obama the punchline.

[genkav]

i had the chance to catch a second city toronto performance of "barack to the future" last week, and it got me thinking. what are comedians going to do if obama wins? he's the one people like. bush has provided us with 8 years of material to work with...obama? i draw a blank. he's a cool guy.

thoughts?

[janedame]

They'll think of something. They have twisted minds.

[bush_cheney2004]

It's already been done...by Richard Pryor...over 25 years ago.

[Guest American Woman]

i had the chance to catch a second city toronto performance of "barack to the future" last week, and it got me thinking. what are comedians going to do if obama wins? he's the one people like. bush has provided us with 8 years of material to work with...obama? i draw a blank. he's a cool guy.

thoughts?

I just saw "Barack to the Future" in Toronto last night. When you were there did they do the "How far can you go?" act where they read specific news items and there were three 'contestants' (from the Second City staff) who had to write down comments about them and the audience would have to let them know if they 'went too far?' The crowd last night was definitely not made up of Palin supporters!

[Oleg Bach]

i had the chance to catch a second city toronto performance of "barack to the future" last week, and it got me thinking. what are comedians going to do if obama wins? he's the one people like. bush has provided us with 8 years of material to work with...obama? i draw a blank. he's a cool guy.

thoughts?

Being a cool guy might not be quite enough to sustain life on earth. Winston Churchill was very un-cool and ugly and drunk - yet he had spirit and substance and knew that his failed handlers had mismanaged the game with the Nazis and that the tacit agreements between Britian and Germany had tumbled south and were out of control - Obama - will never be president so any preparation by comedics should be put on hold...actually if he was the commander and chief and their was a huge and daunting crisis on the horizon....I could see Obama reading from a telepromter - They would have the best line out of a hundered speeches strung together - along with the corresponding expressions used by the original statesmen. I can see Obama doing an imitation of Winston Churchill - but speaking like Martin King combined with Mohamid Ali - eg " We have nothing to fear but floating like a butter fly and stinging like a dream" - total double talk with no messeage - just emotion - emotion used to moblilze a population but not telling said population where to go or what to really do - NOW THAT IS FUNNY.

[BC_chick]

i had the chance to catch a second city toronto performance of "barack to the future" last week, and it got me thinking. what are comedians going to do if obama wins? he's the one people like. bush has provided us with 8 years of material to work with...obama? i draw a blank. he's a cool guy.

thoughts?

You're on to something, maybe that's why the only 'jokes' directed at him have been pretty much racist ones.

There really isn't much else, is there?

[Bryan]

There really isn't much else, is there?

Not much to make fun of because there's hardly any substance to him. You'd have to actually say something for anyone to take it out of context to make a joke about it.

[Guest American Woman]

Not much to make fun of because there's hardly any substance to him. You'd have to actually say something for anyone to take it out of context to make a joke about it.

Now that was funny. So it's people of "substance" that comedians make fun of, eh? In that case, Bush must be chock-full of substance. !!

[Bryan]

Now that was funny. So it's people of "substance" that comedians make fun of, eh? In that case, Bush must be chock-full of substance. !!

Absolutely. Sure, that "substance" is primarily bullshit and hate (punctuated by brief moments of gob smacking stupidity), but he actually says SOMETHING. Obama works harder than any politician I've ever seen to not say anything when he speaks.

[Guest American Woman]

Absolutely. Sure, that "substance" is primarily bullshit and hate (punctuated by brief moments of gob smacking stupidity), but he actually says SOMETHING. Obama works harder than any politician I've ever seen to not say anything when he speaks.

You say Obama works harder than any politician to say nothing as others say he's the farthest left candidate to come along, so that in itself is totally contradictory-- he can't be far left and saying nothing. So maybe what it boils down to is that people hear, or don't hear, according to what they want to hear-- or not hear.

But that "substance" you refer to has to have the ingredients necessary for humor. Someone who isn't saying stupid things, full of bullshit, etc. doesn't provide a base for humor. In other words, someone whose substance is truth, love, and intelligence isn't going to provide comedians with material the way someone whose substance is "primarily bullshit and hate (punctuated by brief moments of gob smacking stupidity)." So it's not so much a matter of having or not having substance as it is a matter of what that substance is comprised of.

Obama seems to be an intelligent, well-liked politician, which will make it much more difficult for comedians to come up with funny stuff, and that was the point being made in this thread.

[bush_cheney2004]

...Obama seems to be an intelligent, well-liked politician, which will make it much more difficult for comedians to come up with funny stuff, and that was the point being made in this thread.

Didn't seem to stop the New Yorker in Obama's case....President Clinton was intelligent and well liked too, but he certainly had a bumper crop of "funny stuff". Comics will do as they have always done...Obama won't get a pass if elected.

