“Of obvious appeal to the humourless is the writer who comes on stage in a clown outfit or King Kong suit, with party hat and harem slippers, with banana skins and custard pies… It remains a sound rule that funny journalism can only flourish as the offshoot or sideline of something larger. No funny journalist who is that and nothing more will ever write anything lastingly funny.”

Source: Men at Arms

Introduction to 'Junkyard Thoughts' in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (February 1986)
Context: Mr. Lafferty says, "I'm the fellow who, for more than a quarter century, has faithfully maintained the thesis that all writers should be funny-looking and all stories should be funny. Almost all of the evil in the world is brought about by handsome writers doing pompous pieces. But sometimes readers tell me that such a story of mine is not funny at all. 'Wait, wait,' I tell them. 'You're holding it upside-down. Now try it.' And sure enough it is funny if they get ahold of it right. This caution is especially applicable to the story 'Junkyard Thoughts.' Be sure you're not holding it upside-down or it will be merely bewildering."

"On Being Hard Up".
Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow (1886)

"Political Correctness: Robert Bly and Philip Larkin" (1997)

The Height of the Ridiculous; reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).

On never expressing anger in his comedy in “Trevor Noah interview” https://www.timeout.com/london/comedy/trevor-noah-interview in Time Out <br class="br">Personal life

As quoted in "Spoonful of Sugar : Natasha Lyonne’s Sweet Comeback" by Shira Levine, in Heeb Magazine (20 January 2009)

Source: Words of Radiance