In a recent Instagram post, Amy Schumer made a bold proclamation, asserting herself as, and I quote, “the most successful female comedian of all time.”
The yardstick by which she measures this success remains a mystery. Perhaps she employed audiometers to gauge audience laughter at her shows over the years, or is there a database for such laugh measurements? Could it be the number of digits in her bank balance? This claim is quite challenging to substantiate.
The roots of her assertion are intricate and best comprehended by skimming through her recent social media posts. That’s a journey you’re welcome to embark upon. However, I’m here to discuss her declarations.
everyone is saying amy schumer has never made a funny joke but I disagree . have u seen this one ??? pic.twitter.com/WYcGGseo8q
— Hurt CoPain (@SaeedDiCaprio) November 2, 2023
Schumer has been a polarizing figure in the stand-up arena for what seems like an eternity. A substantial faction critiques her, claiming she’s “not funny” and suggesting that when she does elicit laughter, it’s due to allegedly “appropriating jokes from more talented comedians.”
In her defense, Amy has been the subject of innumerable jokes, taunts, and online scorn throughout her comedic career. Whether the barrage of criticism she endures is justified remains an open question.
Nevertheless, her detractors might not be entirely off-base. The comedian has faced allegations of joke appropriation from various sources including Mad TV, Twitter, Daniel Tosh, Kathleen Madigan, Ellen DeGeneres, Dave Attell, Ali Wong, Louis C.K., Dave Chappelle, and John Mulaney, among others. While success in comedy isn’t solely about financial wealth or the volume of audience laughter, there might be some validity to her claim about being the most triumphant comedian to build a career upon the material of others. To her credit, that in itself denotes a form of success.
