Professor Joke Man

August 15, 2011
Photo: The Howard Stern Show

Howard noted that the Learning Annex had begun selling Jackie ‘The Joke Man’ Martling’s joke-telling “lessons” on the Internet: “For 99 cents you can download his ‘How to Be a Comedian’ instructional podcast.”

Most bizarre are the lessons’ video accompaniment: “He’s just incredibly tan and has incredibly fake white teeth now. He’s all Hollywood. And he’s explaining how to be a ‘successful’ comedian.”

Howard mocked Jackie’s recipe for success: “First you work for Howard Stern. And then you fuck it all up…I’m going to start my own Learning Annex tape. It’s called ‘How to Unlearn Everything Jackie Teaches You.'” Ultimately, Howard doubted the lessons were worth 99 cents: “Is it really important to know how to tell these jokes?” Robin countered: “Or is there really a craft to telling them?”