More Video Listings
or
RETURN TO MAIN MENU
First Cynic Comic Strip
collection now in print.
Buy it now for
below retail.
|
| JOE ROGAN VERSUS CARLOS MENCIA |
| This video shows the dark side of comedians--the stealing of comedy routines. |
I'm torn on this a little bit. It looks pretty obvious that Carlos Mencia has done some borrowing of jokes from his lesser known colleagues and possibly even well known comedians like George Lopez. I would brush it off except that it seems so flagrant a violation of the understanding between comedians--that you stick to your own act but if you are going to tell someone else's joke then give credit where credit is due.
The only reason I might brush it off is that sometimes comedians/humorists come up with the same jokes just because there are so many of them out there brainstorming at the same time. I've seen this with cartoonists and I myself have drawn material that I thought was original only to later see a variation of the gag on the web.
And the other problem is sometimes you'll think you came up with an original idea only to find out it was the same idea you read in a Gary Larson cartoon ten years back. Your memory can trick you that way too.
I also think it is fair to steal from the past when it comes to comedy and then build on the jokes in your own original fashion. This is usually not referred to as stealing but is called "being influenced or being inspired." However, you can't do that with a competing comedy act. That ends up breaking an unwritten code and probably some written copyright laws. So Mencia may be getting a bad reputation here that he deserves if he is indeed stealing from his contemporaries like Joe points out in his video. |
RETURN TO MAIN MENU |
Untitled Document
|
