Best Comedian Of All Time

[CO Liberal]

Based on another thread.

[caledesi]

1. Robin Williams

[MurryMom]

25. Here's Johnnny!

Johnny Carson was the best of all time, for his ability to go out on the Tonight Show night after night after night, with original and timely jokes every time. The only ones who even came close to Johnny's talent were Steve Allen and Groucho Marx?

Bob Hope? Are you kidding? Wasn't he a Bush-loving fascist?

[BrotherBuzz]

33. Remember who the last guests on Johnny's show were?

Johnny Carson could have had the Bob Hopes et al, but he chose Robin Williams and Bette Midler. I think that speaks volumes of his opinion of who was great. Johnny thought it was Robin Williams and I do too!

[leftofthedial]

39. yup, Robin Williams

Funniest man in modern history.

[bookworm65t]

41. Another endorsement here

the funniest man ever. Abbott and Costello, Burns and Allen, and Carol Burnett are wonderful, but Robin WIlliams is the best

[Jim Sagle]

2. Steve Allen. How did you overlook him?

[CO Liberal]

7. Only Ten Spaces On the Poll Form

That's why I asked people to put their "other" choices in a reply.

But I agree that Steverino was one of the great ones. And speaking of Great Ones......

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

58. steve allen

he was quick with the ad libs. had a great laugh. and probably the most intellectual of them all.

edit: he wrote some great songs, too.

[SOteric]

3. Rowan Atkinson and maybe Eddie Izzard

Or were we only thinking of American Commedians...?

[RandomKoolzip]

4. Lenny Bruce, Bill Hicks, Andy Kaufman, The Firesign Theatre.

Richard Pryor, etc

[Rainydaze]

32. Thanks for hitting Lenny Bruce, Bill Hicks, Andy Kaufman, and the Firesign

Add that to Eddie Izzard and you would have a lineup of laughing boys who might wake up the masses. Sometimes humor is the best weapon against the Freep.

Freedom fries, Freedom toast, Freedom tickler?

[peekaloo]

57. Great choices

I'll add the always overlooked Bob and Ray AND Albert Brooks!

[T Roosevelt]

5. Was going to post Robin Williams

but then I remembered that Jonathan Winters beget Robin (comedically).

[jenk]

6. Jerry Seinfeld

how could you have some nobody like Jack Benny and leave off Seinfeld!?!?!

[CO Liberal]

11. I'm Assuming You're Younger Than I Am

Jack Benny was a giant in radio, TV and the movies from the '30s until his death in 1974. And he was a fellow Lithuanian (real name - Benny Kubelsky).

[Gringo]

15. I'm only 35, and I've seen and heard enough Benny reruns to know

He was much funnier than Seinfeld. Rochester!

I put Richard Pryor - and I'd put Gleason ahead of him, but what about the female comedy greats? Didn't Joan Rivers, Margaret Cho, Elayne Boosler, Roseanne Barr, Ellen DeGeneres, any of them merit placement in your poll? Or are you using the strict "male" definition of comedian? If so, somebody needs to do a "best comedienne" poll.

[tridim]

8. They're all good

except for Bob Hope. Sorry, but his only skill was reading cue cards, poorly.

I'll vote for 'other' and specify Jon Stewart as the best of all time. I know he's young, but he's got the gift for sure.

Some others that should be on the list.

Robin Williams
David Letterman
Johnny Carson
Jerry Lewis

[a_random_joel]

9. GEORGE CARLIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Robin Williams is right up there...

[Journeyman]

10. Lenny Bruce. . .

even though, as he commented once during a show towards the end of his life:

"I'm sorry I wasn't funny. I'm not a comedian. I'm just Lenny Bruce."

[1monster]

12. Tim Conway.

He and Anne Richards are the only two people who have ever been able to make me laugh till I could barely breathe... Remember the Siamese Elephants?

[shirlden]

13. Hey Fellows !! Is this poll gender bended?

May I respectfully submit a certain Miss Lucy Ball and how about the ever lovable Carol Burnet

I crack up laughing just typing their names.


:party:

[CO Liberal]

31. I Started a Separate Poll for Comediennes

Look for it.

[DuctapeFatwa]

14. Andy Kaufmann, Chris Farley, Lucille Ball, Charlie Chaplin

Bea Lillie, Red Skelton, Eugene Levy, Richard Pryor, Cheech Marin, Gilda Radner - impossible to pick one.

