Monty Python

Monty Python is a collection of great comedians, creating great comedy.The British troupe had a gift for bringing together surreal and absurd comedy, and delivering it with straight faces. Their show, Monty Python's Flying Circus has created some of the most memorable sketches around, like The Lumberjack Song, Dead Parrot, and Spam.

The influence they had over comedy is incredibly clear as you can see hints of its influence in early SNL, and more. The movies that followed the end of the series, in particular The Holy Grail, have become cult classics, and elements from these movies have become so ingrained into our pop culture that we hardly even notice them anymore. "Just Look on the Bright Side of Life", coconuts has horse hooves, airspeed velocities of laden swallows, and more have become staples of our culture, as much as "lol", "tweet", and other such idioms.

Monty Python is why the Python programming language is called Python, why our junk-email is called spam, and why Lemony Snicket has a character named Uncle Monty.

Their humor may seem fairly mild today (for the most part), but in the late 60s through early 70s, they were defining the cutting edge, and pushing the boundaries of what was considered appropriate. Terry Gilliam's "stream of consciousness" styled animations are unique, even today. They create an abstract storyline that draws you in, and in many ways, cleanses the pattern of your mind. There is very little way to make sense of them, and if you just roll with it, it seems to clear your mind enough that you transition into the next sketch with a fresh outlook.

If you aren't familiar with Monty Python, or have only seen their movies, go hit Netflix and go through The Flying Circus. It's raunchy, it's hilarious, and you won't regret it.