Heh, always loved Hicks' JFK smokey-room story. That one is second only to the Rodney-King beating court case. 'If you rewind the tape you'll see us help King on his way! NOT GUILTY."
The is because he wasn't attached to the goings on around him and could thus see things clearly. He didn't care what his audience thought, but they laughed because he shocked them back to reality and out of their comfort zones. He was probably one of the greatest social commentators of our time.