[SOteric]

16. You left off Uncle Miltie, too. Here's a thought.

Maybe the poll should take 10 Comedians from various 10 different eras. Then take the winners of each era and run them in a final poll to determine the most popularly held as 'best.'

Or is that too ambitious...?

[Morning Dew]

17. .

I always got a kick out of Steven Wright... picking a favorite is hard, though.

[SOteric]

18. Where are Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett...?

[CO Liberal]

19. A I Said, Only Ten Spaces

Maybe I'll start a poll for comediennes......

[Kat45]

20. George Carlin.

No contest.

[kurtyboy]

21. Mort Sahl, Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor,

Lucille Ball, Mae West, Carol Burnett, Chris Rock, WC Fields, Will Rogers....

[usual_suspect]

22. Bob Newhart

Mike Nichols and Elain May,Johnathan Winters..............

[foxy]

23. I also enjoyed Robin Williams the most

[buff2]

24. Without a doubt......

Rodney Dangerfield.He is one of the best.

[Forkboy]

26. Bill Hicks or Eddie Izzard

[MRDU]

27. Rodney Dangerfield,

Sam Kinison, OH OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH!, Redd Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Loved Gracie Allen, but the BEST? THE GREAT ONE! "AND AWAAAY WE GO!"

[catpower2000]

28. Chris Rock nt

[leftist_rebel1569]

30. I agree

[Gigi]

34. OH YES!

So far Chris Rock has my vote.

[morstyranni]

56. I can't stand chris rock

Not because his jokes suck, I think his jokes are hilarious, it is because he hasn't written a new one in about 10 years. He even works his old-ass jokes into his movies. I saw him in Boston in either 96 or 97 and then he had that HBO special in what, 2000? The jokes where exactly the same.

[proud patriot]

29. I voted other ...Red Skeleton

I may only be 34 years old ..No one can hold a candle to Red..

[jagguy]

60. there can be no doubt, its Red Skelton

.

[lpbk2713]

35. What? No one said anything about FLIP WILSON??

....he could leave me in tears. I just had to use my 100th post on this one!!

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

36. no charlie chaplin or buster keaton?

what is this bullshit?




"Wars, conflict, it's all business. One murder makes a villain. Millions a hero. Numbers sanctify."

--Charlie Chaplin

[dragonquest8]

37. Jay Leno

He is by far the funniest man ever

[Norbert]

38. Voted for other such as:

[Richardo]

40. Favorite Stan and Ollie bit:

<phone rings; Stan answers; listens>

Stan: It certainly is....

<hangs up; calmly goes about his business>

Ollie: (exasperated) Well, what was THAT all about?

Stan: Well, they said it was long distance from Atlanta...

[Nailzberg]

42. Bill Hicks didn't make the ballot???

That's just disgraceful.

[Jack The Tab]

43. My thoughts exactly...

Buddy Hackett? puhleaze.

Bill was the most brilliant stand-up comic to grace the stage.

[Mad_Eye]

44. LEWIS BLACK!

The generation before me can have George Carlin, I believe that that Lewis Black is the greatest comedian of my generation.

An outtake from his album "The End Of The Universe" (from a secret track of screw ups and hecklers):

Lewis Black: ....And it's like baseball when you're a kid and you got a kid that can't catch and there's a guy behing him. AND THAT'S DICK CHANEY! AND ABOUT EVERY THIRD BALL IS GOING OVER BUSH'S HEAD--
Audience member: What are you doing for your country?
LB: What?
AM: What are you doing for your country?

(pause)

LB: This.

(applause)

LB: That's the dumbest thing that anyone has ever asked me. You know where that takes me, sir? That takes me back to college. And you know what happens then? I have acid flashbacks. I will tell you this; I spent the last eight years kicking Clinton's ass. And the deal is; I don't tolerate authority! And I certainly don't tolerate authority that's full of shit. And I don't tolerate being told.... I'm not doing shit for shit. Fuck you!

(roaring applause)

[JohnKleeb]

45. Man I love his attiude its funny

[Darth_Ole]

47. I'll have to say Robin Williams is the funniest.

Once you see his Inside the Actor's Studio episode, you will be convinced.

But there are others who rival him.

George Carlin comes to mind. I also enjoy a lot of the original SNL cast members. Lewis Black is terrific. I never miss his Back in Black segment on the Daily Show.

[mitchum]

46. Lenny Bruce...

as the song says:
"Jesus Christ, Lenny Bruce
Two no-bullshit smart-mouth Jews"

No one comes close

[CMT]

48. Jerry Lewis

Personally he has a monumental ego but his films of the early 60's were some of the most influential of all time: "The Bellboy", "The Ladies' Man", "The Errand Boy" (with the great Chairman of the Board routine), "The Nutty Professor", "The Patsy", and "The Family Jewels".
These are his self written and directed films from 1960-1965 when he dominated the US box office.

