Review: Rodney Dangerfield
NEW YORK TO NOTORIETY. Living his early life in the twenties and thirties, Rodney Dangerfield was born in Long Island New York where he would put on stand-up performances and begin his career as a comedian. He has since gone on to star in multiple films and stand-up specials, creating a fun and original arsenal of comedic material. “My physiatrist told me I was crazy and I said I wanted a second opinion. He said okay you’re ugly too,” Dangerfield said.
Although his thick New Yorkish accent and rapid-fire speech might leave some audience confused and disconnected from the jokes themselves, Rodney Dangerfield compensates for the problem by not extending his stories or jokes like every other comedian.
Dangerfield’s stand-up is very quick and very constant. While it might take around 15 to 30 seconds for the normal comedian to filter from joke to joke, Dangerfield can generate a joke, state the punch-line, and then move on to the next joke in a matter of seconds.
But, to avoid repetitiveness or something getting lost in translation, he always leaves a few seconds for the audience to laugh and regroup themselves before he moves on to the next joke.
The jokes themselves do not take much build-up either, it is what I would describe as playground humor. It is not the type of comedy where you first have to build up a backstory, find moments within the story that could serve a comedic purpose, and then somehow transition into the next subject.
It is more like telling someone a knock-knock joke. The main goal is to get to the punch-line as fast and easy as possible.
Dangerfield keeps his comedic material very simple and goofy, not really diving into what were current world epidemics or conflicts but rather about his relationship with his wife or how he is always losing his keys.
Oftentimes, he will use himself as the object of a joke, instead of focusing on a new view or perspective. This will leave his shows feeling a bit monotonous in comparison to someone like Dave Chapelle who will often time poke at multiple celebrities and topics.
For specials, I would suggest “Rappin Rodney” or “No Respect,” both of them being on youtube as of January 2019. For movies, I highly suggest watching “Caddyshack,” not just for Dangerfield’s stellar performance, but for the amazing cast, plot, jokes, and innuendos.
Overall though, Dangerfield is a gem in America’s comedy history for being so different and confident about it.
