The ‘It’ Factor: Humor
Improv comic Michael Bunin, star of the TBS series "My Boys," offers advice on how to add a laugh to your day-to-day life
Art often imitates life, especially on television. Such is the case on the hit TBS comedy “My Boys,” where almost anyone – guy or girl – can relate to antics, chiding and overall good times had by just being one of the guys (or a girl who’s just one of the guys). A humorous outlook on life, though, doesn’t have to happen only on the small screen. Michael Bunin, the improv veteran who stars as Kenny on “My Boys,” offers his tips on making humor more prevalent in life.
1. Humor in your outlook on life
You can find humor in most things, says Bunin. “For me personally, I just think that when things go wrong and or when you get a flat tire on your way to a first date with a nice girl or a job interview, I try to look at certain situations as levels of importance,” he says. “Try to break down the importance of certain issues and how much weight you give them.” Try not to weigh the bad things too much, says Bunin, and learn to laugh at them or make a funny story. In the end, you could have always had a worse day.
2. Use humor to improvise
“When it comes to improv, in particular, it’s really about commitment … the nice thing about improv is it’s in the moment,” Bunin says. Improv is all about trying to make a character, and what he likes so much about it is the idea that the person is committed to doing something silly, no matter how absurd or serious the subject. When you know your crowd, be it a group of friends or co-workers, and you can play off of each other and anticipate what the others are going to say. Seize the moment and make it memorable.
3. Remember to keep humor appropriate
On the show, P.J. is one girl surrounded by a cadre of men. For the most part, the characters tailor their humor around her, Bunin says, but they don’t hold much back. “When she’s not around, the guys are worse,” he adds. Jokes should not be used to offend or degrade, which also comes up in the show with the not-so-well-liked character Trouty, who Bunin says is not so much a bad guy but a bad hang. “Most of the time we don’t [censor ourselves], but we don’t want to say certain things.”
Comic Michael Bunin
4. Know when to keep it straight and serious
You want to feel out the situation to make sure you don’t step on someone or make one joke too many. “Be funny but not too funny,” Bunin says. “Less is more.” This is even true for Bunin and the other actors on his show. “The writers give us great stuff, which makes it very easy for us to want to play with it,” he says. It’s really easy for them to go overboard with the jokes, he says, and they want to blame the writers. Really, he says, it’s just them wanting to jump in on the fun.
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