QUALITY OF HUMOUR

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 10, 13 January 1933, Page 6

QUALITY OF HUMOUR

"PUNCH'S" NEW EDITOR

MR. E. V. KNOX'S VIEWS

Mr. E. V. Knox ("Evoo',') at the end. of his first week in the editor's chair at "Punch," talked to a representative of the "Observer"' on trio subject of .English, humour in-general and "Punch" humour in particular, of his plans for the future, the differences of outlook which, Separate' the humour of one age and one raw from another, and hinted at a not-sd-far-ofi time when comic papers may have nothing to be comic about. 'In. spite of this last-named prospect, however, Mr. Knox is free from dospair. He has been writing for "Punch" since 1906'(he ia now fifty-one), and has seen a generation change its notions of fun completely yet still remain funny to those who remember.- a time when plumbers, policemen, arid Irishmen prdvidecl the nation' with most 'of. its humour. ' : - " '■.'■-'■' .. "It is difficult jto> say what changes, if .any, will be made in 'Punch' in the future," said Mr. Knox. " 'Punch' is an institution as well as a paper, and there are thousands of readers who would regard any change, no matter how slight, with a sense of personal injury." , ■'-'■,'■■ '■'■ "Do you contemplate allowing your authors—especially your; now authors— to sign their contributions instead of hiding them to all but those ' in" the know' under the guise of initials and pseudonyms—such" as 'Evoe'l'.» '.'That is.a point. There is no doubt that in the ease of a:humorous article the- signature of." a well-known humorist at onia puts his readers into the. right frame of mind. They know what to expectj and before- they begin to read have already made up their minds that they are going to be amused. Only a bungler could fail after that.' I have not yet made up'my mind, however ', whether this applies to 'Punch,' though if- certain writers I am, hoping to induce to write for us do so, I may break with tradition and sign their names in full." THE NEW GENERATION.. ... - Mr. Knbx is confident -that the ?new generation is carrying on the English tradition 'of humour.; -:;'.'There are several very bright young men. writing forus,V he said, "of whom 51 Save great hopes. They are mostly; from Oxford- or Cambridge. What is-.wrong with the others who swamp us with manuscripts'ia that they are far. too content to give us -imitations "of. the work of other. members of our: .staff, instead of sitting down and trying Jto be funny after their own. vfashion. ■• Thiey seem frightened that' if they-are not imitating- fA,P.H.', 'or *E.V.L;'^or '-A.A.'j their contributions will -not .be accepted, whereas'what we *re»always looking out ( for>is humour that is entirely fresh,1 and riot a" mere echo of what others are usually able -tb';do over so much, -better,' "The problem of the amateur contributor to -Punch' —and by amateur I mean toe.writer iff ho does not make writing his jot - is an awkward one, -1 suppose'we have more amateur contributors, or would-be contributors:: father, 'than -any, other humorous : paper in the world. They writeto us from all parts ;pf the world) from the Par East to;the Far West. Civil servants, army arid.navy people, 'tea planters^ rubber planters—they all seem to shai-e the notion that though writing1 may hot. be. .quite: a , man's job, writing, for 'Punch? is- difforient. The trouble: with this type of contributor is that though he has the' material and the experience necessary to produce first-rate stuff, he usually, can't write it,, whereas' the other would-be contributorsat: Home -can' write ,but' lave ■nothing to say. ":[" .....' ; . ; "How; would you describe 'Punch's' particular style of humour? "Mr, Knox "was;asked^':■■:•■*■ -,::-"\-v>- .'"■'-:-".V.'--- ' ■ :, : - '''That is not .at all as easy as" it sounds.-, You might describe it as Bbmfr thing! essentially of the apper: middleclasses, if one has. to use these dreadful categories. • People occasionally, icbarge us with. Grundyism.' -By that^lvsujpppse they mean that .we:donoi.caretQ: print jokes';■ which, 'no ;y English'"; newspaper would .care-: to print,*: We may;'suffer from' Grundyism^ :;but : if< mo do, it' is a- complaint from which eyery newspaper in Britain suffers.'-Ifthe "British -Press were to.publish/ for instance some of the jokes which Exi change' thinks fiinriy; they ,'would sooa find. themselves . being* burnt on."- the stock; E^ehlnge.-- ,;;:;■■;. v;":;-;h. !■-■•■'■; " MORESOPHISTICATED. " "What would you say was the--most striking -difference--.* between - the 'Punch of to-day" arid::the;!'Punch' of Victorian timesfM; -^" ; V'/y;''- : "I should describe-it'simply as the difference between- the' upper -middleclasses of to-day- and the upper middleclasses of yesterday. People to-day are much more.fsophisticateu', especially the nouveau-rlche type1 from, which, 'punch' in the past has-drawn so much of its humour. People seem to-be .taught everything.now by.-salesmen, bo that there is no possibility of their, making f aux-pas. They may still, -drop their H's,' but that is'no longer a lauehine matter. ~ . '-;;"; ' „> -):;■'*■ 6 "This brings me to a point* with which I think the. editor 'of .'every humorous paper will agree. It is a rather dreadful prospect, but the fact is. that the people comic artists, used to make fun of-—policemen, yokels, housemaids, Irishmen, Scotsmen, plumbers and their mates-r-are all much wiser- and' much more sophisticated than they used to be. They know too much about the ways, of the world and .how other people live to make the mistakes, we used to think funny. There' are, however, still the politicians, and the Bright Young Thing, who does not seem to have changed much— though she would probably hate ;to: think so—since Leech's or Dv Maurier's day. ' When^these' disappear—though I have hopes of eternal life for the politician in the pages of the comic journals —there will be no more humorous papers as we know them to-day. "I believe, however, that some of the old jokes are still the best, and that jokes likewise are often better for being old, provided, of course, that they are carefully handled. We may know what is coming, but we get our amusement from speculating as to how the dear old thing is going to come out in this particular version.: That, for instance,; is the secret of the great Scotch joke. It is as old as. the mountains, but in a new dress it seems fresher than ever.";" > v ■>' . >Mr. Knox has no fears1 of English humour being killed by the Americanisation of the talkies and of certain American humorous -papers which' enjoy a wide circulation; in England. "The best American humonr, suclilas that of Stephen Leaooek, Don Maibuis. and, in the old days, Bret Harte, is, after all, very much like our own. The other type is of such a mechanical nature that it will only appeal (after the novelty has worn off)- to a race of people completely dominated by machines." • , .-':;