Comedy (from the Greek: κωμῳδία, kōmōdía) is a genre of fiction consisting of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term originated in Ancient Greece: in Athenian democracy, the public opinion of voters was influenced by political satire performed by comic poets in theaters.[1] The theatrical genre of Greek comedy can be described as a dramatic performance pitting two groups, ages, genders, or societies against each other in an amusing agon or conflict. Northrop Frye depicted these two opposing sides as a "Society of Youth" and a "Society of the Old."[2] A revised view characterizes the essential agon of comedy as a struggle between a relatively powerless youth and the societal conventions posing obstacles to his hopes. In this struggle, the youth then becomes constrained by his lack of social authority, and is left with little choice but to resort to ruses which engender dramatic irony, which provokes laughter.[3]

Satire and political satire use comedy to portray persons or social institutions as ridiculous or corrupt, thus alienating their audience from the object of their humor. Parody subverts popular genres and forms, critiquing those forms without necessarily condemning them.

Other forms of comedy include screwball comedy, which derives its humor largely from bizarre, surprising (and improbable) situations or characters, and black comedy, which is characterized by a form of humor that includes darker aspects of human behavior or human nature. Similarly scatological humor, sexual humor, and race humor create comedy by violating social conventions or taboos in comic ways. A comedy of manners typically takes as its subject a particular part of society (usually upper-class society) and uses humor to parody or satirize the behavior and mannerisms of its members. Romantic comedy is a popular genre that depicts burgeoning romance in humorous terms and focuses on the foibles of those who are falling in love.

The word "comedy" is derived from the Classical Greek κωμῳδία kōmōidía, which is a compound of κῶμος kômos (revel) and ᾠδή ōidḗ (singing; ode).[4] The adjective "comic" (Greek κωμικός kōmikós), which strictly means that which relates to comedy is, in modern usage, generally confined to the sense of "laughter-provoking".[5] Of this, the word came into modern usage through the Latin comoedia and Italian commedia and has, over time, passed through various shades of meaning.[6]

The Greeks and Romans confined their use of the word "comedy" to descriptions of stage-plays with happy endings. Aristotle defined comedy as an imitation of men worse than the average (where tragedy was an imitation of men better than the average). However, the characters portrayed in comedies were not worse than average in every way, only insofar as they are Ridiculous, which is a species of the Ugly. The Ridiculous may be defined as a mistake or deformity not productive of pain or harm to others; the mask, for instance, that excites laughter is something ugly and distorted without causing pain.[7] In the Middle Ages, the term expanded to include narrative poems with happy endings. It is in this sense that Dante used the term in the title of his poem, La Commedia.

As time progressed, the word came more and more to be associated with any sort of performance intended to cause laughter.[6] During the Middle Ages, the term "comedy" became synonymous with satire, and later with humour in general.

Aristotle's Poetics was translated into Arabic in the medieval Islamic world, where it was elaborated upon by Arabic writers and Islamic philosophers, such as Abu Bishr, and his pupils Al-Farabi, Avicenna, and Averroes. They disassociated comedy from Greek dramatic representation and instead identified it with Arabic poetic themes and forms, such as hija (satirical poetry). They viewed comedy as simply the "art of reprehension", and made no reference to light and cheerful events, or to the troubling beginnings and happy endings associated with classical Greek comedy.

After the Latin translations of the 12th century, the term "comedy" gained a more general meaning in medieval literature.[8]

In the late 20th century, many scholars preferred to use the term laughter to refer to the whole gamut of the comic, in order to avoid the use of ambiguous and problematically defined genres such as the grotesque, irony, and satire.[9][10]

Western history
Dionysiac origins, Aristophanes and Aristotle
See also: Old Comedy, Menander, and Ancient Greek comedy

Roman-era mosaic depicting a scene from Menander's comedy Samia ("The Woman from Samos")
Starting from 425 BCE, Aristophanes, a comic playwright and satirical author of the Ancient Greek Theater, wrote 40 comedies, 11 of which survive. Aristophanes developed his type of comedy from the earlier satyr plays, which were often highly obscene.[11] The only surviving examples of the satyr plays are by Euripides, which are much later examples and not representative of the genre.[12] In ancient Greece, comedy originated in bawdy and ribald songs or recitations apropos of phallic processions and fertility festivals or gatherings.[13]

