30 Game-Changing Moments in Comedy History

Pinpointing some highlights in comedy’s evolution
30 Game-Changing Moments in Comedy History
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Comedy as we know it today isn’t actually that old of an art form. You youngins are probably thinking, “Spoken like a true old fogey,” but seriously, it’s really come a long way in not much time.

Not that we have to prove ourselves to any naysaying little punks, so we’ll just leave these evolutionary moments in comedy history here and hope they stroll away having learned a thing or two. 

Boy, these imaginary little rascals really get us fired up! 

The First Live Studio Audience

The First Live Studio Audience SHARP I Love Lucy beat All In The Family to the punch by 20 years. CRACKED.COM

The First SNL Movie

The first SNL sketch to be turned into a feature film: 1980 CRACKED.COM So far, they've squeezed 11 feature-length films out of 4-minute live sketches. The first of the bunch was The Blues Brothers.

The First Disney Fart

30 Game-Changing Moments in Comedy History

YouTube

CRACKED.COM You Tube Ever wondered what was first comment ever posted on YouTube? Highlighted comment Marco Cassé 12 years ago LOL!!!!!!! REPLY 1.5K The honor belongs to a user named Marco Cassé. The comment was posted on a silly stop-motion video entitled 'Good Times!!!'.

Crusader Rabbit

The First Cartoon CRUSADER RABBIT 1950's Crusader Rabbit was the first animation designed for television. One producer would later create The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. CRACKED.COM

M*A*S*H

The First Male Nudity Radar went whole-hog on a 1973 episode of M*A*S*H, when he lost his towel while evading a sniper. CRACKED.COM

Johnny Carson vs. Joan Rivers

Johnny Carson and Joan Rivers. With appearances on The Tonight Show in the '60s, Carson made Rivers a household name. When she got her own late night show in 1986, he never spoke to her again. Even Leno upheld her Tonight Show ban during his tenure, but Fallon had her on in 2014. CRACKED

The Late Night Wars

jay dave LENO LETTERMAN CRACKED.COM It's the comedy feud that got its own TV movie, The Late Shift. It's no secret that Johnny Carson preferred Letterman to take over his Tonight Show, but Leno ended up with the gig. Carson never guested with Jay, but showed up on Letterman to ask How pissed off are you?

Johnny Carson

Recurring at Late Night Johnny Carson's Carnac the Magnificent On August 5, 1981, Tonight Show host Johnny Carson debuted his iconic segment, Carnac the Magnificent. The hat and cape sell the mystical powers, and the jokes are legendary. CRACKED

Lonely Island

CRACKED THE LONELY ISLAND'S LETTUCE SKETCH HAD A $20 BUDGET. The guys didn't even use SNL equipment-they just borrowed a camcorder from Bill Hader's wife.

Adam McKay

GRACKED ADAM MCKAY'S DIGITAL SHORTS. INS Long before directing huge Hollywood movies like The Big Short and Don't Look Up, his very first director credits are the very first Digital Shorts for SNL in 2000 and 2001. Не called them his training ground for directing.

Arrested for a Fart Song

Comedians were arrested for a fart song Dallas police arrested comedy team Bowley & Wilson on stage in 1981, after a woman complained that her 16-year- old daughter was exposed to vulgarity. Comedy historian Kliph Nesteroff said, They were facing a year in prison for doing 'The Fart Song.'''' VULGARITY HISTORY CRACKED

George Carlin

A free speech victory for VULGARITY George Carlin HISTORY and comedy! In 1972, he was arrested in Milwaukee for his Seven Words bit, but Judge Raymond Е. Gieringer dismissed the case and upheld Carlin's right to free speech. Because of this (and other cases), police started giving up on enforcing obscenity laws. CRACKED

Lenny Bruce

CRACKED VULGARITY HISTORY Lenny Bruce becomes a martyr for future comedians Bruce was arrested several times for obscenity and blacklisted by night clubs across America. Не fought obscenity laws until his death in 1966, and is regarded as the patron saint of stand up comedy and a comedian's right to free speech.

