Why is there so hard to find funny female comedians or good actresses? (see desc.)

Sarah Silverman is a riot.

Wow, I can think of a whole bunch of actresses that I really like watching work:

Susan Sarandon
Sandra Bullock
Isabella Rosselini
Meryl Streep

Just to name a few.

As to comediennes, there are a lot of them that I like, but I don’t know their names. i do like Paula Poundstone, Ellen DeGeneres.

Madeline Kahn
Terry Garr
Rosanne Barr
Gilda Radner
Katherine Hepburn
Gracie Allen
Brittany Murphy (rip)

There is no shortage of good female comedians. Only a shortage of people who recognize them.

I think Kathy Griffin and Lisa Lampenelli can really be funny.
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are hilarious
Of course there was Lucille Ball, Lily Tomlin, Estelle Getty, Bea Arthur, Betty White—all classics
I just don’t think it’s something women are often too successful at .. and that’s a shame.

Agree with Marina. There are countless great actresses. Besides the one she mentions (except for Bullock), there are Laura Linney, Gwenith Palthrow, Charlize Theron, the amazingly versatile Marcia Gay Harden, Cate Blanchett, Tilda Swinton, Julia Ormond, Virginia Madsen, and http://www.listology.com/list/my-favorite-actresses.

This question reminds me of a music poll we have here called the Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time. Out of 100 not one single song had a female singer or even band member, there was outrage but I guess it points out a pretty serious issue in society.

For some reason people think there aren’t many great female actors, singers, comedians etc. Not entirely confident as to why this is though because they definitely are out there and plenty of them. They just don’t get the recognition they deserve. I suppose there is a subconscious attitude towards women that might contribute to this.

Here’s a list of female comedians that Maria Bamford — the funniest person alive — compiled:

http://mariabamford.com/funnywomen.shtml

But perhaps I didn’t understand what you wrote, because “why is there so hard…” makes zero sense.

well the things i that those people you have listed…I don’t think they are funny….kinda…Perhaps I just have a bad humour…

Time flies! This question is almost a year old now, but it has the names of some hilarious women! A couple I enjoy, Lucille Ball, Tina Fey, Kristen Wiig, Jane Krakowski, and Debra Messing.

Super talented actresses include Amy Adams, Helena Bonham Carter, Annette Bening, Julianna Marguiles,.

I can’t really relate as most of my favourite actors and comedians are women, they far outweigh the men in my list of favourites. I wouldn’t say this is sexist of you though, maybe you just relate easier to men’s humour.

I LOVE Lucille Ball. And then there’s that one gal whose name I can’t remember at the moment… Ugg I hate it when that happens.

Check this out

women aren’t generally funny which is precisely why the few who do make it are pretty damn good. Christopher Hitchens has his own colourful theory, but women tend toward a behaviour that is sexually enticing rather than comically appealing.

@mammal. I remember watching that video a few months ago. Hitchens does make a good point that women don’t need to be funny like men do.
Men have more of a motivation to be funny than women do because if they don’t have the looks to attract a partner, a funny personality usually will make up for that.
I suppose it works that way for women too but to a much lesser degree. That doesn’t mean female comedians aren’t funny, there are just less of them.

@JustPlainBarb Great list! We saw Lisa Lampanelli when she came to town last. I haven’t laughed that hard in years.

I Love Lucy!! :))

I love Judy Gold.

@mammal I disagree completely. I think that’s what men want to see, so that’s what they see. Also, I think women have a different comedic style. Men often resort to dick jokes and tired racial comparisons.

Wanda Sykes, Carol Burnett

Lisa Lampanelli’s jokes are all about how she has a fat ass and loves black penis. Sarah Sivlerman’s jokes and show are all about poopy. Maria Bamford just does creepy impressions. Sandra Bullock is the single most annoying person on earth. I don’t know why, but she is. I can’t stand a single movie she’s in.
Looks like you tried to say “why is it so hard to find funny female comedians” as well as “Why are there so few funny female comedians” and ended up with “Why is there so hard”

There’s a handful of good female actresses that I can think of. Tina Fey, Amanda Tapping, Kristen Bell, Zooey Deschanel, Katey Segal, Olivia Wilde. They’re all total babes, too

@ubersiren no, as a rule women aren’t funny, it would be grossly delusional to assume otherwise, does it matter? do women need to be funny?

I can’t help but think that “good” is different to men than it is to women regarding gender in entertainment. For example, Sarcasm’s comment above about the “good” female actresses who just happen to be babes, too? This can’t be coincidence. What about Helen Mirren, Kathy Bates, Annette Benning, Leelee Sobieski, Holly Hunter, Diane Keaton, Sally Field, Claire Danes, Julie Andrews, Jodie Foster, Frances McDormand, Gena Davis, etc.They’re good actresses, even though they’re not 108 lbs, in their 20’s, tight and stacked.

As far as comics go, it has also come to my attention that men think that actual funny women are annoying because they don’t act like their ideal woman. Like, Ellen Degeneres. A man could do the same jokes and get riotous laughter. Same with Sarah Silverman. She’s got a potty mouth and a unique delivery. Put that on a man, and they’d be a solid gold act. Dane Cook… a woman acting the way he does on stage would never fly.

I also happen to think that Samantha Bee from The Daily Show is great. Remember Molly Shannon? Love her. What about freaking Janeane Garofalo?! Or, some people find her annoying, but I like Joan Rivers. Same with Kathy Griffin. Now she’s actually funnier, imho, on her show than on stage. In the last season of Last Comic Standing, the winner was a woman, Iliza Shlesinger, and I thought she was just as funny as the male winners of previous years, and in some regards, funnier.

If you can’t “see” these women, then you’re not looking hard enough, or in the right places, or at all.

@mammal As a rule? Like, as a rule men aren’t good at cleaning house and raising children? Would you like a pot pie with that?

@ubersiren why fool yourself, most women would rather knock their front teeth out than act the clown.

@ubersiren I’ve found the problem.
I looked up all of those women you’ve listed. I’ve seen Terminator 3 which has Claire Danes, Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which has Helen Mirren, and Burn After Reading which has Frances McDormand. Other than those 3 films, I haven’t seen a single movie with any of those actresses.
I guess the problem here is that you watch films with strong female actresses. I watch ones with tons of badass explosions girls who are put more into the background, and aren’t given a chance to shine.

Also, I hate Dane Cook. I love Samantha Bee, but I don’t really consider anyone on the Daily Show to be an actor/ress. I haven’t watched Last Comic Standing since the very first season with Dat Phan. I actually didn’t know that show was still around, I thought they only did one season of it.

2 of the best comedians ever are women—Lucille Ball & Carol Burnett. Aside from the great ones listed above, I think Jennifer Saunders is hilarious. Ab Fab is one of the funniest comedies ever.

You know why you can’t find a good actress or female comedian you like?

Because she is sitting in her Disney flannel “Dopey” nightshirt, in England, under a crumpled duvet, on New Year’s Eve writing this posting on Fluther…. that’s why!

Hyperbole is the best thing ever.

I loved Carol Burnett way back when, her Missus Wiggins character with Harvey Korman (sp) was hilarious..’ Oooh, Missus Ha’Whiggens….I have always wanted to try my hand at stand up comedy.

@Coloma That was my favorite skit!

I lurve Margaret Cho.

People seem to like this….and she is female!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wFhSbJWWZM