The Enduring Bill Cosby

Why is it that Bill Cosby’s routines never get old? I watch “Brain Damage” today and laugh harder than I did twenty years ago. (Maybe because I’m a parent now.) Here, blogger Garr Reynolds has compiled a few of Cosby’s classics, along with his recent commencement address to CMU grads, with the purpose of pointing out how enduring the power of personal narrative can be. Reynolds’ bottom line: funny or not everyone has personal stories worth telling.

Monday Fun

Periodic Table of Storytelling

Finally, a periodic table that I can understand! I did pass my Physics for Poets class in college, but let’s just say that science isn’t my strong suit. My favorite category is the “Story Modifiers.” (See Aws and Ang.) Sensitive souls, please be forewarned that a few of the elements fall into what my editorial colleagues call “the sphere of questionable language,” or LaQ, perhaps.

Rakugo for the Displaced

Storyteller Kyoraku is a storytelling celebrity in Japan. Rakugo is a traditional form of humorous storytelling. As the people of Japan reel from the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear reactor failures, he uses the form to bring a bright spot to the refugees’ tedious days. “If you want to make people around you smile,” he says. “You have to start by smiling yourself.”

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