Around 335 BCE, Aristotle, in his work Poetics, stated that comedy originated in phallic processions and the light treatment of the otherwise base and ugly. He also adds that the origins of comedy are obscure because it was not treated seriously from its inception.[14] However, comedy had its own Muse: Thalia.[citation needed]

Aristotle taught that comedy was generally positive for society, since it brings forth happiness, which for Aristotle was the ideal state, the final goal in any activity. For Aristotle, a comedy did not need to involve sexual humor. A comedy is about the fortunate rise of a sympathetic character. Aristotle divides comedy into three categories or subgenres: farce, romantic comedy, and satire. On the other hand, Plato taught that comedy is a destruction to the self. He believed that it produces an emotion that overrides rational self-control and learning. In The Republic, he says that the guardians of the state should avoid laughter, "for ordinarily when one abandons himself to violent laughter, his condition provokes a violent reaction." Plato says comedy should be tightly controlled if one wants to achieve the ideal state.

Also in Poetics, Aristotle defined comedy as one of the original four genres of literature. The other three genres are tragedy, epic poetry, and lyric poetry. Literature, in general, is defined by Aristotle as a mimesis, or imitation of life. Comedy is the third form of literature, being the most divorced from a true mimesis. Tragedy is the truest mimesis, followed by epic poetry, comedy, and lyric poetry. The genre of comedy is defined by a certain pattern according to Aristotle's definition. Comedies begin with low or base characters seeking insignificant aims and end with some accomplishment of the aims which either lightens the initial baseness or reveals the insignificance of the aims.

Commedia dell'arte and Shakespearean, Elizabethan comedy

Title page of the first quarto of Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream (1600)
"Comedy", in its Elizabethan usage, had a very different meaning from modern comedy. A Shakespearean comedy is one that has a happy ending, usually involving marriages between the unmarried characters, and a tone and style that is more light-hearted than Shakespeare's other plays.[15]

The Punch and Judy show has roots in the 16th-century Italian commedia dell'arte. The figure of Punch derives from the Neapolitan stock character of Pulcinella.[16] The figure who later became Mr. Punch made his first recorded appearance in England in 1662.[17] Punch and Judy are performed in the spirit of outrageous comedy — often provoking shocked laughter — and are dominated by the anarchic clowning of Mr. Punch.[18] Appearing at a significant period in British history, professor Glyn Edwards states: "[Pulcinella] went down particularly well with Restoration British audiences, fun-starved after years of Puritanism. We soon changed Punch's name, transformed him from a marionette to a hand puppet, and he became, really, a spirit of Britain — a subversive maverick who defies authority, a kind of puppet equivalent to our political cartoons."[17]

19th to early 20th century
Main article: Comedian
See also: Clown
In early 19th century England, pantomime acquired its present form which includes slapstick comedy and featured the first mainstream clown Joseph Grimaldi, while comedy routines also featured heavily in British music hall theatre which became popular in the 1850s.[19] British comedians who honed their skills in music hall sketches include Charlie Chaplin, Stan Laurel and Dan Leno.[20] English music hall comedian and theatre impresario Fred Karno developed a form of sketch comedy without dialogue in the 1890s, and Chaplin and Laurel were among the comedians who worked for his company.[20] Karno was a pioneer of slapstick, and in his biography, Laurel stated, "Fred Karno didn't teach Charlie [Chaplin] and me all we know about comedy. He just taught us most of it".[21] Film producer Hal Roach stated: "Fred Karno is not only a genius, he is the man who originated slapstick comedy. We in Hollywood owe much to him."[22] American vaudeville emerged in the 1880s and remained popular until the 1930s, and featured comedians such as W. C. Fields, Buster Keaton and the Marx Brothers.

