During the years I kicked around Hollywood grabbing writing gigs here and there, I would attend a weekly theater gathering — Tuesdays@9, produced by the Naked Angels. Writers would bring in about 10 minutes of material to workshop with actors who turned up to get in a little scene work. The whole event was an excuse to socialize and maybe find a date, but I’d bring pages now and then. I never delivered a comedic piece on such a Tuesday night. I never welcomed so much as a smirk. But that made me the exception. It seemed every writer mounting a brief production brought in comedy, be it a complete sketch or pages of a feature or TV pilot. Whether offering parody, satire, meet-cutes, or social commentary, every writer but one came for laughs. 

That insatiable need for giggles infects our 21st century storytelling. Whether it’s movies, television, or online productions, today’s authors, writers, producers, and directors want to be amusing as quickly as possible. The writing industry remains dead set against allowing sobriety, suspense, or despair without laying in a one-liner or a comeback as soon as possible. It doesn’t matter if that joke lands, as long as it immediately novocaines the ache. Nobody wants to be a storyteller. They all want to be smartasses.