Body Language

Not only what we say, but how we say it and what we are doing when we say it say a lot. Does that make sense? What I am trying to say (actually, write) is body language and facial expressions are used a lot in communication.
Going back to the silent movie film clips we watched, we could understand the humor through what the people were doing. Even Mickey Mouse as Steamboat Willie used facial expressions. Even the whistles on the steamboat in Steamboat Willie had facial expressions. This is all part of body language.
When Buster Keaton falls through the hole in the roof and the woman in the bathtub yells at him to get out, we understand the emotion and expression even though no one is talking. This was before sound...even before color.
Body Language is also called Non-verbal communication and comedians, to give one professional example, need to master it. The little things we do are called cues (or visual cues) that let others know what we are thinking, expressing, trying to communicate, even if we ourselves are unaware of what we might be doing. Sometimes we exaggerate to make something seem funny. We cue a friend or audience to let them know they should laugh.
What I would like to know this time is...what visual cues, non-verbal communication, facial expressions, or body language do you use to express or say more (than just with words)? Is there any body language that is specific to your culture? What examples did you see in the clips we watched - or - what examples have you seen in other shows or movies? Just a few things I was wondering.

Pie in the Face

For those of you who watched the comedy clips, most liked the 3 Stooges Pie Fight. The 3 Stooges are famous for being dumb, but obviously their humor still makes modern audiences laugh.
The "Pie-in-the-face" gag was featured in film as early as 1914. The Keystone Cops (who were clumsy policemen chasing a burglar) featured it regularly. The comedy duo Laurel and Hardy had a giant pie fight in their movie "The Battle of the Century." It is rumored that over 4000 pies were used.
Other comedians, like Charlie Chaplin, have used the pie fight, and even cartoon characters like Bugs Bunny use the gag. But "pieing" hasn't been used just for laughs. Pieing has also been used to make political statements, and if it is done to someone who doesn't like it, it can be considered assault! So remember, if you are going to throw a pie at someone, make sure they have a good sense of humor, or you could get in trouble.
J told us that sometimes people are hit with a pie in the face on their birthday. I was wondering, though, what other pranks (funny tricks you do to people) are popular with you and your friends? Have you ever done the pie-in-the-face to trick someone? What do you do to have a laugh or make other people laugh?

Humor

Not all humor translates from one culture to another. Early humor was meant to be understood by a lot of people, and this was done by using "physical" humor. In the earliest movies, sound could not be used, so comedians had to use their body to do funny things.
Comedians like Charlie Chaplin are famous around the world because no language is needed to understand what he is doing. Most of the time, he is just acting silly, but he was very good at doing this.
Cartoons often imitated violent, or "slapstick," humor. Like the movies, early cartoons were silent (just with music in the background) and a physical type of comedy worked well.
Slapstick humor was used often by the 3 Stooges. They would resort to very basic forms of comedy, like the "pie-in-the-face" routine. Often, they looked like living cartoon characters themselves.
Television had sound when it first began, so it could use language as comedy. Some television stars still resorted to using physical and slapstick humor, however. Lucille Ball is an example of someone who still used physical humor, although she had the convenience of sound.
But I want to know what you think is funny. What type of humor or comedians do you like and why? What are your favorite funny movies or TV shows and why? What do you think makes something or someone funny? I want to know your opinions.