--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I realised that all one really had to do…" description: "\"I realised that all one really had to do was just observe. Observe and slightly exaggerate, and you had comedy. Instead of creating a mythical premise ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/859/mel-brooks-2308_comedy_i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do_130360.png" --- # I realised that all one really had to do was just observe… ![“I realised that all one really had to do was just observe. Observe and slightly exaggerate, and you had comedy. Instead of creating a mythical premise for a stupid joke, I found playing off truth got the best result.” quote by Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/859/mel-brooks-2308_comedy_i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do_130360.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/859/mel-brooks-2308_comedy_i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do_130360.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/859/mel-brooks-2308_comedy_i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do_130360.png) > “I realised that all one really had to do was just observe. Observe and slightly exaggerate, and you had comedy. Instead of creating a mythical premise for a stupid joke, I found playing off truth got the best result.” [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Observing reality and exaggerating it creates effective comedy without contrived premises. **In simple terms:** Comedy thrives on truth and exaggeration. Key Takeaway Observe life, then amplify quirks. Themes humor observation exaggeration Mood lighthearted insightful Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - stand‑up - scriptwriting - improv Key Concepts comedic timing social commentary creative process Questions to Reflect On - What everyday details inspire you? - How far can you push exaggeration? A Different Perspective Over‑exaggeration may alienate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Creating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creating/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Joke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joke/) [Jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jokes/) [Stupid jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupid-jokes/) ## Related quotes > [There were plenty of times some writers would make some kind of stupid joke to each other and then it was on TV that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-glaser/there-were-plenty-of-times-some-writers-would-make-some-kind-of/) [Jon Glaser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-glaser/) > [I chose to do comedy instead of going to college.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-burnham/i-chose-to-do-comedy-instead-of-going-to-college/) [Bo Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-burnham/) > [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/) > [It always bothered me when people would think the joke was that I was playing a woman. I never saw myself as a boy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/it-always-bothered-me-when-people-would-think-the-joke-was-that-i-was/) [Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/) > [I love a stupid joke, something that doesn't make any sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/i-love-a-stupid-joke-something-that-doesn-t-make-any-sense/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [I went up on stage, and said, "Why did the chicken cross the road? To check out the chicks." I was a genius at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-iglesias/i-went-up-on-stage-and-said-why-did-the-chicken-cross-the-road-to/) [Gabriel Iglesias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-iglesias/) > [The Awkward moment when teacher expects you to laugh at her stupid joke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-awkward-moment-when-teacher-expects-you-to-laugh-at-her-stupid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Detective Maxwell?” Kathy said. “Why so formal? His name’s Jack isn’t it? Jack and Jill. You two were obviously meant for one another. Come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adele-abbott/detective-maxwell-kathy-said-why-so-formal-his-name-s-jack-isn-t-it/) [Adele Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adele-abbott/) > [You were my priority once.. now you have become just a stupid joke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anshi/you-were-my-priority-once-now-you-have-become-just-a-stupid-joke/) Anshi > [All my friends tell me that I got to move on what they don't understand is it's hard when the memories of him is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prettylilvampire/all-my-friends-tell-me-that-i-got-to-move-on-what-they-don-t/) Prettylilvampire > [I've always wondered, what am I going to do that's important with these stupid jokes that I tell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-romano/i-ve-always-wondered-what-am-i-going-to-do-that-s-important-with/) [Ray Romano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-romano/) > [It's often the way that people who take their work seriously laugh at stupid jokes; it's as if they are under-humored and, as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/it-s-often-the-way-that-people-who-take-their-work-seriously-laugh-at/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [I said it, just like that. No stupid jokes, no changing the subject. For once, I wasn't embarrassed, because it was the truth. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/i-said-it-just-like-that-no-stupid-jokes-no-changing-the-subject-for/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [“She leaned into my shoulder. "Maybe you don't have to be a Caster to have power." I pushed her hair behind her ear. "Maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia-margaret-stohl/she-leaned-into-my-shoulder-maybe-you-don-t-have-to-be-a-caster-to/) [Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia-margaret-stohl/) > [I like the idea of using cool cyberpunk stuff to tell really stupid jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-quinn/i-like-the-idea-of-using-cool-cyberpunk-stuff-to-tell-really-stupid/) [Zoe Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-quinn/) ## More by Mel Brooks > [Woody Allen is a genius. His films are wonderful. He's poetic, but he's also a critic. He artfully steps back from a social setting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/woody-allen-is-a-genius-his-films-are-wonderful-he-s-poetic-but-he-s/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [ Comedy is lively, comedy is joy, and that's what keeps us \[people\] going, we've got to look forward to little, little happiness's. Little, little… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/comedy-is-lively-comedy-is-joy-and-that-s-what-keeps-us-people-going/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [All right, I am often brash, rude and brutally direct. Someday I'm going to die and I don't have time to toe-dance around the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/all-right-i-am-often-brash-rude-and-brutally-direct-someday-i-m-going/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [I don't think in terms of results at all. I think: what next insanity can I shock the world with?