Hello Friends,

The subject heading says it all. Orben's books for magicians were my constant bedtime reading back in the sixties.

The Washington Post just published an excellent obituary.

I had no idea he started with a mental act...

Thomas Henry

I'm sorry to hear the news about Bob Orben, though it's no surprise given his age. He certainly made his mark on the world of comedy though, in the 1960s his booklets were de rigueur for magicians seeking humorous quips to liven up their patter. I well remember how, as a teenager, I used to roar with laughter at the 'heckler stopper' section, even though I knew I could never use such material in real life, unless I was prepared to put up with a punch on the nose for my troubles! I believe Orben knew full well that those types of squashers could only be used with great discretion but he used to include them simply because his patrons, like me, thoroughly enjoyed reading them!

Much of Orben's funniest stuff hasn't stood the test of time too well, his gags about bouncing secretaries on your knee or girls wearing tight sweaters wouldn't pass muster today, unless you are willing to risk the woke contingent taking out a fatwa on your life! But much is still useable, you just need to tweak the language to fit it to modern times and standards.

Of the 40 booklets he published from circa 1946 to 1964 it is very noticeable that the contents became less and less amusing as time went on, particularly as he concentrated on current topics which had a short shelf life. His books dating from the late 1940s and early 1950s were particularly good and still have much in them worthwhile, however the end of the series in the early 1960s are really rather poor with very little that could even crack a smile. After that he continued to bring out another 7 titles that were proper books rather than booklets, these are not well regarded today though there is still material there, it just requires a bit of work to make it relevant to current situations.

One of the most valuable things I derived from Orben's work was to realise what makes a joke funny and how to construct it in such a way as to not squash the punchline. I found myself taking a joke which just didn't work for me and adjusting it to turn it into something that was an entirely 'new' gag (if there is such a thing!). In this way I was able to create material of my own which was far more useable than would have otherwise been the case.

God bless you Robert Orben you'll be long remembered.

All great points! I sense that you and I are of the same generation. Starting in the early '70s, I devoured everything he wrote and was eager to gets my hands on whatever was next. I usually got one or two lines out of each book and booklet, but I knew others who tried to built an act on his materials. Sheesh. But, youth can be a weird thing. All these years later, I still use five lines which I guess could be called unanswerable questions (How did the guy who invented cottage cheese know when he was finished?) as part of a goofy psychometry bit. I've been told that I met and had a conversation with him sometime in the '70s. I sure don't remember it. In any case, he was certainly influential on magicians wanting to add humor by making us THINK about humor. RIP

Great comments, my Café colleagues.

I used a handful of his one-liners for my magic act back in the 1960s. Probably 90% of my shows were for "men's clubs," and the fact I was so young spouting some of those lines kept the audiences in stitches. Orben really did come up with some zingers.

By 1973 I was playing guitar and singing bass with an over-the-top top 1950s band. It was heavy on audience participation and interaction. The five of us all portrayed hoods, so we were able to use some of Orben's so-called "insults" as part of our characters. The crowd always knew we were goofballs, so nothing ever had an edge to it.

But what really amazed me about Orben was how he went from crafting jokes for magicians and emcees to writing a few of the most important and difficult speeches ever for an American president. All this while that president was a Republican, and Orben a Democrat.

Thomas Henry