This is the first anthology that examines the TV sitcom in terms of its treatment of gender, family, class, race, and ethnic issues. The selections range from early shows such as I Remember Mama (George Lipsitz’s “Why Remember Mama? The Changing Face of a Woman’s Narrative”) to the more recent Roseanne (Kathleen Rowe Karlyn’s “Roseanne: Unruly Woman as a Domestic Goddess”). The volume also looks unflinchingly at major controversies; for example, the NAACP boycott of the stereotypical yet wildly popular Amos ‘n’ Andy and the queer reading of Laverne and Shirley. These diverse essays constitute a veritable history of postwar American mores. Some are classic, some forgotten, but all indicate the importance of considering text and subtext (social, historic, industrial) in the critical study of television. A final chapter by Joanne Morreale bids sitcoms adieu with the “cultural spectacle of Seinfeld’s last episode.”

Who's funny? -- Sitcom history -- Half hour technique: rhythm, words, punctuation, timing, and pace, the turnaround, triplets -- Acting technique -- The four C's of comedy -- The characters: the logical smart one, the lovable loser, the neurotic, the dumb one, the bitch/bastard, the womanizer/manizer, the materialistic one, in their own universe -- Finding your comedic note -- Appendix 1: Ten rules of comedy -- Appendix 2: Who said that? -- Appendix 3: Glossary (finding the funny).

A paradigm shift in understanding the mechanics and art of comedy, providing practical tools that help writers translate that understanding into successful, commercial scripts. Kaplan deconstructs secrets and techniques in popular films and TV that work and don't work, and explains what tools were used (or should have been used ).

This is the first publication in English of the anthology that contains Breton’s definitive statement on l’humour noir, one of the seminal concepts of Surrealism, and his provocative assessments of the writers he most admired. While some of the authors featured in The Anthology of Black Humor are already well known to American readers—Swift, Kafka, Rimbaud, Poe, Lewis Carroll, and Baudelaire among them (and even then, Breton’s selections are often surprising)—many others are sure to come as a revelation. The entries range from the acerbic aphorisms of Swift, Lichtenberg, and Duchamp to the theatrical slapstick of Christian Dietrich Grabbe, from the wry missives of Rimbaud and Jacques Vache to the manic paranoia of Dali, from the ferocious iconoclasm of Alfred Jarry and Arthur Craven to the offhand hilarity of Apollinaire at his most spontaneous. For each of the forty-five authors included, Breton has provided an enlightening biographical and critical preface, situating both the writer and the work in the context of black humor—a partly macabre, partly ironic, and often absurd turn of spirit that Breton defined as "a superior revolt of the mind." "Anthologies can aim to be groundbreaking or thought-provoking; few can be said to have introduced a new phrase—or a new concept—into the language. No one had ever used the term "black humour" before this one came along, unless, perhaps, it was from a racial angle."—The Guardian Andre Breton (1896-1966), the founder and principal theorist of the Surrealist movement, is one of the major literary figures of the past century. His best-known works in English translation include Nadja, Mad Love, The Manifestoes of Surrealism, The Magnetic Fields (with Philippe Soupault), and Earthlight. Mark Polizzotti is the author of Revolution of the Mind: The Life of Andre Breton.

Based on the author’s decades of teaching, pedagogical and theatrical research, and his professional experience as actor and director, Making a Scene: Creating a Scene Study Class for Actors offers a pedagogical approach to rehearsal scenes as a primary tool for diagnosis and actor improvement. This volume carefully lays out the case for thinking deeply and critically about the nature of every facet of an acting class: the environment of the classroom, the choice of material for performing, diagnostic tools for responding to scene sessions, and means for engaging all students. This study includes suggestions for a teacher’s philosophy towards the work; a justification for implementing games, improvisations, and etudes; suggestions for resources for exercises both basic and complex; and a brief discussion on approaches to period styles material and connecting it to contemporary student life and issues. Addressed to both the beginning theatre teacher and the seasoned educator, this will be an essential book for anyone seeking to update their work with performers in private studios, high school settings, or in higher education.

In this book, the author uses a mental-model theory of communication to investigate the acclaimed British situation comedy The Office. The approach taken is multi-disciplinary, and focuses on questions as: What are mental models and what role do they play in communication in general, and in creating and watching The Office in particular? Whose mental models are involved in creating and watching The Office? How do these mental models relate to each other? How exactly do the creators of The Office and their audience engage in constructing, exchanging and coordinating mental models? How do mental models and their comic use relate to humour and humour theories and what is the nature of play in the deployment of mental models in comedy? The book is aimed at humour scholars from various backgrounds and at people interested in communication in general.

Providing new insight into key debates over race and representation in the media, this ethnographic study explores the ways in which African Americans have been depicted in Black situation comedies-from 1950's Beulah to contemporary series like Martin and Living Single.