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-don-t-think-in-terms-of-results-at-all-i-think-what-next-insanity/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [My mother is very short - four-eleven. She could walk under tables and never hit her head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/my-mother-is-very-short-four-eleven-she-could-walk-under-tables-and/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [The audience. They see the name Mel Brooks, they want something really funny. They don't want to be moved; they don't want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/the-audience-they-see-the-name-mel-brooks-they-want-something-really/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [Life literally abounds in comedy if you just look around you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/life-literally-abounds-in-comedy-if-you-just-look-around-you/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [Look, I really don't want to wax philosophic, but I will say that if you're alive, you got to flap your arms and legs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/look-i-really-don-t-want-to-wax-philosophic-but-i-will-say-that-if/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [I knew it... I'm surrounded by assholes!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-knew-it-i-m-surrounded-by-assholes/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [I was in the army, and to me it was like a newsreel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-was-in-the-army-and-to-me-it-was-like-a-newsreel/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [But I have bad taste with a deep fount of intellectuality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/but-i-have-bad-taste-with-a-deep-fount-of-intellectuality/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > ['Mad About You' was very fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/mad-about-you-was-very-fun/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [Immortality is a by-product of good work. Masterpieces are not for artists, they're for critics. Critics can't even make music by rubbing their back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/immortality-is-a-by-product-of-good-work-masterpieces-are-not-for/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [If Ivan the Terrible had been kissed and loved between zero and three, he probably would have become Ivan Not So Terrible. If you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/if-ivan-the-terrible-had-been-kissed-and-loved-between-zero-and-three/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) > [Immortality is a by-product of good work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/immortality-is-a-by-product-of-good-work/) [Mel Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) [Explore all 173 Mel Brooks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/) ## More Comedy quotes > ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/) [Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I wouldn't want people to laugh at me. That's why I have to give all that I can, and at least produce something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhao-wei/i-wouldn-t-want-people-to-laugh-at-me-that-s-why-i-have-to-give-all/) [Zhao Wei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhao-wei/) > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/) [Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [There's a difference between delivering real funny and just silly funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-rel-howery/there-s-a-difference-between-delivering-real-funny-and-just-silly/) [Lil Rel Howery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-rel-howery/) > [Oh to that corkscrew, the useful tool to unlock the treasure of wit, the treasury of laughter, the front door of fellowship, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-guzaldo/oh-to-that-corkscrew-the-useful-tool-to-unlock-the-treasure-of-wit/) [Andrew Guzaldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-guzaldo/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [I do love to laugh!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-giudice/i-do-love-to-laugh/) [Teresa Giudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-giudice/) > [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. That's as powerful as stirring their sorrow, stirring their compassion, because that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/i-really-enjoy-making-people-laugh-i-ve-discovered-that-s-a-great/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) [Browse all 19,795 Comedy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I realised that all one really had to do was just observe. Observe and slightly exaggerate, and you had comedy. Instead of creating a mythical premise for a stupid joke, I found playing off truth got the best result.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mel Brooks" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do-was-just-observe-observe-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Comedy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do-was-just-observe-observe-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/859/mel-brooks-2308_comedy_i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do_130360.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/859/mel-brooks-2308_comedy_i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do_130360.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/859/mel-brooks-2308_comedy_i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do_130360.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I realised that all one really had to do was just observe. Observe and slightly exaggerate, and you had…” — Mel Brooks", "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": "Mel Brooks", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-brooks/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I realised that all one really...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do-was-just-observe-observe-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-brooks/i-realised-that-all-one-really-had-to-do-was-just-observe-observe-and/#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 } } ] } ```