The sun is shining, the road is clear, and he decides to see how fast it can go. When he reaches over 100mph, out of nowhere a cop car with flashing lights appears behind him. The guy pulls over, the cop approaches him, and says: “You know, today is actually my last day on the job. I’m tired, I just want to go home, and to be honest with you, I never really liked writing speeding tickets. So if you can give me a good reason why you were going so fast, I’m gonna let you go.” The guy thinks for a second, and says: “My wife left me last week for a cop. I thought you were trying to return her back to me.”
Joke Poo: The Misunderstood Delivery
A stressed-out package delivery driver is having a terrible day. He’s behind schedule, his truck is overheating, and the GPS keeps sending him down dead-end streets. Finally, he pulls up to his last stop: a fancy house with a meticulously manicured lawn.
As he struggles to wrestle a giant, heavy box off the truck, the homeowner emerges, looking impatient. The driver, sweating and flustered, trips, nearly dropping the package.
The homeowner sighs dramatically and says, “You know, today is my anniversary. My wife is already upset that I forgot to order the gift she wanted. To be honest, I never really liked dealing with delivery services, so if you can give me a good reason why you’re so late, I might not report you.”
The driver, covered in sweat and dirt, frantically grabs his hat and says, “Sir, I thought this was your wife! The label only said ‘For the biggest pain in the butt I know’, and the tracking system was making so many mistakes, that I thought you requested this package so you can send her away forever.”
Okay, let’s dissect this joke!
Key Elements of the Joke:
- The Setup: Brand new Corvette, sunny day, clear road, desire for speed. Sets up a classic scenario of potential trouble with the law.
- The Twist: The cop’s unexpected leniency due to it being his last day. This subverts expectations and creates a chance for the driver to escape punishment.
- The Punchline: The driver’s outrageous (and hopefully believable) excuse about his wife leaving him for a cop, playing on the cop’s desire to avoid work and potentially on the cop’s own sensitivity about the profession.
Underlying Themes:
- Authority vs. Rebellion: The driver attempting to get away with speeding versus the cop’s authority.
- Humor in Absurdity: The implausibility of the excuse and the cop potentially buying it.
- Marital Troubles: Adding a layer of relatability through the shared experience of marital woes.
- Stereotypes: Playing on stereotypes of cops disliking paperwork.
Comedic Enrichment & New Humor:
Let’s focus on the “Corvette” and the “Speeding” elements.
Did You Know (that can lead to humor)?
- The Corvette has been manufactured since 1953, and is still going strong.
- Early Corvettes (like the 1953 model) were notoriously underpowered compared to their sporty appearance. Imagine that same scenario above with a 1953 Corvette. The cop pulls him over and says, “Son, I’m giving you a ticket for attempting to break the sound barrier.”
New Joke Idea (Playing on the Corvette’s History):
A guy gets pulled over in a pristine 1961 Corvette. The cop walks up and says, “License and registration, please. And you know why I pulled you over?” The guy replies, “Officer, I have no idea. I haven’t even hit 60 yet. This old Vette takes a week to get there!” The cop sighs, “Sir, I pulled you over because your car is so beautiful, it’s a distraction to other drivers. I’m writing you a ticket for ‘Driving While Too Gorgeous’.”
Witty Observation (on the Speeding Ticket Element):
You know, speeding tickets are weird. They’re basically a legal way for the government to say, “We know you’re going faster than you’re supposed to, but we’ll let you keep doing it… for a fee.” It’s like a subscription service for illegal activity!
Another New Joke Idea:
A man gets pulled over for speeding in his Corvette. The officer asks, “Sir, do you know how fast you were going?”
The man replies, “Well officer, I was trying to get out of town before they raise the gas prices again.”
The officer nods sympathetically, “I understand, sir. But I can’t let you go, here’s a ticket for preemptive inflation evasion.”
Why these work:
- “Did you know”: Relates the Corvette with its humorous past, and the absurdity of a speeding joke without speed.
- Gorgeous Corvette: It takes a stereotype and flips it, acknowledging the car’s beauty as a problem.
- Subscription service: Adds a cynical, modern perspective to a common frustration.
- Gas Prices: Plays on current events and the stress they cause.
The key is to take a seemingly mundane element and elevate it to the absurd or ironic. The original joke relied on an already silly premise, so building upon that foundation of absurdity is the best way to create new comedic value!