---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It always bothered me when people would…"
description: "\"It always bothered me when people would think the joke was that I was playing a woman. I never saw myself as a boy making fun of women. They were my fr..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97a/cole-escola-6042_friendship_it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would_1652888.jpg"
---

#  It always bothered me when people would think the joke was…

![“It always bothered me when people would think the joke was that I was playing a woman. I never saw myself as a boy making fun of women. They were my friends growing up. They were who I wanted to be. They were the ones that accepted me.” quote by Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97a/cole-escola-6042_friendship_it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would_1652888.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97a/cole-escola-6042_friendship_it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would_1652888.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97a/cole-escola-6042_friendship_it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would_1652888.jpg)

> “It always bothered me when people would think the joke was that I was playing a woman. I never saw myself as a boy making fun of women. They were my friends growing up. They were who I wanted to be. They were the ones that accepted me.”

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The speaker rejects the stereotype that jokes about women are misogynistic, emphasizing personal identity and friendship.

**In simple terms:** Jokes aren’t about gender; they’re about personal experience.

Key Takeaway

Respect identity and context in humor.

Themes

identity friendship humor

Mood

thoughtful empathetic

Type

comedic personal

When to use this quote

- stand‑up comedy
- online memes
- social media interactions

Key Concepts

gender studies social dynamics personal narrative

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you ensure jokes respect all audiences?
- What role do friendships play in shaping comedic voice?

A Different Perspective

Humor can unintentionally reinforce stereotypes despite intent.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Joke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joke/) [Making fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-fun/) [Woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/woman/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/)

## Related quotes

> [With anything you put out there, you're going to offend somebody, but most people get that it's a joke, that I'm playing a character,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-moore/with-anything-you-put-out-there-you-re-going-to-offend-somebody-but/)

[Trevor Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-moore/)

> [I realised that all one really had to do was just observe. Observe and slightly exaggerate, and you had comedy. Instead of creating a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do-was-just-observe-observe-and/)

[Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/)

> [When I opened for Amy Schumer it went really well. Even though I was on stage in my underwear, in a wig, playing a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/when-i-opened-for-amy-schumer-it-went-really-well-even-though-i-was/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [The moment you think of a joke is the best moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judd-apatow/the-moment-you-think-of-a-joke-is-the-best-moment/)

[Judd Apatow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judd-apatow/)

> [A lot of times people come up to me saying 'oh my god you can see,' and they think they're the first person to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-wolff/a-lot-of-times-people-come-up-to-me-saying-oh-my-god-you-can-see-and/)

[Nat Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-wolff/)

> [For me, there is safety in playing a woman that is very sexualized and having a woman direct you with that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juno-temple/for-me-there-is-safety-in-playing-a-woman-that-is-very-sexualized-and/)

[Juno Temple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juno-temple/)

> [I am open to playing a woman again. I would like to explore lot of other things as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiku-sharda/i-am-open-to-playing-a-woman-again-i-would-like-to-explore-lot-of/)

[Kiku Sharda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiku-sharda/)

> [I loved doing 'Pop Factor,' though I know a lot of people were a bit uncomfortable with that, what with me playing a woman,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kay/i-loved-doing-pop-factor-though-i-know-a-lot-of-people-were-a-bit/)

[Peter Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kay/)

> [I just want to say this. I love being a woman. I love playing a woman. I love being a whole and full woman.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/i-just-want-to-say-this-i-love-being-a-woman-i-love-playing-a-woman-i/)

[Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/)

> [I was certainly never conscious of 'playing the woman.' I would not have approved of that. It is not a winning tactic. I operated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-certainly-never-conscious-of-playing-the-woman-i-would-not-have/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Playing a woman in the tech world never crossed my mind as a thing until people started bringing it up all time. People act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carly-chaikin/playing-a-woman-in-the-tech-world-never-crossed-my-mind-as-a-thing/)

[Carly Chaikin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carly-chaikin/)

> [In 'Mr Shrimati,' I had a long role as a woman. A cabaret number was also picturised on me. I really worked hard in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javed-jaffrey/in-mr-shrimati-i-had-a-long-role-as-a-woman-a-cabaret-number-was-also/)

[Javed Jaffrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javed-jaffrey/)

> [I'd rather be a boy playing with a paper plane, than to be a grown man playing with a woman's heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niall-horan/i-d-rather-be-a-boy-playing-with-a-paper-plane-than-to-be-a-grown-man/)

[Niall Horan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niall-horan/)

> [I love playing a woman suffering, thinking about the choices that she's made and obviously wanting more. It's classic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-posey/i-love-playing-a-woman-suffering-thinking-about-the-choices-that-she/)

[Parker Posey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-posey/)

> [It was always the most fun thing in the world to think of a joke area and talk about it with someone like Jim…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judd-apatow/it-was-always-the-most-fun-thing-in-the-world-to-think-of-a-joke-area/)

[Judd Apatow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judd-apatow/)

