Comedians face a stand-up dilemma. Dave Chappelle: yes. Shane Gillis: no. Jessica Kirson has regrets.

Richard Zoglin, a New York-based writer and critic, is the author of “Comedy at the Edge: How Stand-up in the 1970s Changed America.”

Anyone who doubts that comedy is serious business these days hasn’t been paying attention. In recent months, late-night talk show hosts Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel were caught in a political crossfire, and now comes an uproar over a comedy festival in Saudi Arabia.

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