His films in collaboration with Frank Tashlin also include some classics: "The Geisha Boy", "Rock-a-bye Baby", "Cinderfella", "It's Only Money", "Who's Minding the Store?" (with the wonderful typewriter scene), and "The Disorderly Orderly".

Not to be forgotten were a few chestnuts from his crazy days with Dean Martin specifically "Sailor Beware", "Living It Up", and "Artists and Models".

In his book on Lewis, "The King of Comedy" author Shawn Levy argues with some persausion that Lewis was the most influential comedian of the second half of the twentieth century and his influence was evident in the work of such comedians as: Steve Martin, Robin Williams, Adam Sandler, Jim Carrey--among others.

[Ein]

49. Carlin or Robin Williams

Carlin is just the man, very liberal from what I gather (despite his lengthy skits on capital punishment), and Williams is funny as hell onstage.

[lazarus]

50. David Cross

Maybe not of all time, but currently he's the best.

All time? Bill Hicks.

[the_sam]

51. Lenny Bruce, George Carlin, Bill Hicks

Duh!

[Benevolent_Rabbit]

52. our own Forrest Gump

,

[Alexander]

53. Graham Chapman!

C'mon, he MADE Monty Python the show that it was.

[Shanty Oilish]

54. Laurel or Hardy

Those sons of the desert.

[VOX]

55. Laurel & Hardy = ART; Abbott & Costello = best timing...

L&H just transcend everything -- they exist in their own world. From their beautifully orchestrated orgies of destruction ("Big Business," "The Music Box", etc.), to their incredible bits of business in nearly every film they did for Hal Roach Studios, L&H are far and away the greatest -- ever.

While Abbott and Costello's films generally aren't as strong, there are many memorable routines ("The Susquehanna Hat Company" bit, and of course, the classic "Who's On First?") and numerous instances of perfect timing.

Can't forget the great W.C. Fields. For sheer comic surrealism, he has no equal.

[chenGOD]

59. I voted other.

I dunno who to choose: Bill Hicks or Chris Morris.

On the one hand, Bill Hicks: great stand-up and non-tolerance of stupidity in general.

On the other hand, Chris Morris: Incredible TV satire and non-tolerance of specific stupidity.

[Astarho]

61. Buster Keaton

I loved "The General" and "The Cameraman"

[The Lone Liberal]

62. I will brook no contradiction on this; Richard Pryor

So the question is decided,
----------------please close this thread,

-------------------------------------------I said close this thread, Do I need call the authorities?

[Blue-Jay]

63. I voted for Pryor

Even though it's like voting for the best guitar player in history. There are too many to name, but I'll still name a few and pretend like you give a rat's ass what I think.

Pryor: Explored the funny side of race relations before it was "cool" to do so. A true innovator.

Lenny Bruce: Made a career out of pissing people off, while simultaneously making us laugh.

George Carlin: A shame that he was left out of the poll. He has staying power and ,simply, makes me laugh until I want to piss my pants.

Bob Saget: Makes me want to fly into a murderous rage at the vapid stupidity of his "comedy". Not worth a mention, except for my utter disdain of his routine. I'd like to stab him in the eye with a salad fork. Chilled, of course.

Bill Hicks: DUers should know his name. If not, look into him. Hysterical.

Chris Rock: His "Bigger & Blacker" routine catapulted him (in my opinion) into the ranks of the greatest. I can't watch that concert enough. Cracks me up every time, without fail.

Eddie Izzard: If you haven't seen his 1999 HBO special "Dress To Kill", you're missing the boat. Hilarious, intelligent comedy. You owe it to yourself to see the video. I believe it's available on KaZaA. Go get it.

Obvious props to Kids In The Hall, Monty Python, & The Upright Citizens Brigade as well. Sketch comedy at it's finest.

[Bake]

64. Soooo many on the list can't hold a candle to Richard

RICHARD PRYOR.

Funniest man to ever walk the planet. Bar none.

(Man, am I buzzed or what! Cant' typefor shit!)

Bake

65. Bill Hicks

that is all

[Leftist78]

66. George Carlin

His bits on religion are the greatest.

[DS1]

67. Bill Motha-fuckin Hicks!

:wtf: is wrong with you people?

His material done 10 years ago is STILL just as relevant!