## More by Cole Escola

> [I would love to write something that I'm not in and just be in a rehearsal room as a writer. But I love theater.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-would-love-to-write-something-that-i-m-not-in-and-just-be-in-a/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I grew up in Oregon. I have a younger brother and an older sister. We were very poor. VERY POOR. We lived in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-grew-up-in-oregon-i-have-a-younger-brother-and-an-older-sister-we/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I tend to be very pessimistic and not let myself enjoy things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-tend-to-be-very-pessimistic-and-not-let-myself-enjoy-things/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I grew up in a trailer until I was 5 or 6, and then my dad chased us out with a gun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-grew-up-in-a-trailer-until-i-was-5-or-6-and-then-my-dad-chased-us/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I do have that secret desire to be a cabaret star and just sing Cole Porter medleys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-do-have-that-secret-desire-to-be-a-cabaret-star-and-just-sing-cole/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I just wanted to make the stupidest, funniest thing possible. My version of Mary Todd Lincoln is basically just me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-just-wanted-to-make-the-stupidest-funniest-thing-possible-my/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [The first Broadway show that I ever saw was 'Kiss Me, Kate.' I was in New York, on a school trip.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/the-first-broadway-show-that-i-ever-saw-was-kiss-me-kate-i-was-in-new/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [There's something so embarrassing about doing characters and talking about it. It's humiliating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/there-s-something-so-embarrassing-about-doing-characters-and-talking/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [It's embarrassing to be ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/it-s-embarrassing-to-be-ambitious/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I went to school at Marymount Manhattan College for a year, and then I dropped out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-went-to-school-at-marymount-manhattan-college-for-a-year-and-then-i/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I like playing extremes. I don't really know how to not be a 10.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-like-playing-extremes-i-don-t-really-know-how-to-not-be-a-10/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I don't understand relationships. I feel like I'm pretending when I'm in one. Like, 'Oh yeah, I love eating with my left hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-don-t-understand-relationships-i-feel-like-i-m-pretending-when-i-m/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I used to run home after the pool closed in the summer to watch 'Newhart.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-used-to-run-home-after-the-pool-closed-in-the-summer-to-watch/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [Dirk Bogarde was very handsome, very hot, and a brilliant actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/dirk-bogarde-was-very-handsome-very-hot-and-a-brilliant-actor/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

> [I mean, I don't like horror movies. I just don't like being scared for the sake of being scared.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-mean-i-don-t-like-horror-movies-i-just-don-t-like-being-scared-for/)

[Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

[Explore all 100 Cole Escola quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/)

## More Friendship quotes

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I never believed in trying to do anything. Whatever I set out to do I found I had already accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-never-believed-in-trying-to-do-anything-whatever-i-set-out-to-do-i/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/)

Maureen Andeson

> [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/)

[Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/)

> [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/)

[Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/)

> [Friends are like stars you can't always see them, but you know they're there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknwon/friends-are-like-stars-you-can-t-always-see-them-but-you-know-they-re/)

Unknwon

> [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/)

[Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/)

> [If you love some one for who they are not for there body or how many friend so when you say I love you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/if-you-love-some-one-for-who-they-are-not-for-there-body-or-how-many/)

Unknow

> [“But my best friend from college was silent for a long time. She, of all of my friends, had seen the parade of sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/but-my-best-friend-from-college-was-silent-for-a-long-time-she-of-all/)

[Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/)

> [You smile upon your friend to-day, To-day his ills are over; You hearken to the lover's say, And happy is the lover. 'Tis late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-smile-upon-your-friend-to-day-to-day-his-ills-are-over-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“way. A true friend isn't the one that agrees with everything you say or do. A true friend is someone that has your back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shameek-speight/way-a-true-friend-isn-t-the-one-that-agrees-with-everything-you-say/)

[Shameek Speight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shameek-speight/)

> [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/)

[Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/)

> [“Kings don’t move mountains as a favor to a friend,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/kings-don-t-move-mountains-as-a-favor-to-a-friend/)

[Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/)

> [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/)

[Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/)

> [“The real purpose of friendship was to discover and exploit weakness in others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-thompson/the-real-purpose-of-friendship-was-to-discover-and-exploit-weakness/)

[Brian Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-thompson/)

[Browse all 45,469 Friendship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It always bothered me when people would think the joke was that I was playing a woman. I never saw myself as a boy making fun of women. They were my friends growing up. They were who I wanted to be. They were the ones that accepted me.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Cole Escola"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would-think-the-joke-was-that-i-was/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Friendship"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would-think-the-joke-was-that-i-was/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97a/cole-escola-6042_friendship_it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would_1652888.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97a/cole-escola-6042_friendship_it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would_1652888.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97a/cole-escola-6042_friendship_it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would_1652888.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It always bothered me when people would think the joke was that I was playing a woman. I never saw myself as…” — Cole Escola",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Cole Escola",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It always bothered me when people...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would-think-the-joke-was-that-i-was/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would-think-the-joke-was-that-i-was/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
