Humorous texts are on of the least explored aspects of translation. Considerable knowledge of both the Source Language (SL) and cultural implications is needed, as well as skill and creativity in the Target Language (TL). In this study, carried out at the ISIT (Instituto de Intérpretes y Traductores) in Mexico City, an attempt was made to establish the relationship between the cultural background of the students and the quality of their translations. To this end, three short texts from the satirical publication Catmopolitan were selected. These texts posed problems of style, syntax, informal vs formal use of language, idioms, etc. Two pilot groups were chosen. The first group was more familiar with American culture and the English language (Group A), while the second had a better grip on Mexican culture and the Spanish language (Group B). The purpose of this study is to esablish: a) the influence of the cultural background, and b) possible interference of the SL on the translated text. Results indicate that there is a relationship between the background of the students and their ability to render a good or poor translation. It was found that students with a better command of the TL (Group B) but with a fiar, or insufficient command of the SL, tend to be more creative in their work. The other group (A) recognized more readily the idioms and play on words, but were unable to translated the humorous side of the texts.