Short draws inspiration from his comedic heroes, a list that includes Charlie Chaplin, Stan Laurel, Harpo Marx, Jerry Lewis, Dick Van Dyke, Jonathan Winters and Milwaukee native Gene Wilder. His characters, however, come from personal experience and contacts he’s made over the years.

“Characters come from either a single person or an amalgam of characteristics of several people that seem to work together,” Short says. “Maybe it’s a guy who’s a chronic liar. Or someone who’s a goof and he doesn’t know it.

“I knew a guy in high school who wanted to be a photographer, so he’d take a lot of slides,” Short continues. “But he never got them developed, he said, because he’d experienced the moment and knew he didn’t have to. He became the seedling that grew into Ed Grimley.”

Short, as the iconic Grimley, his hair lacquered to a spiky horn, his pants hiked up to chest-level, remains one of the comedian’s favorite characters. He is able to judge the impact of characters like Grimley or the bits those characters perform by a simple universal measure available to all.

“The laughter is a good indication,” Short says. “If you think something is funny, then the audience usually does as well. If no one responds, then you may be performing in the wrong venue, or it’s simply not funny.”

Short rarely runs into that problem, however, because his familiar characters and infectious style tend to draw audiences in. However, the context for comedy depends as much on the audience’s background as on the performer’s talent, which gives the art form both individual and universal context.

“It’s a natural human state to try and find the joy in things, and very few people don’t want to laugh,” Short says. “Comedy can reach into people’s souls if it’s funny, but it’s still very subjective.

“In comedy, there’s no wrong or right,” he adds. “The main agenda is simply to make people laugh.”

Martin Short performs at the Pabst Theater at 8 p.m. on May 30. For tickets, call (800) 511-1552.

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