Peter Desberg is a man who knows a thing or two about what it takes to create comedy. Peter and his writing partner, Jeffrey Davis, have released a greatly informative new book called Now That’s Funny! The Art and Craft of Comedy Writing. The book provides an intimate look into the minds of twenty-four of Hollywood’s funniest comedy writers from movies and TV shows like: Saturday Night Live; Frasier; The Simpsons; Everybody Loves Raymond; Monk; Modern Family; The Honeymooners; Cheers; Home Improvement; and many more.

In Now That’s Funny! Desberg and Davis presented each writer with the same generic comedy premise, and asked them to develop the premise, giving us a window into their writing process.

Peter Desberg is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in the area of stage fright, working with many top standup comedians who are regularly confronted with massive cases of flopsweat. After Peter received his PhD from the University of Southern California, he began moonlighting as a university professor at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

He’s done extensive research on the psychology of humor and is a frequent consultant to business presenters on how to use humor persuasively. In the areas of humor and stage fright, he has done many radio and TV interviews and is frequently quoted in national publications including The Wall Street Journal, Reader’s Digest, Psychology Today, and Cosmopolitan.

For a decade he hosted a cable TV show about technology. Peter’s extensive academic research on the psychology of humor has significantly reduced the number of party invitations he has received over the years. In addition, he has authored six joke books along with sixteen other non-humorous titles.

WEBSITES:

• Peter Desberg
• Now That’s Funny

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