20th century theatre and art
See also: Surreal humour, Theatre of the Absurd, and Absurdist fiction
Surreal humour (also known as 'absurdist humour'), or 'surreal comedy', is a form of humour predicated on deliberate violations of causal reasoning, producing events and behaviours that are obviously illogical. Constructions of surreal humour tend to involve bizarre juxtapositions, incongruity, non-sequiturs, irrational or absurd situations and expressions of nonsense.[23] The humour arises from a subversion of audience's expectations, so that amusement is founded on unpredictability, separate from a logical analysis of the situation. The humour derived gets its appeal from the ridiculousness and unlikeliness of the situation. The genre has roots in Surrealism in the arts.[23]


Edward Lear, Aged 73 and a Half and His Cat Foss, Aged 16, an 1885 lithograph by Edward Lear
Surreal humour is the effect of illogic and absurdity being used for humorous effect. Under such premises, people can identify precursors and early examples of surreal humour at least since the 19th century, such as Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, which both use illogic and absurdity (hookah-smoking caterpillars, croquet matches using live flamingos as mallets, etc.) for humorous effect. Many of Edward Lear's children stories and poems contain nonsense and are basically surreal in approach. For example, The Story of the Four Little Children Who Went Round the World (1871) is filled with contradictory statements and odd images intended to provoke amusement, such as the following:

After a time they saw some land at a distance; and when they came to it, they found it was an island made of water quite surrounded by earth. Besides that, it was bordered by evanescent isthmuses with a great Gulf-stream running about all over it, so that it was perfectly beautiful, and contained only a single tree, 503 feet high.[24]

In the early 20th century, several avant-garde movements, including the dadaists, surrealists, and futurists, began to argue for an art that was random, jarring and illogical.[25] The goals of these movements were in some sense serious, and they were committed to undermining the solemnity and self-satisfaction of the contemporary artistic establishment. As a result, much of their art was intentionally amusing.

A famous example is Marcel Duchamp's Fountain (1917), an inverted urinal signed "R. Mutt". This became one of the most famous and influential pieces of art in history, and one of the earliest examples of the found object movement. It is also a joke, relying on the inversion of the item's function as expressed by its title as well as its incongruous presence in an art exhibition.[26]

20th century film, records, radio, and television

Charlie Chaplin as "The Tramp" (1921)

Jim Carrey mugs for the camera

Rowan Atkinson as Mr. Bean

Jackie Chan at the 2008 Cannes Fi

The phenomena connected with laughter and that which provokes it have been carefully investigated by psychologists. They agree the predominant characteristics are incongruity or contrast in the object and shock or emotional seizure on the part of the subject. It has also been held that the feeling of superiority is an essential factor: thus Thomas Hobbes speaks of laughter as a "sudden glory". Modern investigators have paid much attention to the origin both of laughter and of smiling, as well as the development of the "play instinct" and its emotional expression.

George Meredith said that "One excellent test of the civilization of a country ... I take to be the flourishing of the Comic idea and Comedy, and the test of true Comedy is that it shall awaken thoughtful laughter." Laughter is said to be the cure for being sick. Studies show that people who laugh more often get sick less.[29][30]

American literary theorist Kenneth Burke writes that the "comic frame" in rhetoric is "neither wholly euphemistic, nor wholly debunking—hence it provides the charitable attitude towards people that is required for purposes of persuasion and co-operation, but at the same time maintains our shrewdness concerning the simplicities of ‘cashing in.’"[31] The purpose of the comic frame is to satirize a given circumstance and promote change by doing so. The comic frame makes fun of situations and people, while simultaneously provoking thought.[32] The comic frame does not aim to vilify in its analysis, but rather, rebuke the stupidity and foolery of those involved in the circumstances.[33] For example, on The Daily Show, Jon Stewart uses the "comic frame" to intervene in political arguments, often offering crude humor in sudden contrast to serious news. In a segment on President Obama's trip to China Stewart remarks on America's debt to the Chinese government while also having a weak relationship with the country. After depicting this dismal situation, Stewart shifts to speak directly to President Obama, calling upon him to "shine that turd up."[34] For Stewart and his audience, introducing coarse language into what is otherwise a serious commentary on the state of foreign relations serves to frame the segment comically, creating a serious tone underlying the comedic agenda presented by Stewart.

