Dad Jokes was never supposed to be famous. But once Good Morning America got hold of it, there was no turning back.
Created in March by Los Angeles-based producer Patrick Houston, one of the folks behind All Def Digital, Dad Jokes is an online series in which two comedians are pitted against one another in a you-laugh-you-lose format. The comics tell bad, corny, but oh-so-fun dad jokes to score points.
âI created the series really quickly to give me more time for another series I was working on,â says Houston. âWe released the first episode on a Saturday with no promotion, no anything. I didnât have high hopes. But it ended up on Good Morning America. Michael Strahan told a few of the jokes beforehand and then played a clip. That first episode got, like, 3 million views.â
Each episode of Dad Jokes, which features a rotating cast of comedians (including Kevin Fredericks, who came up through the Seattle comedy scene) averages around a million views, with some receiving five or even 10 million. And while there are other âbad jokeâ series, and other series where contestants try not to laugh, Dad Jokes is markedly different. The competition doesnât end at one laugh. Instead, they keep going, showing crack-up after crack-up. Also, Dad Jokes keeps score. âI love blooper reels,â Houston explains. âI would watch them all the time with my favorite shows. Also, with Dad Jokes, we added the game element. That really stuck with people.â
There is something innocent and appealing about these corny dad jokes videos. Thereâs a comfort to their lack of edge. In an age saturated by spiteful internet trolls, dad jokes are safe spaces and universally beloved, Houston says. âEvery race has dads trying to be funny,â he notes. âDad Jokes broke a racial barrier, which is great for us. Weâre an urban comedy company and this was our first mainstream hit. Itâs very sharable.â
Letâs watch the episode where Houston told a few jokes:
Hereâs another with Kevin Fredericks:
Dad Jokes, which has filmed about two dozen episodes to date, has been shared all over the internetâs most popular sites, including hitting number one on Reddit. British and African outlets have copied it, Houston says, and people are playing their own versions at house parties. âI pay really close attention to what the internet already likes,â Houston says. âThatâs how I develop my shows. Once I saw people liked corny jokes and puns, I thought we should just bring comedians in to write their own and put their own spin on it.â
While the foundation of the series is innocent and comfortable, Houston says things have gotten a little edgier, like on this episode, subtly named âDab Jokes,â in which the contestants got high first:
But, says Houston, as the series moves forward, Dad Jokes will double down on its innocent sensibilities. (The series will, however, offer spin-offs, like Dirty Dad Jokes, for more adult punch lines.) There is no need for Dad Jokes itself to be offensiveâthe whole point is not to be. âWhat made it take off is that itâs clean,â Houston says. âI donât review the jokes ahead of time because I think a huge part of the show is that me and the rest of the crew behind the cameras laugh if we think theyâre funny. In earlier episodes, a few dirtier jokes got through, but as the series started getting more popular, we made sure to make it cleaner, or we just cut them.â
This series is likely on its way to big thingsâall based on punch lines that would make a middle schoolerâs eyes roll. âWeâre experiencing higher stakes than we ever thought,â Houston says. âPeople get so into it. Weâre going to add new elements, like fan-submitted dad jokes.â But, he says, no matter how big the series grows, heâll always remember the effect that first episode had. âThe first one became a hit out of nowhere,â he says. âThat was the first big, âOh wow. Weâve got something here.ââ