Comedy Philosophy

From bestselling author Kenneth C. Davis comes a treasure trove of answers to questions about our world. Was there an Atlantis? What's the smallest country in the world? What's the difference between a jungle and a rain forest? Kenneth C. Davis, author of Don't Know Much About History, Don't...

Well, this was different. Janice seemed to think that I was her blind date. She had my dating profile from a matchmaking service I didn’t even know I was part of. I had never heard about this and she was sure I was the guy she was destined to meet. I did know the person who arranged this, and I trusted them completely, but this was a surprise. But not to Janice. Yeah... the girl and I had a mutual acquaintance. We met each other at his office. He told us to use his private study upstairs to get to know each other and that he’d talk to us in an hour to see how things were going. Things ...

In this essay, Norm Macdonald’s philosophy of life, death, and comedy is sketched out thematically from his original material, as well as from extant interviews with him and profiles of him over the years. Among his fellow comedians, Norm Macdonald was widely hailed as one of the funniest men alive, a DGAF Mark Twain whose unique combination of cadence, persona, material, and delivery left a cultural impact that greatly outsized the limited commercial success he experienced. To his fans, Norm’s everyman persona engendered a sense of relatability and connection. But there were aspects of...

What happens when we can’t joke about some of the most important stuff in life? In a 2019 study, 40% of people reported censoring themselves out of fear that voicing their views would alienate them from the people they care about most. Those people should probably not read this book in public...

Ted Lasso and Philosophy explores the hidden depths beneath the vibrant veneer of AppleTV's breakout, award-winning sitcom. Blending philosophical sophistication with winsome appreciation of this feel-good comedy, the collection features original essays canvassing the breadth of the series and carefully considering the ideas it presents.

Everyone’s favorite houseguest who never left, Leon Black (played by award-winning comedian JB Smoove on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm) drops his wisdom and good-bad advice for the masses. Learn the secrets Larry David has gleaned from the Falstaff of television. Live your best Leon. Bring the...

What happens when happiness meets universal mockery? In The Allegory of Tim Peterson, A.C. Zito presents a modern parable that blends philosophy, sociology, religion, comedy, gratitude, and love into a striking thought experiment. Tim Peterson is a man who radiates joy—grateful for his wife, his children, his work, and simply for being alive. Yet everywhere he goes, the world shouts in unison: “Screw Tim Peterson!” Even dogs bark the refrain. Rather than crumble, Tim transforms the ridicule into something extraordinary. First, he laughs—turning scorn into comedy. Then, he grows ...

A powerful, award-winning novel that follows the lives of two women as democracy starts to crumble in Hong Kong. One summer morning, college roommates, Ah Lei and Panda, wake up with very different reactions to the night before. They have been chased and tear-gassed in the streets of their city...

What's so special about Ted? Nobody knows...and certainly not Ted! This certainly isn't what Ted pictured as far as alien abductions! Well, he's not really in a position to complain, because his new home is a space ship crewed by over six thousand gorgeous females with bodies drawn from his own memories and desires... Ted isn't going anywhere anytime soon. With his trusted allies, the gorgeous blonde Gwen and the Earth-obsessed hottie, Hayden, Ted tries to unravel the breeding program he's been embroiled in, fight the mysterious and totally desirable Council, and maybe even find a decent ...

A hilarious and incisive exploration of the joys of reading from a teacher, bibliophile, and Thurber Prize Semifinalist We read to escape, to learn, to find love, to feel seen. We read to encounter new worlds, to discover new recipes, to find connection across difference, or simply to pass a...

What if the world’s not ending, it’s just having an allergic reaction to itself? Step into the wings of the Apollo Theatre with Reggie Porter, the most dangerous man in British comedy (according to Zara, his manager, and possibly MI5). With a biro, a Greggs leaflet, and six pages of forbidden insight, Reggie isn’t just doing a set, he’s detonating sacred cows one punchline at a time. From gay frogs to £6 cheddar, from God to oat milk, The Gig is not a short story, not a manifesto, and definitely not safe for anyone still clinging to certainty. It’s a stand-up sermon. A comic ...

With three straight #1 bestsellers and more than 4 million copies of his books in print, the most powerful traditional force in the American media now takes off his gloves in the ongoing struggle for America’s heart and soul. Bill O’Reilly is the very embodiment of the idea of a Culture...

"If the Coen brothers ever ventured beyond the United States for their films, they would find ample material in this novel." --The New York Times Book Review "Occasionally a book comes along so fresh, strange, and original that it seems peerless, utterly unprecedented. This is one of those books...

Learning how easy improv is can be the hard part. There are important lessons in life that can lead to better improv scenes. And there are important lessons in improv that can lead to a better life. By putting improv techniques under an electron microscope of reason, The Tao of Improv: A Philosophy of Creating a Scene can improve the way we function, understand, and interact - on stage and off. Excerpts from the Tao Te Ching are woven into an overall philosophy of scenic improv acting.

From the authors of the bestselling Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar . . ., a new book on the meaning of death (and life, too)...

Written in the early 16th century, The Prince remains one of the most influential and controversial works on leadership and political strategy ever created. In this groundbreaking classic, Niccolò Machiavelli strips away idealism and sentimentality to examine power as it truly operates in the real world.

When the Gods Came to Play What if God didn't want your worship? What if your prayers went straight to a celestial voicemail box that’s already full? For Beatrice, a woman meticulously dusting her antiques and her anxieties away, life is about preparing for the hereafter. She is devout, dutiful, and quietly waiting for a reward she believes is coming after she dies. But the gods have other plans. One sunny afternoon, her solemn routine is shattered by a storm of giggling butterflies, sent by a mischievous pantheon of deities named Joy, Passion, and Empathy. These are the Elohim, and ...

A penniless and out-of-work actor picks up a job working for Dr Blend, a university professor who is conducting a psychological experiment. How will Dr Blend's students react to someone zipped into on oversized bag, sitting at the back of the lecture hall over a series of autumn term lectures?...

इस संग्रह में शामिल कहानियाँ, हमारी दुनिया में नई शक्ति से फैलते अन्याय और असमानता के अंधेरे के साथ ही...

Comedian-philosophers from Socrates to Sartre have always prodded and provoked us, critiquing our most sacred institutions and urging us to examine ourselves in the process. In Saturday Night Live and Philosophy, a star-studded cast of philosophers takes a close look at the "deep thoughts" beneath the surface of NBC's award-winning late-night variety show and its hosts' zany antics.