Main article: Comedic genres
Comedy may be divided into multiple genres based on the source of humor, the method of delivery, and the context in which it is delivered. The different forms of comedy often overlap, and most comedy can fit into multiple genres. Some of the subgenres of comedy are farce, comedy of manners, burlesque, and satire.

Some comedy apes certain cultural forms: for instance, parody and satire often imitate the conventions of the genre they are parodying or satirizing. For example, in the United States, parodies of newspapers and television news include The Onion, and The Colbert Report; in Australia, shows such as Kath & Kim, Utopia, and Shaun Micallef's Mad As Hell perform the same role.

Self-deprecation is a technique of comedy used by many comedians who focus on their misfortunes and foibles in order to entertain.

Main article: Comedy (drama)
Historical forms
Ancient Greek comedy, as practiced by Aristophanes and Menander
Ancient Roman comedy, as practiced by Plautus and Terence
Burlesque, from Music hall and Vaudeville to Performance art
Citizen comedy, as practiced by Thomas Dekker, Thomas Middleton and Ben Jonson
Clowns such as Richard Tarlton, William Kempe, and Robert Armin
Comedy of humours, as practiced by Ben Jonson and George Chapman
Comedy of intrigue, as practiced by Niccolò Machiavelli and Lope de Vega
Comedy of manners, as practiced by Molière, William Wycherley and William Congreve
Comedy of menace, as practiced by David Campton and Harold Pinter
comédie larmoyante or 'tearful comedy', as practiced by Pierre-Claude Nivelle de La Chaussée and Louis-Sébastien Mercier
Commedia dell'arte, as practiced in the twentieth century by Dario Fo, Vsevolod Meyerhold, and Jacques Copeau
Farce, from Georges Feydeau to Joe Orton and Alan Ayckbourn
Jester
Laughing comedy, as practiced by Oliver Goldsmith and Richard Brinsley Sheridan
Restoration comedy, as practiced by George Etherege, Aphra Behn and John Vanbrugh
Sentimental comedy, as practiced by Colley Cibber and Richard Steele
Shakespearean comedy, as practiced by William Shakespeare
Stand-up comedy
Dadaist and Surrealist performance, usually in cabaret form
Theatre of the Absurd, used by some critics to describe Samuel Beckett, Harold Pinter, Jean Genet and Eugène Ionesco[35]
Sketch comedy
Plays
Comic theatre
Musical comedy and palace
Opera
Comic opera
Improvisational comedy
Improvisational theatre
Bouffon comedy
Clowns
Jokes
One-liner joke
Blonde jokes
Shaggy-dog story
Paddy Irishman joke
Polish jokes
Light bulb jokes
Knock-knock joke
Stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a mode of comic performance in which the performer addresses the audience directly, usually speaking in their own person rather than as a dramatic character.

Impressionist (entertainment)
Alternative comedy
Comedy club
Events and awards
American Comedy Awards
British Comedy Awards
Canadian Comedy Awards
Cat Laughs Comedy Festival
The Comedy Festival, Aspen, Colorado, formerly the HBO Comedy Arts Festival
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Edinburgh Comedy Festival
Halifax Comedy Festival
Just for Laughs festival, Montreal
Leicester Comedy Festival
Mark Twain Prize for American Humor
Melbourne International Comedy Festival
New Zealand International Comedy Festival
New York Underground Comedy Festival
HK International Comedy Festival

American Comedy Awards
British Comedy Awards
Canadian Comedy Awards
Cat Laughs Comedy Festival
The Comedy Festival, Aspen, Colorado, formerly the HBO Comedy Arts Festival
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Edinburgh Comedy Festival
Halifax Comedy Festival
Just for Laughs festival, Montreal
Leicester Comedy Festival
Mark Twain Prize for American Humor
Melbourne International Comedy Festival
New Zealand International Comedy Festival
New York Underground Comedy Festival
HK International Comedy Festival

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.
A comedian is one who entertains through comedy, such as jokes and other forms of humour. Following is a list of comedians, comedy groups, and comedy writers.

