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None of these three professional funny men were ever A grade, like Groucho Marx, Charlie Chaplin, Ernie Kovacs, or even Steve Allen. I got some laughs from all three, but it didn't take long before they became redundant, formulaic, and tiresome.
Albert Brooks, of course, ran out of material first. Woody Allen's creepiness crept in around the time he became America's most notorious "short eyes." With Steve Martin, I think his biggest problem is his familiarity. He's a guy who tries to be funny, rather than actually being funny.
It's worth mentioning that Robin Williams is even more tiresome, a relentless ham who forces his humor in every situation. Jim Carrey is tiresome for the same reason. What this all points out is the great difficulty in being a comedian. I suspect that if one were to spend an evening filled with laughs, a night out with Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler, or Jack Nicholson would be a hoot. I would love to have been a fly on the wall when Nicholson and Warren Beatty were smoking it up in their younger days.
