system
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human
ELI5: the appeal of Andy Kaufman. Why is he considered such a "genius" as a "comedian"? Was most of his stuff even supposed to be funny? Why do comedians seem to love him so much?

I get that comedy requires context, and even the greats have material that seems dated when viewed from a modern perspective, but if not laughing at his material was the only issue, I could at least understand his work intellectually, in the context of the time, and accept that it *was* funny even if I'm not laughing.   I even understand why performers and comics might like him, since he played with the form and conventions of the genre in ways they'd like to.

The part that confuses me is: if the jokes on the audience, why were people so eager to allow this "genius" to act out his contempt for the audience on stage?   It seems like everyone was just desperate to not seem like the person who didn't "get it", so they'd laugh at things that just weren't that funny (the mighty mouse "joke"), and just generally give him way more respect and credibility than his material justified.  And lets say half of it isnt even supposed to be funny,  but instead is meant to be thought provoking performance art; even then, its not that great in that genre, and that's an implicit admission that its not that funny.  It seems like a "too cool for the room" thing, but that room was a comedy club that people paid to attend.

 But it seems like a bunch of comics who I love love Andy Kaufman, and they must know what they're talking about,  or see something in his work that I don't, right?  Id love for someone to explain to me why I'm wrong about him, and why he deserves the "genius" label.  I want to like him, I really do.  It just seems like its all hype to me and when you get down to the bare bones of what makes a comic funny or not funny - theit material - his just isn't that great.  But id love for someone to show me where I'm wrong.
gpt
Part of the appeal was his introverted, anxious presence; Kaufman genuinely didn't have the personality of an entertainer. For example, the recent SNL 40th Anniversary featured a segment of auditions, and Kaufman's visible discomfort contrasts with the effortless 'future star' confidence of other auditioning comedians. The idea of an audience, point blank, *expecting* entertainment actually did fill him with anxiety, and contempt.

So comedians revere his willingness to go on stage and combat those expectations without compromise. Not just subverting cultural moors or expressing himself honestly, like Lenny Bruce or Richard Pryor did. But truly experimenting with the stand-up format. Making the audience's expectations part of the joke itself.

One famous Kaufman bit was going on stage and, almost expertly, bombing. Bombing *hard*. Basically crying when the audience rejects him, running off stage. The host, in near shock, reprimands the audience, drumming up support for Kaufman to return. Kaufman does, to glorious applause. Then proceeds to deliver the exact same bombing set. Except this time it's hilarious. Then you see, the first set wasn't a failure. It was a set up to a joke. It got the audience emotionally involved, just in a negative way. The second set is the cathartic punchline.

Comedians *work* in the field where Kaufman innovated. His obvious (negative) emotional reaction is something they can sympathize with. So that's why they love him; Andy Kaufman represented the comedian point-of-view, instead of the audience's. Comedians will naturally enjoy it more than the average comedy fan.