Funniest Joke in the World - What is It?

Cultures vary greatly in their perception of what's funny -- you'll realize this if you ever travel to a foreign culture and attempt to translate a joke that works well in your native culture.  This fact didn't stop Professor Richard Wiseman (of the The British Association for the Advancement of Science) to attempt to determine what is the funniest joke in the world.  The joke would have to be ranked highest among many countries of vastly different cultures. 

The project set out a request for joke submissions.  The result was 40,000 jokes.  The researchers had the jokes rated by a large sample population from diverse areas of the globe.  The project was formally called LaughLab. 

I've often thought that if mankind ever discovered the funniest joke in the world, he may fall into a constant state of laughter and never regain his composure, possibly resulting in cardiac arrest or asphyxiation.  In other words, he may laugh himself to death.  I wondered if perhaps an ancient people had discovered the funniest joke, and had determined that it's deadly for people to hear.  Maybe it's hidden in an ancient realm -- like the ark of the covenant -- possibly guarded by a long line of comedians.  Is it like the DaVinci Code: A secret that mankind was never meant to uncover?

We may never know that answer, but at least we'll know what Dr. Wiseman determined to be the funniest joke across all cultures,  Fortunately it won't send you into a deadly laughing fit.  According to a multi-cultural sample, the funniest joke is the following:

A couple of New Jersey hunters are out in the woods when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn't seem to be breathing, his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out his cell phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps to the operator: "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator, in a calm soothing voice says: "Just take it easy. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a shot is heard. The guy's voice comes back on the line. He says: "OK, now what?

Don't die on me -- it's not that funny.  If you're looking for the best jokes in the world, visit my site. 

Soren Michaels is a humorist living in the Chicago area. Find his collection of Best Jokes in the World at: http://funnyjokesebook.blogspot.com/

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Jokes Make the World Go Round

When was the last time you heard a good joke that left you uncontrollably laughing? Don't you miss those times when you exchanged good jokes with friends or family? I always look forward to the next time I can meet up with them and share a good laugh. Good jokes really do make the world go round. 

There are many kinds of jokes. Children love those knock-knock jokes. And some adults do too! But most adults and teenagers prefer sharing green jokes. There are also jokes on every topic you can imagine, from politics, to school, to animals, and so much more. But there is a big difference between a good joke and a bad one. 

But where can you find the best jokes nowadays? There is a limit to how many jokes you can learn from people you know. You will run out of new jokes to share sooner or later. So you will need to find more of them to share and enjoy. The most common source for new jokes used to be joke books which you can buy from your regular bookstore.  

But nowadays, most people search for these on the internet. Online blogs are the best sources for good jokes. This is because there are thousands of blogs which you can visit. The internet can indeed supply an unlimited number of jokes. Furthermore, you can get jokes from these sites for free unlike from books which you still have to pay for. 

Jokes are indeed a perfect start to any day. They are also perfect for sharing with family and friends during social gatherings and such. If you are in search for the perfect source for good jokes then the internet is the place for you. Just bookmark your favorite joke blogs for easy reference the next time you want to read a good joke, and keep that sweet smile on your face. 

I recommend that you check out http://thecomedyshopblog.com/ for a daily dose of laughter.

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A World in Love with Jokes

Judging from the listings on the major online bookstores, the whole world is in love with jokes, and books of jokes to such an extent, well, almost as much as it loves Paris Hilton.

But what jokes exactly? We did a random search on several sites and came up with some interesting results.

Using the keyword "jokes", it was an eye-opener when a single site found 54540 books involving jokes listed in its database. This was kind of strange in a way.

When last did you check out a friend's book shelf at their place? We are prepared to bet that books of jokes did not feature much, if at all. Most likely there were relationship books, car manuals, sports books, glossy novels, a gift books, unopened textbooks.

Perhaps there was a ragged cartoon book at the end of the shelf and one in the bathroom.

So what are all these listed joke books exactly?

At the bottom of the price range ($1) we found Spongebob, Rugrats, Dumb and Dumber Garfield and hundreds in the 101 Jokes series: 101 Vacation Jokes, 101 Telephone Jokes, 101 Pet Jokes - you get the picture. Some jovial publisher obviously figured out also that the entire world loves a good joke or more than a hundred preferably.

It is interesting too that so many of the books of jokes in this price range are aimed at kids. Books containing "Children's good clean jokes" is a recurring theme here.

At the $15 level the joke books are more adult (O'Brien and Fitzgerald Walk into a Bar: The World's Best Irish Jokes) and edgy (the "Extremely Gross Jokes" series).

And here's a joke for you. Our search threw up "The Joke" by Milan Kundera. Funny huh?

Then there is the fabulously interesting title "The Jokes of Sigmund Freud: A Study in Humor and Jewish Identity" by Elliot Oring. Not a joke book to take to the pub perhaps but you can feel the laughter well up even so.

Then I came across the title "I Give you Texas! 500 Jokes of the Lone Star State". I have always had a yearning to live in Texas although I know very little about it. I reckon Texan jokes should tell me all I need to know. So I got sidetracked and ordered the book.

Of course there is a dark side to the joke industry - the academics who Take It All Very Seriously. Consider the title "Rationale of the Dirty Joke: An Analysis of Sexual Humor". This kind of title should not really be thrown out by a search for jokes. It's not fair and it's not funny.

At the top of the price range ($100 and more) there were interesting discoveries, such as an album of 50 saucy not blue postcards from World War II. My grandpa had some of those.

Published in Poland in 1931 was "I Laugh at You", in Yiddish, by Joseph Tunkel. Mr Tunkel left Poland in 1939 when the laughter stopped.

For $300 you can have David Henry Thoreau's "Cape Cod" in two volumes, reportedly Thoreau's sunniest, happiest book. It bubbles over with jokes, puns, tall tales, and genial good humor, the bookseller says.

If you are prepared to stump up $77 500 dollars for a laugh, you can have the complete autograph manuscript of Chapter 23 of "A Tramp Abroad" by Mark Twain. It was the most expensive that came up under the search term "jokes" on Abebooks.

The bookseller supplies a painstaking description of the item (revisions, repairs, smudging, fingerprinting and all) and says: "The subject of the chapter is, in large part, reminiscence from Twain's days as a printer's apprentice. Nicodemus Dodge, a seeming yokel from out of town, is hired at the printer's shop where the young Sam Clemens is working. The locals hope to make Nicodemus the butt of their jokes only to find (as Twain notes in a phrase that was ultimately deleted), that they 'had fished for a sardine and caught a whale' ".

The old jokes are often the best.

©Copyright 2006 - Justine Eaglestone

JUSTINE EAGLESTONE is a journalist brick-and-mortar bookstore owner, online bookdealer and booksite specialist. See her blog at http://search-book-sites.blogspot.com and website http://www.abillionbooks.com

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