[Guest American Woman]

Didn't seem to stop the New Yorker in Obama's case....President Clinton was intelligent and well liked too, but he certainly had a bumper crop of "funny stuff". Comics will do as they have always done...Obama won't get a pass if elected.

Not saying he'll get a pass, but some certainly have more fun poked at them than others, and rightfully so. Some just seem to write their own material, and this makes the comedians' work easier, and makes their material funnier. In that light, I think this thread is more about the "Second City" et al type comedy than "The New Yorker" type comedy.

[kimmy]

The obvious Obama laughs would probably be at the expense of his scrawny physique. His tiny pipe-cleaner arms, his head bobbing about, barely supported by a tiny stick frame, "like an orange on a toothpick", as Mike Myers once said in a movie. Obama makes Stephane Dion look like Arnold Schwarzenegger by comparison.

Americans may soon elect a president who doesn't look like he's ever lifted anything heavier than his microphone or his iPod, a president who looks like he will need the power of prayer to help him reach home base when he throws out the ceremonial first pitch at a baseball game. When the Obama family rearranges the furniture in the White House, will it be Barack saying "A little to the left, honey" as Michelle does the lifting? One can only wonder.

Barack Obama shatters many racial stereotypes; the hardest hit will probably be the stereotype that black people are athletic.

(No, BC Chick, that wasn't racist. It was certainly sexist. But not racist.)

-k

aw, @#$&*, apparently it is racist after all. ^##$@*!@

Edited October 1, 2008 by kimmy

[peter_puck]

Not much to make fun of because there's hardly any substance to him. You'd have to actually say something for anyone to take it out of context to make a joke about it.

Bush (Jr) and Quayle had no substance. They were certainly the but of a few jokes.

[BubberMiley]

Barack Obama shatters many racial stereotypes; the hardest hit will probably be the stereotype that black people are athletic.

But then he goes and drains a three-pointer on the first try.

[kimmy]

But then he goes and drains a three-pointer on the first try.

So what you're really saying is that black people are good at basketball? How do you sleep at night, you despicable bigot?!

-k

[BC_chick]

Barack Obama shatters many racial stereotypes; the hardest hit will probably be the stereotype that black people are athletic.

(No, BC Chick, that wasn't racist. It was certainly sexist. But not racist.)

-k

I don't think you're a stereotypical white woman.

Oh sorry, was that sexist? Or perhaps racist?

[Guest American Woman]

The obvious Obama laughs would probably be at the expense of his scrawny physique. His tiny pipe-cleaner arms, his head bobbing about, barely supported by a tiny stick frame, "like an orange on a toothpick", as Mike Myers once said in a movie. Obama makes Stephane Dion look like Arnold Schwarzenegger by comparison.

Americans may soon elect a president who doesn't look like he's ever lifted anything heavier than his microphone or his iPod, a president who looks like he will need the power of prayer to help him reach home base when he throws out the ceremonial first pitch at a baseball game. When the Obama family rearranges the furniture in the White House, will it be Barack saying "A little to the left, honey" as Michelle does the lifting? One can only wonder.

One can only wonder if you think that would actually pass as funny.

What is funny, though, is how apparently the only thing anyone could find "funny" about Obama is his looks. Seems to me the ease with which comedians can make fun of Palin's and Bush's intelligence, knowledge, or lack thereof, the actually funny way in which they can be mocked, is something that is worthy of ridicule since that's what's required for the job. But looks seem to be what the conservatives go after, probably because it's so difficult to mock the intelligence and knowledge of those they go after so it's all they've got; and in that light, what's also funny, is those who make fun of others looks really have no room to criticize.

Edited October 1, 2008 by American Woman

[genkav]

I just saw "Barack to the Future" in Toronto last night. When you were there did they do the "How far can you go?" act where they read specific news items and there were three 'contestants' (from the Second City staff) who had to write down comments about them and the audience would have to let them know if they 'went too far?' The crowd last night was definitely not made up of Palin supporters!

yes they did! they had some pretty racy stuff..can't remember now, it's been a while. but the crowd loved yelling "TOO FARRRRR!"

[aljohn]

Being a cool guy might not be quite enough to sustain life on earth. Winston Churchill was very un-cool and ugly and drunk - yet he had spirit and substance and knew that his failed handlers had mismanaged the game with the Nazis and that the tacit agreements between Britian and Germany had tumbled south and were out of control - Obama - will never be president so any preparation by comedics should be put on hold...actually if he was the commander and chief and their was a huge and daunting crisis on the horizon....I could see Obama reading from a telepromter - They would have the best line out of a hundered speeches strung together - along with the corresponding expressions used by the original statesmen. I can see Obama doing an imitation of Winston Churchill - but speaking like Martin King combined with Mohamid Ali - eg " We have nothing to fear but floating like a butter fly and stinging like a dream" - total double talk with no messeage - just emotion - emotion used to moblilze a population but not telling said population where to go or what to really do - NOW THAT IS FUNNY.

