Comedy has evolved significantly from its origins in silent films in the late 19th century. During this early period, comedy relied heavily on slapstick and burlesque forms of humor since silent films had no dialogue. In the early 20th century, Charlie Chaplin revolutionized slapstick comedy through his silent films. As technology advanced and talkies emerged in the mid-20th century, comedies began incorporating more verbal humor like puns and parodies. By the late 20th century, genres like romantic comedies and gross-out comedy gained popularity alongside enduring films from the 1980s.

1. History of Comedy

2. Late 18::’s
• Comedy dates back to the era of silent film in 1895. This is when it first
appeared in television programs. During this time(1895-1930) comedy
relied heavily on slapstick and burlesque humor. This is because silent
film which meant that films did not contain any dialogue, made it difficult to
translate comedy.
• Burlesque comedy refers to theatrical entertainment consisting of comical
sketches and parodies. It was aimed at a low to middle class adult
audience as it mocked the social activities of the upper classes, and
included explicitness.
• Slapstick humor contains energetic comical conventions such as
chases, collisions and often practical jokes.

3. Early 19::’s
• During the early 1900’s, the majority of films being made were short silent films.
Charlie Chaplin revolutionised the slapstick era by self directing and producing
silent comedy films. Although, he didn’t include
dialogue on his films, his films did contain
sound effect from time to time, mainly during the
1930’s.
• However, with the silent film era quickly decreasing
in popularity, and the addition of dialogue as a
result of progressive technology.
Comedies consisting of sound effects and occasional dialogue began to
emerge.
• Verbal humour consisting of puns, innuendos, and parodies meant that
slapstick humour was not used as much.

4. Mid 19::’s
• Towards the end of the 1950’s, a new
type of humour was introduced in the
form of black comedy. Black comedy
focused on taking a serious situation
such as death, war, drug use, and
abuse and turning it into something
funny and comical.
• During the 1970’s black comedy was
becoming more current, with films
such as M*A*S*H inspiring the making
of the situation comedy TV series.

5. Late 19::’s
• The 1980’s consisted of popular comedy films, such a “Back to the Future”
part 1 and 2.
• Comedies produced during this time are still popular today. For example
“Honey I Shrunk The Kids”.

6. Early 2:::’s
• By this time, the hybrid genre of romantic comedies also referred to as
“Rom-Coms” started to become popular. For example “When Harry Met
Sally” and “Pride and Prejudice”
• “Gross out” comedy was also introduced. This type of comedy was targeted
at teenagers, it consists of controversial material such as toilet humour and
nudity.