April 10, 2006

Boys Will Be Boys...Will Be Men Who Write Comedy

Boys_will_be_boysI'm beginning to realize that growing up in a social pressure cooker of a household with a whole passel of smart-assed, obnoxious older brothers is the perfect preparation for being a comedy writer.* The roughly 75% male atmosphere (I've encountered so far) in the comedy world is a familiar setting to me.



When we brainstorm after collectively reading someone's first draft sketch, and try
to come up with suggestions for refinement and improvement, you can
count on one suggestion popping up frequently, and always from a boy:
"Can (this character) have sex with (that character)? I almost think
they have to."



It's amazing how abstract some prurient conversations can become in a writers' room. Things I would never want to chat about with a date are bandied about during sketch reviews without a blush. You see people scribbling notes on the feedback they're getting, and it's actually phrases like "Repeat vagina line," and "Introduce balls earlier."



*Dear brothers, I love you. But you know you are obnoxious smart-asses.And please don't leave me comments on this entry. Also, "balls."

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