Dave's sense of humor was something unlike everyday humor. Though he liked going for the shock factor, all his jokes had a subtle intelligence that often went unnoticed the first time around. You often had to think back to what he said to get it. His humor, which was mostly characterized by a strange, disturbing savvy, formed one of his essential cornerstones.
It wasn't only in the form of jokes that it came, however. It took whatever form the situation required. A lot of it, naturally, was body humor. Dave often made use of the objects around him to enhance whatever point he was trying to make. He'd often perform some act on them that would make you laugh at first, then cringe.
It was often just a sound Dave made. That's all it took. Like the time that he imagined aloud what the love-making sounds of our heavyset neighbor would be. Whatever that was, it definitely sounded more like the squealing of a hog. And, obviously, this was the joke.
Mimicking people was a huge part of Dave’s repertoire. Whether it was the way a person talked or walked, or laughed, if it was distinguishable you could rely on him to make fun of it. He loved doing effeminate, old, and deep (no surprise) voices. When he got into character, it was hard to break him out of it.
Some of Dave’s humor came in the form of pictures, such as the one below in which he is pretending to be a Cardinals-lovin' trucker. There's another one of him strutting his moves while posing as a faux ballet dancer. That was Dave. He was an actor, if only for laughs.
And Dave seriously wanted to become a comedian one time. Inspired by Andrew Dice Clay and his all-time favorite George Carlin, he actually began working on routines. Maybe due to his greater interest in music, or some forgotten disillusionment, he quit the pursuit of comedy as a career but of course never quit being funny.
At Town Baptist, everyone knows Dave for his weekly The Dilbert Files. DF was a comic book written, drawn and created by him which used a fellow classmate, Dilbert, as the protagonist and, likewise, the butt of a whirlwind of jokes. DF became a cult classic, and his classmates often clamored for more. That was Dave. A comic artist, when needed.
When Dave and I were both studying radiography together, at Wright College, we took an Anatomy & Physiology class which would turn out to be the only class we ever took together. It was immediately apparent that he was a class clown. Every opportunity he got, he maximized it by making an abrupt joke. At one point during the semester, he raised his hand and said, "Yeah, so I know we're like in the middle of reviewing for a test, but my stomach is grumbling and I'm just wondering when we're gonna take a break." The entire class broke out in laughter almost at once. Though I simply smiled, I was supremely proud of my hilarious brother.
When Dave passed, he had a TV Guide cover hanging on the wall of his room; it read, Cheer Up! Wherever he is right now, I'm sure he's cheering up a lot of people. And that small fact brings me a world of comfort . . . and guffaws.
It wasn't only in the form of jokes that it came, however. It took whatever form the situation required. A lot of it, naturally, was body humor. Dave often made use of the objects around him to enhance whatever point he was trying to make. He'd often perform some act on them that would make you laugh at first, then cringe.
It was often just a sound Dave made. That's all it took. Like the time that he imagined aloud what the love-making sounds of our heavyset neighbor would be. Whatever that was, it definitely sounded more like the squealing of a hog. And, obviously, this was the joke.
Mimicking people was a huge part of Dave’s repertoire. Whether it was the way a person talked or walked, or laughed, if it was distinguishable you could rely on him to make fun of it. He loved doing effeminate, old, and deep (no surprise) voices. When he got into character, it was hard to break him out of it.
Some of Dave’s humor came in the form of pictures, such as the one below in which he is pretending to be a Cardinals-lovin' trucker. There's another one of him strutting his moves while posing as a faux ballet dancer. That was Dave. He was an actor, if only for laughs.
And Dave seriously wanted to become a comedian one time. Inspired by Andrew Dice Clay and his all-time favorite George Carlin, he actually began working on routines. Maybe due to his greater interest in music, or some forgotten disillusionment, he quit the pursuit of comedy as a career but of course never quit being funny.
At Town Baptist, everyone knows Dave for his weekly The Dilbert Files. DF was a comic book written, drawn and created by him which used a fellow classmate, Dilbert, as the protagonist and, likewise, the butt of a whirlwind of jokes. DF became a cult classic, and his classmates often clamored for more. That was Dave. A comic artist, when needed.
When Dave and I were both studying radiography together, at Wright College, we took an Anatomy & Physiology class which would turn out to be the only class we ever took together. It was immediately apparent that he was a class clown. Every opportunity he got, he maximized it by making an abrupt joke. At one point during the semester, he raised his hand and said, "Yeah, so I know we're like in the middle of reviewing for a test, but my stomach is grumbling and I'm just wondering when we're gonna take a break." The entire class broke out in laughter almost at once. Though I simply smiled, I was supremely proud of my hilarious brother.
When Dave passed, he had a TV Guide cover hanging on the wall of his room; it read, Cheer Up! Wherever he is right now, I'm sure he's cheering up a lot of people. And that small fact brings me a world of comfort . . . and guffaws.
love that pick..He did have a macabre sense of humor.
ReplyDeleteAnd not to mention a knack for observational social humor
ReplyDelete