Scoffing at puns is a conditioned reflex, and through the centuries groan-ups have aimed a steady barrage of libel and slander at pun ladies and pun gents. Three hundred years ago, the playwright and critic John Dennis sneered, A pun is the lowest form of wit. Many of you Verbatim readers know me as an incorrigible punster - please don\u27t incorrige! - who agrees with the witty Henry Erskine that a pun is indeed the lowest form of wit because it is the foundation of all wit. For me and my many pun pals, punning is a rewording experience that, like a good steak, can be a rare medium well done
