Humor; The Lost Art

                                                                     

Each night, at 10PM, I turn to one of my retro channels and watch re-runs of Johnny Carson and his Tonight Show.  I can always tell the year the show was recorded simply by listening to Johnny's opening monologue.  Those were things of beauty.  Johnny would mix in general humor with side swipes at both political parties.   It was not until many years later that I learned ol' John was a social liberal.  (Whew!)

When asked why he didn't talk about his personal politics Carson said he'd be a fool to offend half of his audience.  Wise advice.

Contrast that with our current late night hosts.  First of all you can scrap the humor.  There is none.  Those shows are packed to the gills with an hour of liberal snark, most always to the detriment of President Trump.  And lest they offend their liberal ilk, they never attack a political liberal.  Wouldn't be "prudent", as George H.W.  used to say.

I find these later talk shows just soul deadening.  If there is even an attempt at humor it is usually aimed at the latest round of societal targets.........those folks who have already been beaten up unmercifully by social media.  That form of "ganging up" just shows how cowardly the "two Jimmies" and their fellows are.  They dare not call out anyone who has not yet been assigned a crown of thorns.

So I watch Johnny.  And a lot of dead celebrities.  Sometimes I gasp as Johnny makes a joke about gays, or cross dressers, or loose ladies.  Sometimes I watch as Carson jokes about cleavage, or general sexiness.

Carson did the Tonight Show for 30 years.  Did it well.  Made us laugh back when little offended us....when we had our sense of humor intact.

Today we are an easily offended, serious-minded nation where nearly every attempt at humor must be narrowly defined.

Johnny wouldn't survive a month in this barren desert of political correctness.

Sad.  Damned Sad.