Comments on: What makes political jokes funny?

By: almostgotit

almostgotit — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:02:48 +0000

Thanks for the good stuff, Quin and David! My stomach hurts now..

By: David B

David B — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 14:54:08 +0000

Here’s a Palin joke I like:

So Sarah, I understand you spent about six hours at the Bronx Zoo when you were in New York recently. Why on earth were you there so long?

Well, it takes a lot of time to stop and reload.

By: Quin

Quin — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:33:22 +0000

Sorry! Here it is; well worth watching!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7MQAkDjYDM

By: almostgotit

almostgotit — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:35:00 +0000

@Dennis: SNL screened yet another Fey-as-Palin parody [click HERE to view] over the weekend, prompting the Associated Press's comment today that it seems Tina Fey is the one running for VP. Perhaps that was the plan all along. @Rufus & Quin: Guns aren't sexy, or else guns EPITOMIZE sex. Which is it? I'd never thought of guns in either way before. Hmm... sort of puts Sarah Palin in a whole new light for me. What do the big, hairy moose she hunts represent then, d'ya suppose?

By: Rufus McCain

Rufus McCain — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 22:46:17 +0000

Quin: No, man, the gun is precisely what pushes the image over into the realm of porn. The message is: sex acts punctuated by violent explosions are imminent.

Here’s another good’n: http://charleswarnold.blogspot.com/2008/08/al-gore-places-infant-son-in-rocket-to.html

By: Dennis the Vizsla

Dennis the Vizsla — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 22:20:06 +0000

The Tina Fey parodies are scathing; the college humor video was just kind of silly, though I liked the bit about slap-shotting the Bill of Rights.

The resemblance between Tina Fey and Sarah Palin is almost creepy. It’s like this whole thing was preordained …..

By: almostgotit

almostgotit — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 20:06:10 +0000

@ Quin: Try again? My html feature may be unfriendly to commenters... sorry! I did find this video of Phil Hartman as Bill Clinton on SNL's own site, however.

By: Quin

Quin — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 18:00:10 +0000

Regarding woman in the bikini, the problem isn’t with the body type, it’s with the gun. Like those motorcyle calendars, it really doesn’t matter what the woman looks like – a scantily clad woman on a hog just isn’t sexy. Nor is a woman with a gun. Take away the gun, yeah, it’s great. Could be it’s a cultural thing. Obviously, a lot of those calendars are popular.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler certainly are brilliant, and it’s worth noting that they’ve set the bar very, very high. Who now remembers an George H.W. Bush parody besides Dana Carvey’s?

The very premise of the video above is off the mark. As the lead-in quotation indicates, it isn’t based on Sarah Palin, but on Matt Damon’s opinion of Sarah Palin. People who agree with Damon might think it’s funny, but the more discerning among them will recognize that it’s funny because they agree with him, not because there’s much in the video itself that’s funny.

The greatest of all SNL parodies, imho, was the great Phil Hartman’s Bill Clinton. Unfortunately they’re not available on YouTube, but here’s a brief bit from the much underrated NewsRadio. If you watch to the end, there’s a kind of apologia for the time-honored tradition of satirizing our presidents.

By: almostgotit

almostgotit — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 16:33:46 +0000

@Rufus: Actually, quite aside from everything else, I find it quite nice that there are folks out there who consider this sort of “normal woman” body titillating! But I also think it’s okay to laugh at the photo. I give my permission, for whatever it’s worth.

And thanks also for the link to the further bit of brilliant SNL satire! Very funny, I agree.

@Mr. Budd and Working Girl: I think you’re both on to something. Satire that grabs something real about a person (or situation), and (trickier yet) even manages to show some affection or appreciation for the subject being satirized, makes it all the funnier.

@ Little Tea (and Rufus): Maybe you’re right… this video “just isn’t that funny.” But why? And why do some folks think it _is_ funny? This is what I’m wondering.

@Yep: Thanks for the very thoughtful and interesting comment. Interesting observation that some people disliking “folksy” and believing it inappropriate for a VP candidate… without being able to articulate WHY or what specific personality type IS “appropriate.” Not to mention what appropriate personality type and appropriate expertise even have to do with each other…

So all the prezes and candidates have been lefties, hunh? (as in- left HANDED). Interesting. Rules me out then, thank *GOODNESS!*

By: marsquat

marsquat — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 15:16:59 +0000

Thanks for the link, Yep!