(sorted alphabetically by surname)

A
Rose Abdoo (born 1962)
John Aboud (born 1973)
James Acaster (born 1985)
Jayde Adams
Pamela Adlon (born 1966)
James Adomian (born 1980)
Scott Adsit (born 1965)
Steve Agee (born 1969)
Alex Agnew (born 1973)
Dan Ahdoot (born 1981)
Ahmed Ahmed (born 1970)
Sohail Ahmed (born 1963)
Anna Akana (born 1989)
Malin Akerman (born 1978)
Nawaal Akram (born 1990)
Nasser Al Qasabi (born 1963)
Joe Alaskey (1952–2016)
Carlos Alazraqui (born 1962)
Jason Alexander (born 1959)
Ted Alexandro (born 1969)
Barbara Jo Allen (1906–1974)
Dave Allen (1936–2005)
Gracie Allen (1895–1964)
Leo Allen (born 1972)
Marty Allen (1922–2018)
Steve Allen (1921–2000)
Tim Allen (born 1953)
Woody Allen (born 1935)
Kirstie Alley (born 1951)
Kevin Allison (born 1970)
Cristela Alonzo (born 1979)
Brian Jordan Alvarez (born 1987)
The Amazing Johnathan (born 1958)
Utkarsh Ambudkar (born 1983)
Mo Amer (born 1981)
Simon Amstell (born 1979)
Morey Amsterdam (1908–1996)
Andrea Anders (born 1975)
Siw Anita Andersen (born 1966)
Amy Anderson (born 1972)
Anthony Anderson (born 1970)
Blake Anderson (born 1984)
Harry Anderson (1952–2018)
James Anderson
Louie Anderson (born 1953)
Wil Anderson (born 1974)
Eric Andre (born 1983)
Michael Angarano (born 1987)
Lucia Aniello (born 1983)
Jennifer Aniston (born 1969)
Aziz Ansari (born 1983)
Ant (born 1967)
Dave Anthony (born 1967)
Craig Anton (born 1962)
Judd Apatow (born 1967)
Ingo Appelt (born 1967)
Christina Applegate (born 1971)
Carly Aquilino (born 1990)
Nicole Arbour (born 1985)
Lisa Arch (born 1971)
Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle (1887–1933)
Geoffrey Arend (born 1978)
Marcella Arguello (born 1985)
Fred Armisen (born 1966)
Will Arnett (born 1970)
Tichina Arnold (born 1969)
Tom Arnold (born 1959)
David Arquette (born 1971)
Bea Arthur (1922–2009)
Katie Aselton (born 1978)
Erica Ash (born 1977)
Lauren Ash (born 1983)
Arthur Askey (1900–1982)
Ed Asner (born 1929)
Sean Astin (born 1971)
Skylar Astin (born 1987)
Anthony Atamanuik (born 1974)
Rowan Atkinson (born 1955)
Helen Atkinson-Wood (born 1955)
Dave Attell (born 1965)
Michael "Atters" Attree (born 1965)
Scott Aukerman (born 1970)
Phil Austin (1941–2015)
Joe Avati (born 1974)
Awkwafina (born 1988)
Ayelet the Kosher Komic
Dan Aykroyd (born 1952)
Peter Aykroyd (born 1955)
Damali Ayo (born 1972)
Richard Ayoade (born 1977)
Hank Azaria (born 1964)
Valerie Azlynn (born 1980)
B
Baba Ali (born 1975)
Dirk Bach (1961–2012)
Diedrich Bader (born 1966)
Ross Bagley (born 1988)
Tim Bagley (born 1957)
Ben Bailey (born 1970)
Bill Bailey (born 1964)
Bobbie Baker
Leslie David Baker (born 1958)
Dan Bakkedahl (born 1969)
Bob Balaban (born 1945)
Hugo Egon Balder (born 1950)
Alec Baldwin (born 1958)
Lucille Ball (1911–1989)
Colleen Ballinger (born 1986)
Tim Baltz
Maria Bamford (born 1970)
Eric Bana (born 1968)
Elizabeth Banks (born 1974)
