Being able to tell a good joke is a great way to make small talk at parties, because the essence of humour is relief, so when you spread that sense of relief, it helps other people to feel more comfortable, which is the secret of social success. The key, as you've noted, is in your use of memory.

First, you need to identify what your memory type is. As an allistic ADHDer, my memory is mostly episodic - I remember the joke because I can recall the episode in which I first heard it.

When I quote a line from Mean Girls, it will be delivered in exactly the same way that Regina George said the line, because I'm rewatching that movie clip in my head as I say it.

If your memory is mostly semantic (as many autistic people's are), then you have to memorise the joke as a fact, and the timing and anything else special to its delivery as more facts.

I have absolutely zero interest in (English) football, but I memorised a great joke about football that will get me through a conversation with football fans:

***

My company sent me to a conference in North Dakota about ten years ago, and after the usual talks and sessions, we went to a bar.

There was a man sitting at the bar in full Native American clothing, headdress and all. He looked really amazing, so I asked the bartender about him.

"Oh, he's the Memory Man. He remembers everything."

So I went up to him and asked him, "Who won the 1965 FA Cup?"

"Liverpool."

"OK, then, who scored the winning goal?"

"Ian St John."

I was absolutely blown away, completely stunned. I shook him by the hand and thanked him, offered him a beer, and then we left.

I'd forgotten all about it until five years later, when I went to that conference again and we ended up in the same bar.

I looked over, and there he was, still on that barstool in his elaborate clothing, as impressive as ever.

So, I went up to him and, as a mark of respect, I raised my palm towards him and said, "How."

"Diving header."

***

(For it to work for a US audience, you would have to swap out the football facts for something factually correct about baseball, but the key to telling it is to memorise it, even if you need to use flashcards.)