Does anyone remember laughter?

[BCLG100]

I read something once that said people dont laugh out loud when theyre alone, only when around other people. Its true, at most when watching something funny alone, I might make a sort of quick barking sound.

Eran, a word of advice: stick with applause. j/k

I do laugh out loud when im at home at a few things but yes its true normally laugh more with other people around.

 

[The Last Conformist]

Exactly. In chimp language, the same exact sound means a 'Did you see that hyena bite Ugs ass? I thought I was gonna die!'

Interestingly, in Chimp a smile is a sign of submission.

 

[Bozo Erectus]

Does it really? I was under the impression it signalled agression, because the teeth are displayed.

 

[The Last Conformist]

Chimp smiles, IIRC are done with the lips more-or-less closed. Showing off the canines is indeed a threatening behaviour.

 

[Narz]

I'm a belly-laugher. I mean, I belt it out. Sometimes my eyes cringe and I have trouble breathing. There has even been a time or two where I shuddered with tears in my eyes, laughing so hard.

In fact, those scenes that made me laugh so hard still get me to chuckle when I think about it.

Laughing is fun. It's more fun when you let it be fun.

And it may aid in longevity.

 

[Narz]

About comedians, most just aren't funny. I find that everyday antics of individuals more amusing than any script.

 

[.Shane.]

This thread needs less Eran.

But, the thread remains the same.

It has fallen from the grace of god and lies on the sick bed of cuchulainn (what is the sick bed of cuchulainn, anyway?).

 

[Bozo Erectus]

(Polite applause)

 

[Blazer6]

I prefer the most ridiculous laughter or applause over hearing some machine determine what is funny.
I laugh at explosions more often than television humor.

 

[7ronin]

Pretty freaky, huh? I mean, that would give small children nightmares.

The horror, the horror.

 

[bed_head7]

I read something once that said people dont laugh out loud when theyre alone, only when around other people.

I laugh at stuff alone if it is particularly funny. Often times, it just seems that most things are funnier if you are sharing the moment with someone. Even if it is something on TV, sometimes I laugh, then look over at the person I am with and laugh some more. It is contagious, after all.

 

[nonconformist]

Did anyone find a bustle in their hedgerows?

 

[EolTheDarkElf]

Did anyone find a bustle in their hedgerows?

Not to derail this thread further, but what does that mean?


Ontopic, I think applause substitues laughter only in shows with hosts in clolrfull suits, that aren't really funny... Watching anything that is really funny, like an old style cabaret with good comedians, with a live audience I see them burst into laughter first, and only later applaud to show appreciation for the joke... But I never gave it much thought TBH...

 

[Chukchi Husky]

People who never smile are scary

I'm scary?

 

[Lotus49]

Laughter isn't as cheap as it used to be. If you want me to laugh, you'd better earn it. No free laughs. I don't just laugh because you want me to.

It's just another part of the cost of living / consumer price index / inflation worries -issue. Basically, you have to do more, for the same amount of laughs you would have gotten once upon a time. Blame globalization. It's just more competitive nowadays. No more easy laughs. Most have to settle for golf-claps, in this era.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Now that would be funny! People at home politely applauding the TV

I read something once that said people dont laugh out loud when theyre alone, only when around other people.

What I don't get is the way so many people on the 'Net emphasize that something has made them laugh out loud.

How else is a person supposed to laugh?

I am nearly always alone when I watch TV (a cat might be in the room with me). If something funny happens, I laugh. Out loud. It might rate a chuckle, a giggle, or it might be something so incredibly funny that I laugh until I cry, have trouble breathing, and actually hurt from laughing so hard. Why should I not fully enjoy -- and express my enjoyment -- of humor just because I am not in the same room with another human?

I also clap when something is on TV that I think rates applause. It might be a joke (in which case I am also laughing), or a musical performance, or a particularly clever answer to a question (ie. in interviews, or on Jeopardy!).

Expressing humor is healthy for us. So is expressing enjoyment. So what if your mental image of me sitting alone in my TV room, laughing (out loud) and clapping in appreciation of what's going on makes you think I'm strange? The fact is that I'm enjoying myself, and not too self-conscious to express that.

In my opinion, laugh tracks and the persistence of LOL, LOL, LOL (ad nauseam) is making people forget how to genuinely and openly laugh for themselves.

Oh, and I also laugh if I read something funny in a book, newspaper, or online. Out loud. And unashamedly.

 

[mrtn]

...I also clap when something is on TV that I think rates applause. ...

You give applause to your TV?

That's another pet peeve, people who clap at a film theatre; it's not as if Ian McKellen is there and can hear you...

 

[Scratcher]

Now I like a good laugh, I can laugh till the tears are running down my face, I mean when the levee breaks I can be literally rolling on the floor. But to clap a joke just leaves me dazed and confused.

Originally Posted by Bozo Erectus

Exactly. In chimp language, the same exact sound means a 'Did you see that hyena bite Ugs ass? I thought I was gonna die!'

@ Bozo. If it was exactly the same sound wouldn't that lead to a communication breakdown? And do you really think that chimps laugh at a good joke? Now, I haven't studied chimps, but my black dog will roll on the floor, admittedly not laughing or clapping. Maybe I haven't trained him well, but that would be nobody's fault but mine.

 

[Whomp]

I say ramble On, And now's the time, the time is now, to laugh along. No clapping unless it's at a comedy club.

 

[ironduck]

I'm scary?

I haven't met you. But if I'm around someone and they never smile it makes me somewhat uncomfortable because it seems that they are not comfortable or possibly in a bad mood. Smiling is a rather important aspect of communication in my world..