If you read the history you will know that Churchill never spoke off the cuff and he spent hours preparing statements for any possible question. FDR had basic principals that he ran his first presidential election on. It was not until he became president that the country found out just how he planned to implement these general ideas. The opponents of Obama lacking any real issues make up a whole host of complete BS to try to discredit a master politician.

[Guest American Woman]

yes they did! they had some pretty racy stuff..can't remember now, it's been a while. but the crowd loved yelling "TOO FARRRRR!"

If they had done the same Palin bit that they did at the show I saw, I don't think you'd forget. But our crowd wasn't really a "too far" crowd so they may have been worse with us than they were at some of the other shows.

[kimmy]

What is funny, though, is how apparently the only thing anyone could find "funny" about Obama is his looks. Seems to me the ease with which comedians can make fun of Palin's and Bush's intelligence, knowledge, or lack thereof, the actually funny way in which they can be mocked, is something that is worthy of ridicule since that's what's required for the job. But looks seem to be what the conservatives go after, probably because it's so difficult to mock the intelligence and knowledge of those they go after so it's all they've got; and in that light, what's also funny, is those who make fun of others looks really have no room to criticize.

As if. I remember the left having no problem with making fun of peoples' appearances, whether it's Bob Dole's non-functioning arm, Dan Quayle's child-like countenance, Stephen Harper's hefty presence and gigantic ass, or the "naughty librarian" line and similar commentary being made about Palin. This has always been fair game for both sides of the political spectrum. Except, apparently, in the case of Obama, because (as referenced above) any mention of Obama's appearance is actually an underhanded way of referencing the fact that he's not white. Allegedly.

Obama's physical presence can only be likened to that of Steve Urkel, which is, yes, frankly pretty funny.

If one is only interested in issues of substance (or lack of substance) then Stick Boy's remarkable gift of being able to talk continuously without actually saying anything is pretty funny. However, my lasting impression of Obama is of the guy who promised unionists in Ohio and Michigan that he was going to tear up NAFTA and renegotiate it, while simultaneously assuring Canadian trade officials that he intended no such thing, and then confirming (after Hilary was comfortably dispatched) that indeed he didn't actually intend to renegotiate NAFTA, except that now that he's campaigning again, he's going to renegotiate NAFTA again. Maybe. I guess some might find that funny. Either funny or worrying, I guess, depending on what line of work you're in.

Can any of his supporters say confidently that they know his opinion is on NAFTA? Can any Canadians here explain why they're so solidly behind a guy whose position on the one issue that is crucial to Canada in the US election is so ambiguous?

Of course, the real comedy isn't from Obama himself, of course, but rather the followers, disciples, and apostles who posit that Obama is not a political candidate but rather a state of mind.

-k

[BubberMiley]

Who made fun of Bob Dole's war injury? The only people I recall exploiting that were Republicans saying people made fun of it. I guess there are still a few of those around.

[kimmy]

Who made fun of Bob Dole's war injury? The only people I recall exploiting that were Republicans saying people made fun of it. I guess there are still a few of those around.

I recall SNL and Mad TV sketches portraying the disabled limb flopping about comically. The Mad TV sketch was particularly crass, depicting Bob Dole as "Dole-O-Mite", dressed as a pimp and getting into some kind of altercation with the guest star (Ice T, I believe) with the result that the limb was sent windmilling uncontrollably as "Dole-O-Mite" was forcibly ejected from the stage.

-k

Edited October 2, 2008 by kimmy

[Guest American Woman]

As if. I remember the left having no problem with making fun of peoples' appearances, whether it's Bob Dole's non-functioning arm, Dan Quayle's child-like countenance, Stephen Harper's hefty presence and gigantic ass, or the "naughty librarian" line and similar commentary being made about Palin. This has always been fair game for both sides of the political spectrum. Except, apparently, in the case of Obama, because (as referenced above) any mention of Obama's appearance is actually an underhanded way of referencing the fact that he's not white. Allegedly.

And as you "remember" those things, you have no problem joining in the fray. Says a lot about you; especially as you whine about people 'picking on' Palin. Typical of so many on the right. 'Do as I would like you to do, not as I do.'

Obama's physical presence can only be likened to that of Steve Urkel, which is, yes, frankly pretty funny.

Maybe to someone with a juvenile sense of humor. But then, even when I was in junior high it took something actually funny to be funny to me. I never got off on making fun of other people's looks. And like I said, those who do are really the last ones who should be doing it.

If one is only interested in issues of substance (or lack of substance) then Stick Boy's remarkable gift of being able to talk continuously without actually saying anything is pretty funny.

I read no further than that. Since I am interested in substance, your childish post lost my interest....

Edited October 2, 2008 by American Woman