That 'old enough to have heard of knock knock jokes, but not quite old enough to understand them yet' period is the BEST!
My friend's daughter War is at that age and she recently heard from my friend that I have two different laughs. (I have my polite laugh for general usage and my real laugh, which is an evil witch cackle.) She'd heard my polite laugh and she wanted to hear my real laugh, so War informed me that she was going to make me cackle.
I laughed politely and told her no way. The cackle was embarrassing and only emerged when I absolutely couldn't control myself. So only the best and most amazingly funny of jokes would be greeted with my true laugh.
This was the point where I realised she didn't understand how to tell jokes. War however could sense that I was more amused by this that her first attempt and decided to have another go...
War: Knock knock. Essy: Who's there? War: Madonna. Essy: Madonna, who? War: *sudden expression of limitless woe as she realises her magical formula has gone wrong* Essy: *uncontrollable witch cackle*
At which point War ran off to boast to everyone about how she knew a joke so funny it made Essy cackle. There is a greater than average chance that she will now grow to adulthood honestly believing that the funniest joke in the world is just "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Madonna."
She's not a horseman of the apocalypse; it's a nickname.
My friend's daughter War is at that age and she recently heard from my friend that I have two different laughs. (I have my polite laugh for general usage and my real laugh, which is an evil witch cackle.) She'd heard my polite laugh and she wanted to hear my real laugh, so War informed me that she was going to make me cackle.
I laughed politely and told her no way. The cackle was embarrassing and only emerged when I absolutely couldn't control myself. So only the best and most amazingly funny of jokes would be greeted with my true laugh.
War, naturally, took this as a challenge.
War: Knock knock.
Essy: Who's there?
War: Paris.
Essy: Paris, who?
War: Paris Hilton!
Essy: *polite laugh*
And I thought, it's the name of a city and also the name of a celebrity, so technically I suppose it's a pun, but it's not very funny.
War wasn't finished.
War: Knock knock.
Essy: Who's there?
War: Lindsey.
Essy: Lindsey, who?
War: Lindsey Lohan!
Essy: *chuckle*
This was the point where I realised she didn't understand how to tell jokes. War however could sense that I was more amused by this that her first attempt and decided to have another go...
War: Knock knock.
Essy: Who's there?
War: Britney.
Essy: Britney, who?
War: Britney Spears!
Essy: *chuckle*
And then it happened...
War: Knock knock.
Essy: Who's there?
War: Madonna.
Essy: Madonna, who?
War: *sudden expression of limitless woe as she realises her magical formula has gone wrong*
Essy: *uncontrollable witch cackle*
At which point War ran off to boast to everyone about how she knew a joke so funny it made Essy cackle. There is a greater than average chance that she will now grow to adulthood honestly believing that the funniest joke in the world is just "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Madonna."
...and that's kinda funny.