“A guy walks into a bar…” is a typical form of what has been called the “bar joke.” A popular English grammar bar joke is:
“The past, the present, and the future walk into a bar. It was tense.”
The joke has been cited in print since at least 2009 and has been printed on many posters.
Twitter
Anne
@miss_chanandler
“past, present and future walk into a bar. it was t e n s e.” ... brilliant 😉 nighty night, every1.
4:58 PM - 13 May 2009
reddit
Past, present and future walk into a bar. It was tense. (self.funny)
submitted August 29, 2009 by 300zedex to /r/funny
Hummings of a Happy Hurkle
Sun 30 Aug 2009
A few puns…
Posted by Happy under Fun
Past, present and future walk into a bar. It was tense.
Google Books
Supernormal:
Science, Yoga, and the Evidence for Extraordinary Psychic Abilities
By Dean Radin
New York, NY: Deepak Chopra Books (Random House, Inc.)
2013
Pg. 109:
Past, Present, and Future walk into a bar at the same time. It was tense.
Google Books
The Everything Big Book of Jokes:
Hundreds of the Shortest, Longest Silliest, Smartest< Most Hilarious Jokes You've Never Heard!
By Evan C. Thomas
Avon, MA: Adams Media
2014
Pg. 218:
THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE walk into a bar. It was tense.
YouTube
#WorstJoke: Past, Prestent, and Future Walk Into a Bar…
Greenpeace USA
Published on Feb 9, 2015
Violet Crumbine know that no matter how bad your worst joke may be, drilling for oil in the Arctic is worse.
New York City • Restaurants/Bars/Coffeehouses/Food Stores • Monday, March 30, 2015 • Permalink