educating-criticsSince my patent-pending Comedy Evaluator Pro software was launched in 2003, I have had a number of critics over the years verbalize their disdain about my software (some rather caustically I might add) and comment on how measuring audience response (i.e. laughter generation ability) is not a valid or acceptable means of evaluating a comedian.

I have to say that I find those sorts of comments completely laughable and I rate them highly among the most ridiculous conspiracy theories.

But I also know that once the stand-up comedy documentary I Am Comic is finally released for public consumption, the number of critics with the same sorts of nescient comments will increase dramatically.

So, instead of merely recommending that these critics look into getting a belly button window installed so that they can see out, I have decided instead to provide a bit of education for these folks in this blog post about my software — specifically, what it can do and what it can’t do.

That way, they can at least have some foundational information in order to attempt to develop a credible argument about my software that doesn’t waste my time.

Who Are The Comedy Evaluator Pro Critics Anyway?

The critics of Comedy Evaluator Pro are stand-up comedians who are directly threatened by the notion that the technology now exists to objectively quantify just how funny (or unfunny) a comedian is or is not when performing in front of a live audience.

And God forbid that there should be an objective mechanism or process that allows one comedian to be compared with another based directly on the audible and measurable laughter RESULTS a comedian can command in front of a live audience.

As I have mentioned before, my software does not measure telepathic audience laughter or extensive smiling, which I can only assume make up a great deal of the critics laughter generation capabilities as a stand-up comedians.

The real problem that critics of my software face is to attempt to “sell” the notion that audience response or the ability to generate large and measurable laughter, cheering or applause (PAR—Positive Audience Response) on a minute-by-minute basis really doesn’t account for much as far as being a “funny” or noteworthy stand-up comedian goes.

It’s kind of like trying to promote the notion that extraterrestrial intervention was responsible for the sinking of the Titanic.

What The Critics Have To Say

According to the critics, a stand-up comedian’s ability to generate laughter when standing before an audience is not as important as…

Whoops! Oddly enough, the critics can never seem to clearly identify those factors that are more important or equally important as the ability to generate laughter from an audience.

Interesting, huh? Well, let me help those critics out a bit since they seem to be a bit slow on the draw…

There are other subjective factors that can certainly be evaluated, examined or reviewed when it comes to stand-up comedians. One of these factors is nature of the content they deliver (adult, blue, “edgy”, clean, topic based, musical involvement, use of props, etc.).

Other factors could include a stand-up comedian’s confidence, showmanship, energy, level of animation, appearance and presence – most of which can directly impact a comedian’s laughter generation ability (RESULTS).

But I submit to you that NONE of these subjective factors are even worthy of review or evaluation UNLESS a stand-up comedian can generate a certain level laughter — specifically a “headliner” level of laughter.

However, there are exceptions to every rule…

What Comedy Evaluator Pro DOES NOT Do

I will be the first to admit that a comedian DOES NOT have to be that funny to rack up a slew of TV credits, TV commercial spots or movie roles. I know this first hand because I have had plenty of these folks open for ME when I was headlining major 600-1500 seat venues in Southern California without a single TV credit.

If I may, I will help the critics out on this issue. Please allow me to refer you to Betsy Borns’ outstanding reference on stand-up comedy during the 80’s called Comic Lives.

Look for the section on Paul Rodriquez and how he was selected for a starring role in the TV sitcom Chico and the Man while he was a still fledgling comedian at the Comedy Store in Hollywood (in the lower one third of the comedians there at the time as described by Borns, which means he was awful as a stand-up comedian then).

Well, Comedy Evaluator Pro doesn’t measure a comedian’s suitability for TV roles, commercials or movie appearances — just like it won’t measure telepathic audience laughter or extensive smiling episodes exhibited by an audience. Actually, the software objectively identifies those sorts of activities as BOMBING or SUCKING (as described in the present day comedian vernacular).

IMPORTANT NOTE: There has never been a single best selling stand-up comedian CD or DVD that showcases a popular stand-up comedian bombing on stage in the history of modern stand-up comedy.

The software is a tool designed to help objectively measure the frequency and duration of laughter a stand-up comedian can generate in front of a LIVE audience on a minute-by-minute basis and calculate a ratio of “laugh time” vs. “talk time” (PAR Score) which is DIRECTLY representative of just how funny a stand-up comedian truly is in front of an audience.

As a matter of fact, the software was developed primarily as a valuable self-evaluation tool to help comedians identify which minutes of their stand-up comedy acts need improvement (i.e. minutes that are filled with telepathic audience laughter or extensive smiling episodes instead of the audible, “laugh out loud” laughter that the funniest comedians depend on to judge their comedy material).

Here’s the deal…

Unless these “critics” are able to bend the rules of time measurement and basic 6th grade math, their criticism has absolutely no weight whatsoever — no matter how popular, famous or outspoken the critics of my software may be.

The Bottom Line

So, let me ask you this:

What are the real indicators of a stand-up comedian’s true comedic ability in front of an audience?

There is ONE and only ONE primary indicator of a stand-up comedian’s true skill and ability in front of a live audience and that involves the frequency and duration of laughter, cheering and/or generated during a performance.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Professionals who are in the business of hiring stand-up comedians have known what “headliner” laugh levels are, long before my process and associated software were ever developed.

As a matter of fact, I’m going to go way out on a limb and say that…

It is a stand-up comedian’s ability to generate high levels of laughter, cheering and/or applause virtually every minute they perform that gets them recognized as candidates for TV roles, writer positions, commercials and movie roles the VAST majority of the time.

And if my reality TV show concept ever gets looked at which provides a process for the crowning of “world champion” comedians in a number of categories based of their actual ability to generate laughs in front of a LIVE audiences (as evidenced by my software)…

Trust me — there will be some comedians with seriously shattered egos when all is said and done.

Cheers,
Steve Roye
The Professor of Funny for Money

About the Author/Founder of the SCP Blog


Steve Roye is the author of the Killer Stand-up Comedy System and is a globally recognized expert in the field of stand-up comedy material development and presentation strategies -- for entertainers as well as speaking professionals.

Please check out the Featured Articles page for direct links to articles on this blog for pro comedians, comedy entertainers, and speaking professionals.

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