Morwenna Banks (born 1961)
Edward Barbanell (born 1977)
Celeste Barber (born 1982)
Nate Bargatze (born 1979)
Robert Baril (born 1986/1987)
Ike Barinholtz (born 1977)
Arj Barker (born 1974)
Ronnie Barker (1929–2005)
Angela Barnes (born 1976)
Ty Barnett (born 1975)
Vince Barnett (1902–1977)
Sandy Baron (1937–2001)
Roseanne Barr (born 1952)
Julian Barratt (born 1968)
Kenya Barris (born 1974)
Carl Barron (born 1968)
Todd Barry (born 1964)
Drew Barrymore (born 1975)
Mario Barth (born 1972)
Justin Bartha (born 1978)
Jay Baruchel (born 1982)
Frank-Markus Barwasser (born 1960)
Jason Bateman (born 1969)
David Batra (born 1972)
Brian Baumgartner (born 1972)
Eric Bauza (born 1979)
Stanley Baxter (born 1926)
Vanessa Bayer (born 1981)
Carter Bays (born 1975)
Aisling Bea (born 1984)
Anne Beatts (1947–2021)
David Beck (born 1970)
Alison Becker (born 1977)
Jürgen Becker (born 1959)
Rob Beckett (born 1986)
Samantha Bee (born 1969)
Greg Behrendt (born 1963)
Beth Behrs (born 1985)
Jillian Bell (born 1984)
Lake Bell (born 1979)
Tone Bell (born 1983)
W. Kamau Bell (born 1973)
Bill Bellamy (born 1965)
Jim Belushi (born 1954)
John Belushi (1949–1982)
Richard Belzer (born 1944)
Bea Benaderet (1906–1968)
H. Jon Benjamin (born 1966)
Owen Benjamin (born 1980)
Beck Bennett (born 1984)
D.C. Benny
Jack Benny (1894–1974)
Doug Benson (born 1964)
Alec Berg
Edgar Bergen (1903–1978)
Peter Paul Bergman (1939–2012)
Kate Berlant (born 1987)
Milton Berle (1908–2002)
Shelley Berman (1925–2017)
Sandra Bernhard (born 1955)
Matt Berry (born 1974)
Joe Besser (1907–1988)
Matt Besser (born 1967)
Ilka Bessin (born 1971)
Danny Bhoy (born 1976)
Mayim Bialik (born 1975)
Leslie Bibb (born 1974)
Jason Biggs (born 1978)
Mike Birbiglia (born 1978)
Simon Bird (born 1984)
Mary Birdsong (born 1968)
Des Bishop (born 1975)
Joey Bishop (1918–2007)
John Bishop (born 1966)
Jack Black (born 1969)
Jordan Black (born 1970)
Lewis Black (born 1948)
Michael Ian Black (born 1971)
Hamish Blake (born 1981)
Mel Blanc (1908–1989)
Rachel Bloom (born 1987)
Ben Blue (1901–1975)
Josh Blue (born 1978)
Sarayu Blue (born 1975)
Amir Blumenfeld (born 1983)
Raphael Bob-Waksberg (born 1984)
Alonzo Bodden (born 1967)
Mirja Boes (born 1971)
Catherine Bohart (born 1988)
Peter Bonerz (born 1938)
Wigald Boning (born 1967)
Elayne Boosler (born 1952)
Joel Kim Booster (born 1988)
Tato Bores (1927–1996)
Flula Borg (born 1982)
Victor Borge (1909–2000)
Kyle Bornheimer (born 1975)
Alex Borstein (born 1971)
Loren Bouchard (born 1969)
Peter Boyle (1935–2006)
Andrew Bowen (born 1972)
Julie Bowen (born 1970)
John Ross Bowie (born 1971)
Max Boyce (born 1945)
Frankie Boyle (born 1972)
Wayne Brady (born 1972)
Zach Braff (born 1975)
Joey Bragg (born 1996)
Patrick Brammall (born 1976)
Jo Brand (born 1957)
Russell Brand (born 1975)
Betsy Brandt (born 1973)
Guy Branum (born 1975)
John Branyan (born 1965)
