Jury Doody
Okay, here’s my attempt at a “Joke Poo” version of the courthouse janitor joke, riffing on the pun and premise:
Joke Poo: Museum Muck
I used to be the night watchman at the Natural History Museum. The worst part of the job was:
Dino Doody.
Alright, let’s break down this joke:
Analysis:
- Setup: “I used to be the courthouse janitor.” Establishes the speaker’s former profession and setting. It leads the audience to expect a story about the general challenges or experiences of being a courthouse janitor.
- Punchline: “Jury Doody.” This is a pun, a play on words using the similar-sounding phrase “Jury Duty.” It creates humor through unexpected word substitution. The humor also lies in the contrast between the solemnity of jury duty and the vulgarity of “doody” (a euphemism for feces).
Key Elements:
- Courthouse: The setting. A place of law, order, and (ostensibly) high moral standards.
- Janitor: A blue-collar worker responsible for cleaning and maintenance, often overlooked and dealing with the less glamorous aspects of a building.
- Jury Duty: A civic responsibility, often viewed as inconvenient or burdensome.
- Pun: The mechanism for humor, relying on a sound-alike.
- Doody: Relates to waste and the dirty side of cleaning that a janitor would deal with.
Humorous Enrichment:
Let’s leverage these elements to craft a new joke/observation:
Option 1: Expanding on the Pun
“I hear they’re trying to implement a new composting program at the courthouse. They say they’re ‘duty-bound’ to reduce their waste… But I suspect it’s really just so the janitor can finally brag about ‘jury doody’ being good for the environment.”
Why it Works:
- It continues the pun from the original joke, stretching it to a new context (composting).
- It adds a layer of irony by suggesting a noble cause (environmentalism) is merely a pretext for more janitor-related humor.
- “Duty-bound” is a legal term, appropriate for the setting and adding to the wordplay.
Option 2: A ‘Did You Know’ Observation
“Did you know that statistically, people are more likely to get out of jury duty if they claim to have intimate knowledge of all cleaning products used at a courthouse? Apparently, the sheer volume of data about disinfectants and pH levels is enough to make any lawyer’s eyes glaze over. And the janitor gets to stay home and watch Judge Judy.”
Why it Works:
- It is factually inaccurate, but structured like a “did you know” fact to add to the humour.
- It connects to the janitor character and their intimate knowledge of cleaning, but uses a bizarre and unexpected reason to get out of jury duty.
- It references Judge Judy, a pop-culture reference that fits within the courthouse world.
Option 3: Darker humour and a New Joke
I used to be the courthouse janitor, but I quit. They started letting the jurors handle the cleaning during deliberations. Turns out, when they’re arguing over a verdict, they take out all their aggression on the mop bucket. Talk about a hung jury…and a very, very soiled floor.
Why it Works:
- It uses a new setup to lead to another play on words that ties into the court setting and links to the waste that a janitor has to deal with.
- There is a sense of the absurd with the idea that the jury have to clean during deliberations.
- This makes the punchline more impactful.