last-words
Explanation
The Joke
A dying man is on his deathbed surrounded by loved ones. He solemnly tells them: "Son, I haven't got long. I want you to remember my last words and tell them faithfully to those who ask." The son responds, "Of course, Dad." The scene then cuts to "Later" -- the son, now in a suit, is being asked "What were his last words?" He replies: "They were 'goddammit, Dwayne!'"
The comic sets up the expectation of a profound, meaningful deathbed scene -- the kind of moment where someone imparts their final wisdom. But the dying man's actual last words, spoken after the solemn setup, turn out to be an irritated outburst directed at someone named Dwayne, presumably for some mundane annoyance that occurred in the man's final moments.
The Humor
The humor is a classic misdirection. The elaborate setup -- the deathbed, the solemn request to faithfully preserve his words, the son's earnest promise -- primes the reader for something profound. Instead, the last words are a frustrated exclamation at someone named Dwayne, which is funny both because of the anticlimax and because it's far more realistic than the eloquent deathbed speeches we see in movies. In reality, most people's last words are mundane or confused, not poetic. The son faithfully reporting "They were 'goddammit, Dwayne!'" in a formal setting adds another layer -- he's honoring his father's wish to the letter, even though the result is absurd.