Marty Wayne

First comedian to be arrested for obscenity In 1946, Marty Wayne was arrested in Philadelphia for an obscene show VULGARITY including filthy HISTORY jokes at two local nightclubs. The venues were fined $25.13 each, and Wayne spent six months in prison. CRACKED

The Most Curse Words in a Movie

CRACKED V RNE VULGARITY HISTORY The most curse words in a movie The honor usually goes to The Wolf of Wall Street because of its popularity in the U.S. But its 715 curse words (569 F- bombs) is overshadowed by 935 F-bombs in the 2014 Canadian film Swearnet.

The First Warning Label

CRACKED VULGARITY HISTORY The first TV show with a warning label In 1975, because of controversial characters like prostitutes, illegal immigrants, and one of the first gay couples on TV, the Norman Lear show Hot I Baltimore was the first TV show to be slapped with a warning label before each episode.

Seinfeld

SEINFELD CRACKED.COM Wanting to end it before any ofthe funny was compromised, Seinfeld called it quits after 9 seasons on May 14, 1998. After almost being cancelled early on, it became the #1 show by the 1994-95 season, averaging just over 30 million viewers per episode. It rose back to #1 in season 9, and the finale brought in a whopping 76.3 million viewers.

Ellen

The first lesbian main character 1997 CRACKED.COM When Ellen Morgan accidentally yelled Susan, I'm gay! into a microphone, Ellen became the first show to feature an out and proud lesbian as a protagonist.

The First Tweet

THE FIRST EVER TWEET WAS SENT OUT ON 21 MARCH 2006. jack Follow @jack just setting up my twttr 12:50 PM - 21 Mar 2006 106,353 Retweets 80,147 Likes 3.1K 106K 80K This historic and thought- provoking tweet was sent out by Twitter's co-founder Jack Dorsey. CRACKED COM

Paul Shaffer

The first US f-bomb 1980 CRACKED.COM Paul Shaffer accidentaly said f*ing when he meant flogging on an episode of SNL. Не thought he was ruined; instead, Lorne Michaels told him You broke down the last barrier.

Jerry Lewis

GRACKED.COM JERRY LEWIS was a filmmaking innovator. While making his first movie as a director, Lewis had the idea of mounting a video camera next to the film camera, allowing him to review takes instantly. This technique is still widely used.

Charlie Chaplin

Historical Firsts in The World of Stunts Charlie Chaplin 1914 Beginning in 1914, Chaplin became known as one of Hollywood's first stars, and had the second- ever million dollar contract. As a vaudevillian and slapstick comic, he did all of his own stunts. CRACKED

Roseanne

30 Game-Changing Moments in Comedy History

Happy Days

Happy Days tackled the issue of racial segregation in 1974. In The Best Man, the Cunninghams offer their home for the wedding of Howard's Army buddy Fred, to the consternation of their neighbors. The episode aired in 1974, when civil unrest was rampant. CRACKED.COM

The First On-Screen Text

30 Game-Changing Moments in Comedy History

The First Post-Credits Scene

The first post-credits footage slapped onto our screens was in a James Bond spoof in 1966. The Silencers was the first movie to show a scene after the end credits, with Dean Martin's character teasing the next film installment. It was a riff on how the Bond movies would display text cards of upcoming movies after the credits. CRACKED.COM

Gilda Radner

GILDA RADNER was the very first hire for Saturday Night Live. The actress was the first to be cast in SNL in 1975. She stayed for five years. GRACKED GOM

Diahann Carroll

DIAHANN CARROLL was the first Black actress to be cast in a role other than a servant in 1968. She was also the first Black actress to get her own TV show. CRACKED.COM

Jim Carrey

JIM CARREY ACE VENTURA was the first actor to have three films go straight to number one at the Box Office in the same year. In 1994, The Mask, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, and Dumb and Dumber all made number one. CRACKED.COM

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