The Aristocrats

Offensive joke about a performance act

This article is about the offensive joke known as "The Aristocrats". For other uses, see Aristocrat (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with The Aristocats.

"The Aristocrats" is a taboo-defying, off-color joke that has been told by numerous stand-up comedians since the vaudeville era.[1] It relates the story of a family trying to get an agent to book their stage act, which is remarkably vulgar and offensive. The punch line reveals that they incongruously bill themselves as "The Aristocrats".[2] When told to audiences who know the punch line, the joke's humor depends on the described outrageousness of the family act.[3][4] Because the objective of the joke is its transgressive content, it is most often told privately,[5] such as by comedians to other comedians.[6]

The joke came to wider public attention when Gilbert Gottfried told it during the Friars' Club roast of Hugh Hefner to recover after losing the crowd and eliciting "booing and hissing" with a joke about the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which had occurred just 18 days prior.[7] The 2005 documentary film of the same name by Paul Provenza and Penn Jillette featured numerous comedians discussing and retelling the joke.[8] Jillette has claimed the routine was Johnny Carson's favorite joke of all time.[9]

## Format

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This joke typically has these elements—alternative versions may change this form.

1. Setup: A family act (or a representative, usually a head of household) goes in to see a talent agent about booking their act. The agent asks what their act consists of.
2. Act: If the whole family is present, the act is performed for the agent; otherwise it is described, in as much detail as the teller prefers, typically ad lib. Traditionally, the description is tasteless and ribald, with the goal to significantly transgress social norms. Taboo elements such as racism, animal cruelty, incest, rape, child sexual abuse, coprophilia, coprophagia, bestiality, necrophilia, cannibalism, and murder are common themes.
3. Punch line: The shocked (or intrigued) agent asks what the act is called, and the proud answer (sometimes delivered with a flourish) is: "The Aristocrats!"

## See also

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* Dead baby jokes
* Shaggy dog story

## References

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1. ^ Gini, Al (2015). "Dirty Jokes, Tasteless, Jokes, Ethnic Jokes" (PDF). Florida Philosophical Review. XV (1): 50–65. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
2. ^ Germain, David (July 25, 2005). "Hilarious 'Aristocrats' gets the joke". Today. Archived from the original on January 24, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
3. ^ Seabaugh, Julie (July 28, 2015). "One big joke". Nevada Public Radio. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
4. ^ Czajkowski, Elise (August 15, 2012). "Diving Deep Into the Dirtiest Joke Ever in 'The Aristocrats'". Vulture. Archived from the original on July 8, 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
5. ^ Rosenberg, Joyce (August 2010). "The Aristocrats". The Psychoanalytic Review. 97 (4): 695–700\. doi:10.1521/prev.2010.97.4.695. ISSN 0033-2836. PMID 20804331. Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
6. ^ The Aristocrats (Motion picture). Mighty Cheese Productions. 2005.
7. ^ Fox, Jesse David (September 9, 2019). "After a 9/11 Joke Bombed, Gilbert Gottfried Told the Dirtiest Joke in Comedy". Vulture. Archived from the original on October 10, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
8. ^ Lawson, Dom (January 10, 2024). ""You get a few people that bring notepads and binoculars, but a lot of people find the fun aspect appealing... It's not prog because it's silly, it's not jazz because it's loud and it's not rock because it's weird": So what are The Aristocrats?". Loudersound. Archived from the original on August 29, 2024. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
9. ^ Penn Jillette (August 21, 2005). "Letter to Roger Ebert". Movie Answer Man. RogerEbert.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved October 29, 2011.