t forget his early training. No weather is too bad for him to lead you out to Central Park to be photographed with the animals.
You Were Perfectly Fine
“The pale young man eased himself carefully into the low chair, and rolled his head to the side, so that the cool chintz comforted his cheek and temple.”