Here is the thing about not offering punchlines in a comedy bit like Steve Martin is talking about here.
This endeavor is unlikely to work for you.
Why?
Because you are no Steve Martin.
Few can get away with the kind of slapstick quirky routines that he was so famous for as a standup.
Most jokes are told in these traditional ways…
I mean, watch Martin for yourself after the jump…
Could anyone starting out in comedy pull this off today?
I have my doubts.
Now that I had assigned myself to an act without jokes, I gave myself a rule. Never let them know I was bombing: This is funny, you just haven’t gotten it yet. If I wasn’t offering punch lines, I’d never be standing there with egg on my face. It was essential that I never show doubt about what I was doing. I would move through my act without pausing for the laugh, as though everything were an aside.
-Steve Martin, Born Standing Up (Amazon)
