Think back to the first joke you ever learned to tell , and chances are full that it started out with two simple words : Knock knock . ( luck are also pretty good that it was n’t very funny . ) You may have thought you invented the pun , but its account dates back much , much further than that . Here ’s a brief history …
1. THE BARD ABIDES IN 1606.
Though the precise origin of the knock knock joke is officially unknown , many scholars point to the 2d act of Shakespeare’sMacbeth — write around 1606 — as the earliest have it off example . It appears when aporter is awoken out of a drunken stuporby a mankind strike hard at Macbeth and Lady Macbeth ’s door .
2. CHILDREN PLAY IN 1929.
In Henry Bett ’s 1929 book , The Games of Children : Their Origin and History , the generator talks about the knock pink laugh as being part of a Kyd ’s game call Buff , in which one child would bang a reefer while sound out “ Knock knock , ” to which his or her opponent would ask , “ Who ’s there ? ”
3. WRITERS CATCH ON IN 1934.
In 1934 , a newspaper columnist used the surveil ( not - so - funny)joke in a story , which pit the knock knock joke ’s first print visual aspect in popular culture :
4. WHAT’S THIS TURNS TO WHO’S THERE IN 1936.
By 1936 , the bang knock joke had made its way to the tidy sum . So much so that anAssociated Pressarticle about its growing popularity appeared in the August 3rd edition of theTitusville Herald . Titled “ ‘ Knock Knock ’ Latest Nutsy Game for Parlor Amusement , ” the slice talked about how “ What ’s this ? ” had given path to “ Knock , roast ” as the pet living room game setup . “ go , apparently , are the 24-hour interval when the more serious - apt settle down to a concentrated sparring with jigsaw puzzles , anagram , intelligence mental test , and similar cerebral pursuit , ” the source bewail .
5. RAMROD DANK INVENTED IT IN 1936.
On December 30 , 1936 , humourist / radio emcee Fred Allen produce a wrap - up of the class ’s bighearted event in which he include an interview with the fictional Ramrod Dank , whom he take for “ The first man to coin a bash belt . ”
6. KNOCK KNOCK GOES INTERNATIONAL IN 1953.
By the 1950s , the roast knock joke had gained popularity around the world , in both English - speaking country ( England , Ireland , Australia , Canada ) and otherwise ( France , Belgium , India ) . French variant of the prank started out with “ Toc - Toc , ” and the punchline was typically a song title . In Afrikaans and Dutch , it ’s “ Klop - klop ” and “ Kon - kon ” in Korean and Japanese . In Spanish , the joke unremarkably rhymes . In South Africa in 1953 , thefollowing joke was popularamongst schoolhouse children :
7. LAUGH-IN DOES KNOCK-KNOCK IN 1968.
Knock knock jokes were a staple of the banter onRowan & Martin ’s Laugh - Infrom the veryfirst seasonof the sketch comedy show ’s six - time of year rivulet .
8. GEORGE ZIMMERMAN’S LAWYER GETS IN ON THE FUN IN 2013.
“ At considerable risk of exposure … I ’d like to differentiate you a little joke,”George Zimmerman ’s attorney , Don West , told the juryduring opening statements . Then go forward to let loose the undermentioned bit :
Crickets would have been an melioration over the reaction the “ joke ” got .
