To Laugh

In a survey of more than 600 cancer survivors, the statement that most said that they want others to know is, “I need to laugh — or just forget about cancer for a while!“ But how to get a laugh, chortle, or even smile from someone punched by cancer? Check out the resources below (you can find guidelines and criteria here).

Films

The following films are from Lori’s friend Tania Condon’s list, which she put together for a friend going through a bone marrow transplant:

  • Idiocracy
  • Hot Tub Time Machine
  • Get Him to the Greek
  • Superbad
  • Midnight in Paris
  • Don’t Know How She Does It
  • Nothing in Common
  • Baby Boom
  • When Harry Met Sally
  • French Kiss
  • Out Cold
  • I Love You, Man
  • Forgetting Sarah Marshall
  • Bridesmaids
  • Crazy, Stupid Love
  • The Muppets
  • Anchorman
  • Best in Show
  • Overboard
  • Parenthood
  • Office Space
  • Old School
  • Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion
  • Wedding Crashers
  • She’s the Man
  • The 40 Year Old Virgin
  • The Promotion
  • Flipped
  • The Proposal
  • Accepted
  • Lars and the Real Girl
  • Space Balls
  • The Whole Nine Yards
  • Hitch
  • Just Friends
  • The Big Lebowski
  • Zoolander
  • Napoleon Dynamite
  • Something About Mary
  • Robin Hood Men in Tights
  • Blazing Saddles
  • Young Frankenstein
  • She’s Out of My League
  • Knocked Up
  • Talladega Nights

Short Online Videos

Television Shows

  • The Office [LH fave! Made her laugh so hard that my incisions ached. But totally worth it!]
  • Parks and Recreation [Another LH fave – she couldn’t get enough of it!}
  • 30 Rock – another LH fave – made her laugh and laugh and laugh!
  • “Just for Laughs” a “Candid Camera” type show. Top 10 Shows here 

The following TV shows are again from Tania’s list:

  • New Girl
  • Curb Your Enthusiasm
  • Party Down
  • Freaks & Geeks
  • Extras
  • Louie
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • Community
  • Glee
  • Eastbound & Down
  • Up All Night
  • Modern Family
  • Doc Martin
  • Eddie Izzard (comedian)
  • Kathleen Madigan (comedian)
  • Friends
  • Parks and Recreation
  • Always Sunny in Philadelphia
  • 30 Rock
  • Da Ali G Show
  • Arrested Development
  • Up All Night
  • The Change Up
  • Cougar Town
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • Family Guy
  • Jim Gaffigan (comedian)
  • Archer
  • Suburgatory
  • Futurama
  • Pan Am
  • Community
  • The Office (English version)

Radio Shows

Tumor Humor
Warning: Many people with cancer aren’t prepared to deal with humor resources related to cancer. Others may be. It’s crucial that you ask your friend or loved one before sharing such resources.

 

The Best “Good News” Site on the Web – Most people with cancer abhor hearing all the bad news of the day, which typically upsets them even more. A gift of good news can mean the world to them, so seek out and share good news (after asking permission, of course).

Blogs, Books and Cartoons

  • Cancer is so Funny, a blog by Amy Marash – and her book  – Cartoons and drawings by Amy Marash convert fear and rage about cancer into a manageable, almost laughable experience. WARNING: This goes under the Tumor Humor Category – so if your friend needs non-tumor related humor you might want to wait before sharing this.
  • Cancer Comic Strip – by Suzan St Maur two-time cancer survivor: “I find that humor helps me get through my cancer, and from what I understand it helps many others too. This blog is dedicated not to information about the disease, but to cancer warriors and their relatives/friends who just want some cheering chuckles.”

Other – Hope, Friends, and Humor (Inspire is an online support community that provides sites for diverse diseases and conditions – check it out). Great way to connect around humor and share jokes, etc.!   http://www.inspire.com/groups/lung-cancer-survivors/topics/hope-friends-and-humor/

 

21 thoughts on “To Laugh”

  2. Movie: Young Frankenstein – enjoy the absurdity
    T.V.: Everybody Loves Raymond – a laugh in the evening can release some of the tension
    Celebrate: Enjoy a glass of champagne with friends to mark every small success

  3. YouTube Videos: “Literal Videos”. My favorites are Safety Dance Literal Video, Take On Me Literal Video, Total Eclipse of the Heart Literal Video, and Anything for Love Literal Video; however there are so many of these that I’m sure everyone can find one they love.

    TV Shows: During treatment I watched the entire Scrubs series. It is a medical show and does have some tear-jerking moments, but overall it made me laugh more than cry.

  4. More movies: Anything by Mel Brooks. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. Wedding Crashers. The Forty Year-Old Virgin. The Jerk. The Hangover. Couples Retreat (just for the Yoga scene alone). Caddyshack. Old School. Ghostbusters. Stripes. Arthur (original). Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Airplane.

  5. if anyone needs a good laugh they should watch the following
    1.a video called bill cosby himself
    2.scrubs
    3.america’s funneist video’s
    4.two and a half men
    5.an a endless amount of comedy movies which can be watched at you tube.com
    or purchased to watch at home
    my name is Glen Welsh my postal mail address is my aunts house which is 3836
    copper beech dr. abingdon md 21009 and and my aunts phone number is 443-528-2625 ask for Glen if yoy get a no longer in service call back another time

  6. A boy went to a Halloween party with a sheet on his head.”Are you a ghost ?” asked his friends….”No, I’m an unmade bed !” Another boy went to a Halloween party with a sheet on his head.

  11. Matthew Baldwin is a wonderful writer who often writes about being a new father and husband, among other things. “On the Ball” is one of my favorites. See excerpt below.
    http://www.defectiveyeti.com/archives/000920.html

    “It was a little after ten on Friday evening, and I was trying to get The Squirrelly to sleep by holding him while bouncing up and down on an exercise ball in a darkened room. Then, just as he closed his eyes and started to breath deeply, the ball beneath us decided to embark on a new career as a big piece of ruptured plastic… “

  12. There are a lot of you tube videos from japan and you can just type japanese funniest videos. The videos will really uplift and make them laugh. Try it!

  15. Pingback: Help Cancer Patients Laugh: Good News Network Author Enters Hospice | OccuWorld

  16. Pingback: Help Cancer Patients Laugh: Good News Network Author Enters Hospice | Life Possible

  17. I have a spoiled shih tzu– she’s so stubborn and spoiled– she actually has her own wardrobe, her own squeaky cell phone, a plush chanel perfume, and– oh yeah: her own room. We converted the dining room into her room. She has 3 doggie beds, a table full of photos, and her own small tv on which she watches Animal Planet all day.

    Hope this gives you a smile. Take care of you.

  18. Pingback: Help Cancer Patients Laugh: Good News Network Author Enters Hospice - Newsits

  19. The new movie from France – the “Intouchables” Funny, honest, delightfully shocking and it has to do with a quadrapalegic and is based on a true story. Loved, loved, loved it- it does have subtitles but after a minute or two didn’t even notice