"you had to be there"

What is it about personal experiences that make them sometimes unshareable in the area of comedy?

Think about it, have you ever had someone try to tell you a story that they thought was so very funny but when they tell you it wasn't funny? I really never thought of the reasons as to why a seemingly funny story could get lost in the transition from one person to another. Usually, when the story is told and there is no laughter the response of the storyteller is "oh, you would have had to be there." This statement itself sums up the reasons for the lack of comedic value. How much of comedy do we have to be able to relate to in order for it to be funny to us? Though I may not have the answers to these questions I can state that there does indeed have to be some sense of relatability to the receivers of comedy.