Matt Braunger (born 1974)
Kurt Braunohler (born 1976)
El Brendel (1890–1964)
Josh Brener (born 1984)
Kevin Brennan (born 1960)
Neal Brennan (born 1974)
David Brenner (1936–2014)
Jim Breuer (born 1967)
Paget Brewster (born 1969)
Alison Brie (born 1982)
Joe Bob Briggs (born 1953)
Patrick Bristow (born 1962)
Janine Brito
Paul Brittain (born 1977)
Matthew Broderick (born 1962)
Adam Brody (born 1979)
Jimmy Brogan (born 1948)
Albert Brooks (born 1947)
Foster Brooks (1912–2001)
James L. Brooks (born 1940)
Max Brooks (born 1972)
Mel Brooks (born 1926)
Brother Theodore (1906–2001)
Alan Brough (born 1967)
A. Whitney Brown (born 1952)
Clancy Brown (born 1959)
Joe E. Brown (1891–1973)
Kevin Brown (born 1972)
Wally Brown (1904–1961)
Yvette Nicole Brown (born 1971)
Carrie Brownstein (born 1974)
Lenny Bruce (1925–1966)
Hazel Brugger (born 1993)
Quinta Brunson (born 1989)
Aidy Bryant (born 1987)
Rob Brydon (born 1965)
Andy Buckley (born 1965)
James Buckley (born 1987)
Jim J. Bullock (born 1955)
Vicco von Bülow (1923–2011)
Rodger Bumpass (born 1951)
Michael Bunin (born 1970)
John Bunny (1863–1915)
Hannibal Buress (born 1983)
Tituss Burgess (born 1979)
Carol Burnett (born 1933)
Bo Burnham (born 1990)
Burnie Burns (born 1973)
George Burns (1896–1996)
Jack Burns (1933–2020)
Sarah Burns (born 1981)
Bill Burr (born 1968)
Ty Burrell (born 1967)
Abe Burrows (1910–1985)
James Burrows (born 1940)
Steve Buscemi (born 1957)
Adam Busch (born 1978)
Rhea Butcher (born 1982)
Michelle Buteau
Brett Butler (born 1958)
Isaac Butterfield (born 1993)
Red Buttons (1919–2006)
Ruth Buzzi (born 1936)
Nicole Byer (born 1986)
John Byner (born 1938)
Ed Byrne (born 1972)
Jason Byrne (born 1972)
Rose Byrne (born 1979)
Steve Byrne (born 1974)
C
Louis C.K. (born 1967)
Angelique Cabral (born 1979)
Liz Cackowski
Sid Caesar (1922–2014)
Frank Caeti (born 1973)
Frank Caliendo (born 1975)
Charlie Callas (1924–2011)
Bryan Callen (born 1967)
Rhona Cameron (born 1965)
Adam Campbell (born 1980)
Archie Campbell (1914–1987)
Bru

Literature
Comic novel
Light poetry
Comedic journalism
Film
Comedy film
Anarchic comedy film
Gross-out film
Parody film
Romantic comedy
Screwball comedy film
Slapstick film
Audio recording
Comedy album
Television and radio
Television comedy
Situation comedy
Radio comedy
Comedy networks
British sitcom
British comedy
Comedy Central – A television channel devoted strictly to comedy
Comedy Nights with Kapil – An Indian television program
German television comedy
List of British TV shows remade for the American market
Paramount Comedy (Spain)
Paramount Comedy 1 and 2.
TBS (TV network)
The Comedy Channel (Australia)
The Comedy Channel (UK)
The Comedy Channel (United States) – merged into Comedy Central.
HA! – merged into Comedy Central
CTV Comedy Channel, a Canadian TV channel formerly known as The Comedy Network.
Gold
Sky Comedy