Bud Abbott and Lou Costello's most famous live radio bit, the ultimate paean to comic misunderstanding, was showcased in a couple of their films, many of their radio and TV appearances, and in a command performance for FDR. A simple request for the names of the St. Louis ballplayers creates more confusion the more information is provided, as Costello, a peanut vendor, fails to understand that Abbott, the manager of the team, is providing the players' names even though it sounds like he's randomly repeating back-question words. Though the joke's concept isn't original (the format was common to burlesque and the premise is about as profound as a greeting-card pun), the impeccable delivery and crafting make every "Third base!" seem divinely inspired. Pretty much every sketch group, comedy show and comedian since then has studied the sketch; many have reprised it, including Johnny Carson, South Park, The Simpsons and Kids in the Hall. And it's one of those jokes that's universally funny: who hasn't experienced the kind of escalating bafflement that makes you threaten someone with a broken arm or hit yourself in the head with a baseball bat? — Ada Calhoun