Stan Daniels passed away in 2007. He was best known for winning 8 Emmys on THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW and TAXI (which he co-created). He wrote a musical based on the Carl Reiner novel ENTER LAUGHING and was a great talent.
My book on comedy writing referred to a specific type of joke as an "immediate reverse." Further study reveals it was first dubbed the "Stan Daniels turn" years ago.
From his website (maintained by his family as a tribute:
"Stan was credited with introducing a particular type of joke that’s come to be known as “the Stan Daniels turn.” When a character says something and then unintentionally and unconsciously contradicts himself a moment later, the humor results from the character’s lack of awareness of the contradiction."
That's a bit complex, but let's see a classic example. I'm not sure if Stan wrote this joke personally but it's a great joke:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUtshfek8R4&feature=youtu.be&t=784
This joke - perfectly delivered by Ted Knight - has a strong assertion by the character. Then, new information. Then, immediate reverse. Classic.
As a final tribute in this blog post to Stan, here he is doing the warm-up for the MTMS audience:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUPWMBZIU0w
Stan was a great talent and will be missed.
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