I am conflicted. On one hand, I like the idea of an Fool in April post. Conversely, humor is very individualized. I see “jokes” on Quora or elsewhere that are unfunny, stupid, and/or outright offensive.
Here is a fast money segment from Family Feud in Botswana. What is mildly funny to me is Steve Harvey’s incredulity, rather than the responses.
Also in the game show category, So Wrong It’s Right: Funniest Responses on JEOPARDY, which are hit or miss for me.
Word Smarts highlights What makes a word funny. I didn’t really laugh at any of them. However, the fact that one of them, hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia, “has a humorously ironic meaning, as it refers to a fear of long words,” made it mildly amusing.
This video someone I follow online you may find uproariously funny or problematic. I suppose I find it funnier now that the “caller” is American, and thus, if not believable, then at least within the realm of the possible.
Conan O’Brien speaks on why FOTUS jokes aren’t funny, and I tend to agree. That didn’t keep him from making some quips during his opening monologue at the 2026 Oscars, which enraged 47.
I don’t remember jokes. More correctly, I don’t remember jokes other than the ones when I was 10 or 12, long, convoluted tales that end with groanworthy punchlines such as Island of Trids, immortal porpoises, and Mel Famey; the versions I learned differed in some details, as jokes are wont to do.
April Fools: The Roots of an International Tradition.
Puns
A guy I met online, who I subsequently met IRL sent these to me in June 2025. I threatened to post them today. He replied, “Cry UNCLE if these are too terrible.” Some of them are.
1. Two vultures board an airplane, each carrying two dead raccoons. The flight attendant looks at them and says, “I’m sorry, gentlemen, only one carrion allowed perpassenger.”
2. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. The one turns to the other and says “Dam!”
3. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can’t have your kayak and heat it too.
4. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says “I’ve lost my electron.” The other says “Are you sure?” The first replies “Yes, I’m positive.”
5. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? He wanted to transcend dental medication.
6. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recenttournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. “But why?” they asked, as they moved off. “Because,” he said, “I can’t stand chess- nuts boasting in an open foyer.”
It gets worse
7. A woman has twins and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named “Ahmal.” The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him “Juan.” Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birth mother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes shealso had a picture of Ahmal. Her husband responds, “They’re twins! If you’ve seen Juan, you’ve seen Ahmal.”
8. These friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh MacTaggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to “persuade” them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he’d be back if they didn’t close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that Hugh, and only Hugh, can prevent florist friars.
9. Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him a super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.
10. And finally, there was the person who sent ten different puns to his friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did!
Author: Roger
I'm a librarian. I hear music, even when it's not being played. I used to work at a comic book store, and it still informs my life. I won once on JEOPARDY! - ditto.
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