Learn English – What are the meanings of these jokes: “Queers ‘R’ Us” and “I’m a proctologist so I drive a brown Probe.”

jokesmeaning-in-context

In American TV show 'Office' Season 2 Episode 2, one man tells a joke:

Well, those are some awful tight pants you have on. Where did you get 'em, like, Queers 'R' Us?

What's the funny point in this joke?

In Season 2 Episode 7, there is another joke:

First guy: Well, I'm a astronaut, so I drive a Saturn.

Second guy: Well, I am a pimp, so I drive a cheap Escort.

Third guy: I got you both beat. I'm a proctologist so I drive a brown Probe.

What's the meaning of these two jokes?

Best Answer

For the first joke, there are a few key ideas being referenced:

  1. "Queers", in this case, is referring to homosexuals or gay men (i.e. men sexually/romantically attracted to other men).
  2. Gay men stereotypically wear very tight pants.
  3. The "'R' Us" part of "Queers 'R' Us" comes from the now discontinued toy store chain "Toys 'R' Us", and their sister store for infants "Babies 'R' Us".

With these three ideas in mind, there are two suggestions meant to be funny:

  1. There is a store similar to "Toys 'R' Us" for gay men called "Queers 'R' Us" that presumably sells all sorts of supplies related to being gay, including tight pants. (This is funny because it's ridiculous, such a store obviously doesn't exist.)
  2. The person wearing tight pants shops at that hypothetical store because they are a gay man. (While I don't personally find this sort of thing funny, it's common for men to call each other gay as a sort of humiliating joke.)

For the second joke, the key is understanding that each statement is a play on words that associates types of cars with professions. The professions being referenced are:

  1. Astronauts - people who go into outer space
  2. Pimps - people who manage prostitutes (individuals who have sex for money)
  3. Proctologists - doctors specializing in the health of your rectum, anus, and colon (where all of your poop is)

The play on words with the cars is as follows:

  1. An astronaut drives a Saturn because 'Saturn' is both a type of car and the name of a planet in our galaxy.
  2. A pimp drives an 'Escort' because that is both a type of car and another word for a prostitute. The joke is vulgar, suggesting that he both operates a cheap Escort vehicle and has sex with a prostitute who charges little money.
  3. A proctologist drives a brown 'Probe' because it is both a type of car and references his job putting probes into people's butts (a common procedure called an endoscopy done to look for cancers), where there is brown poo.
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