Brian Regan talks to Google: “How to Make People Laugh”

Don’t get as excited about the title for this Google Talk as I and others may have. Yes, Brian Regan visited Google for an interview and Q&A session this summer, and Google titled it “How to Make People Laugh.”

The interview with Regan doesn’t quite go that deep on the topic they chose to title it with, but there’s plenty to enjoy and chew on here. From Regan discussing his early attempts at prop comedy, to learning to write very specific material for the Ft. Lauderdale comedy club where the owner put auditioning comics on after the headliner, to changing up his material to avoid critics or audiences pinning him down as a specific kind of comedian. He also discloses one specifically “unclean” bit that he used to do but refused to include in one of his earlier televised specials.

On the actual topic of making people laugh, Regan said he comes first.

“You should be saying what you think is funny,” he said, and not trying to figure out what the crowd thinks is funny and what they want. “What’s the point? Seems like a waste of time.”

And he has a technique for calming his nerves if the crowd doesn’t seem that into him.

“If I’m having a bad show, I imagine myself sitting in the middle of the audience. Just make me laugh. The problem is I usually end up heckling myself. You stink!” he joked. “Because I know I can do that. I know I can make me laugh.”

Sean L. McCarthy

Editor and publisher since 2007, when he was named New York's Funniest Reporter. Former newspaper reporter at the New York Daily News, Boston Herald and smaller dailies and community papers across America. Loves comedy so much he founded this site.

View all posts by Sean L. McCarthy →

One thought on “Brian Regan talks to Google: “How to Make People Laugh”

Comments are closed.