Howie Mandel is adamant in his belief that political correctness has absolutely no place in the landscape of comedy. Instead, the comedian has lauded “rule breakers and edginess” among stand-up comics.
“I was always misbehaving and not fitting the mold of whatever people in my generation had to fit—behavioral-wise, in school, corporately,” he shared.
“When you went to a comedy club, even as a viewer, when I was there I was seeing people of my age ... people that I could relate to who seemed to be breaking rules in talking about things you didn’t hear people talk about publicly,” he explained.
However, as Mr. Mandel, 68, noted on the podcast, this type of comedy is now generally frowned upon by “woke” mainstream audiences. Nevertheless, he said “there isn’t anything [comedians] shouldn’t talk about,” referring to comedy as “an art form” instead.
“Art—even if it’s comedy—is a nonconformist kind of palette that we should have,” he told podcast host Mike Binder. “They started telling us there are certain colors you can’t use.”
Mr. Mandel continued: “If you’re a painter, you shouldn’t say, ‘You know, you could paint anything you want, but don’t use black, don’t use any yellows, and it’s really not right to use blue.’ Art suffers.”
Regarding stand-up comedy, the television personality noted that “the pendulum swung really far into the woke” in recent years. However, he largely credited the popularity of comics such as Shane Gillis, Bert Kreischer, and Ari Shaffir for believing in the “purity” of what comedy is and helping to turn the tide back to creative freedom.
Effects of Cancel Culture
Mr. Mandel mentioned that “woke” audiences generally only want to hear comics touch upon subjects in a way that aligns with their own beliefs. However, he said that, overall, he thinks people simply don’t know how to take a joke.“I think most people don’t have a sense of humor,” he said.
The former “Deal or No Deal” host explored the ramifications of audiences lacking a sense of humor by highlighting the effect that cancel culture had on fellow comedian Gilbert Gottfried. The stand-up comic died in April 2022 at the age of 67 from recurrent ventricular tachycardia, or irregular heartbeat, caused by Type 2 myotonic dystrophy, a genetic muscle disorder.
Mr. Gottfried, who was known for his controversial sense of humor, came under fire for a series of social media posts in which he joked about the disastrous earthquake and tsunami that rocked Japan in 2011, resulting in approximately 20,000 deaths.
The actor was subsequently fired from his position of supplying the voice for insurance company Aflac’s duck mascot, which Mr. Mandel said accounted for about 65 percent of his total income.
“I mean, you don’t have to laugh at the joke. You don’t have to like the joke. You don’t even have to get the joke. But you’re gonna take away, you’re gonna remove his livelihood—this is a man with a wife and two kids—you’re gonna just negate him for this joke that you don’t like, that isn’t even pointed at one particular person,” the comedian remarked.
‘Laughter Is My Bridge to Existing’
During his conversation with Mr. Binder, Mr. Mandel also explored the intertwining themes of humor and despair—or, more to the point, laughter and pain.“All humor comes out of darkness,” he said. “That’s why the tragedy and comedy masks are so close together,” he added, referencing the “Sock and Buskin” masks symbolic of comic and tragic themes in ancient Greek theater.
“If you’re a little kid and you go to the circus, you’re laughing at a clown falling down. You’re laughing at the misfortune of somebody you don’t know—that’s what you’re laughing at. If something bad doesn’t happen, it’s not funny. If something embarrassing doesn’t happen, it’s not funny. If something awkward doesn’t happen, it’s not funny,” he explained.
Mr. Mandel—who was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder in his late 40s—highlighted the important role that comedy has played in his life, particularly in helping him to overcome his own inner darkness.
“For me, personally, as someone who suffers from mental health issues and has a tough time each and every day, mentally—laughter is my bridge to, you know, existing,” he said. “There is a thin line between making myself laugh or trying to make somebody else laugh and being just crushed with darkness.”
