[Ads-l] "A comic does funny things; a comedian does things funny"

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

There is good evidence that Buster Keaton employed a version of the
saying during an interview published in the "Los Angeles Times" in
1965.

Date: March 28, 1965
Newspaper: Los Angeles Times
Newspaper Location:
Section: Calendar
Article: Comedy Not What It Used to Be
Author: Don Alpert
Quote Page 4, Column 3
Database: Newspapers.com

[Begin excerpt]
"I go back to a very old saying," he said. "A comedian does funny
things. A good comedian does things funny. Here's your comparisons.
You haven't got a better laugh-getter than Bob Hope. But Hope is a
talker. When it comes to action he's lost.

"With the newcomers one of the naturals is Dick Van Dyke. He has that
knack of doing things funny.
[End excerpt]

Garson

On Mon, Jan 20, 2020 at 8:52 PM ADSGarson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Here is a link to the article on Barry Popik's website
>
> “A comic says funny things; a comedian says things funny”
> https://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/a_comic_says_funny_things
>
> On Mon, Jan 20, 2020 at 8:44 PM ADSGarson O'Toole
> <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Interesting question, Ben Y. Thanks for sharing excellent citations, Ben Z.
> >
> > I came across a slightly earlier citation in 1959. After I found this
> > I noticed that it had very recently been clipped by Barry Popik.
> >
> > An ex-vaudevillian named Robert Lemke was interviewed, and he (or the
> > interviewer) attributed the saying to Fred Allen.
> >
> > Date: August 9, 1959
> > Newspaper: The Sunday Press
> > Newspaper Location: Binghamton, New York
> > Article: Rock 'n Roll 'Musically Horrid' Says Ex-2-a-Dayer
> > (Continuation title: Rock)
> > Author: Sunday Press Bureau
> > Start Page C1, Quote Page C2, Column 1
> > Database: Newspapers.com
> > https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42680198/say_funny_things_vs_say_things_funny/
> >
> > [Begin excerpt]
> > Asked his views on humor, Mr. Lemke recalled words of the late Fred
> > Allen. "He said something like, "A good comedian can say things funny
> > and other guys just say funny things,"" Mr. Lemke said.
> > [End excerpt]
> >
> > Garson
> >
> > On Mon, Jan 20, 2020 at 3:53 PM Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at gmail.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > I'll get the ball rolling with these three variants credited to Ed Wynn in
> > > late 1960...
> > >
> > > ---
> > > LA Times, Nov. 1, 1960, p. III8 (syndicated column by Hedda Hopper)
> > > "A comic is a monologist who tells jokes but he isn't necessarily funny,"
> > > says Ed Wynn. "He's a man who doesn't do funny things but who does things
> > > funny. He doesn't open a funny door, he opens a door funny."
> > > https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42670027/ed_wynn_funny_things/
> > > ---
> > > Quad City Times (Iowa), Dec. 8, 1960, p. 36 (wire story from UPI)
> > > [Ed Wynn:] "Red [Skelton] is saying things funny and the others are saying
> > > funny things. There's a difference. Today, many comedians just stand up and
> > > do a monologue."
> > > https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42670146/ed_wynn_funny_things/
> > > ---
> > > Anderson (Indiana) Herald, Dec. 22, 1960, p. 21 (wire story from UPI)
> > > [Carol Burnett:] "I always remember what Ed Wynn once told me: 'Some people
> > > say funny things -- but a true comedian says things funny.'"
> > > https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42670216/ed_wynn_funny_things/
> > > ---
> > >
> > > On Mon, Jan 20, 2020 at 3:32 PM Ben Yagoda <byagoda at udel.edu> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Question for Garson: On Facebook, I just encountered a quote attributed to
> > > > Buster Keaton: “A comedian things does funny things. A good comedian does
> > > > things funny.” I was skeptical of the attribution (partly because of the
> > > > flat adverb) but when I Googled the quote I found lots of Keaton
> > > > attributions. But Wikipedia quoted a variant (citing Simpson’s Contemporary
> > > > Quotations, 1988) and attributed it to Ed Wynn: "A comic says funny things;
> > > > a comedian says things funny.”
> > > >
> > > > That jogged my memory that when I encountered the quote years ago the
> > > > contrast was indeed comic/comedian instead of comedian/good comedian.
> > > >
> > > > Anyway, Garson, I’d appreciate it if you sleuth out this quote.
> > > >
> > > > Ben
> > >
> > > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org