Comments on: “Funny is money” – McCain scores big at Al Smith Dinner

By: buddy larsen

buddy larsen — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:08:59 +0000

Aww, man –Sid Caesar –we need a Sid Caesar revival –starting with when he was locked inside that hardware store in ‘Mad Mad World’. Yeesh –fuuunny stuff –slapstick and cerebral at the same time –& better comic eyebrows than Belushi –

By: david levavi

david levavi — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 17:08:33 +0000

Humor correlates directly with intelligence. And humor is a vehicle for honesty—especially embarrassing honesty. That conservatives trump liberals at humor as they do at creative and realistic social policies is inevitable.

I recall a panel discussion years ago featuring half-a –dozen creative comics including, if I recall correctly, Sid Caesar, Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner Woody Allen and others. For sheer brainpower, the lineup could have competed well with the scientists on the Manhattan Project.

Humor is part and parcel of McCain’s persona and political repertoire. Does anyone recall Obama making a joke before the Al Smith Dinner?

To work, humor has to be felt. Both candidates were working from scripts at the dinner. McCain appreciated the jokes. Obama was punching the clock. He has an easy and fulsome laugh—a sad but common defensive response to cover rough conversational patches among African Americans—but not the talent to create humor.

Obama is a serious and ambitious actor and humor can’t be faked. He’s a radical huckster on the make and making funny is one more way to appear unthreatening. Yet another aspect of blowing smoke at the White Man. How it goes over depends on the room.

By: California Dreamer

California Dreamer — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 07:43:21 +0000

I’m not sure Sarah Palin “slayed them” on SNL tonight, but then again I don’t get stoned for SNL the way the target audience does. I am sure Tina Fey is BS’ing the world when she said she hopes she doesn’t have to play the Sarah character after Nov 1st because the rest of the show isn’t remotely funny regardless of whether or not you are stoned. It’s a sad day when SNL can’t get as many laughs as South Park–and that’s been the case for years.

By: Chavo

Chavo — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 17:49:46 +0000

Vote for your favorite here: http://chebellafiori.blogspot.com/2008/10/whos-funnier.html

By: stace

stace — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 14:53:32 +0000

I watched it live, and I thought that Obama did just fine, but McCain killed. I know I’m biased, though, so I went over to HuffPo to see their take on it. They wouldn’t say a kind word about McCain even if he single-handedly discovered the cure for cancer. Or so I thought. Shockingly, most of them agreed on the high quality of McCain’s performance. Just wait till Sarah slays ‘em on SNL tonight.

By: buddy larsen

buddy larsen — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 14:25:57 +0000

Barry, can we tolerate a little Rod Stewart: “…But then I used to love her But it’s all over now , yes it is …”

By: Barry Dauphin

Barry Dauphin — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 13:15:43 +0000

Buddy, don’t let Peggy Noonan catch you talking like that :>)

By: Alan Kellogg

Alan Kellogg — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 10:35:37 +0000

As I watched Hillary’s reaction to McCain’s barbs at her husband I could just hear her thinking, “That is so Bill.”

By: Gary Rosen

Gary Rosen — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 03:38:47 +0000

Huh: you beat me to it, BO definitely qualifies as a “sophist”. Rat may be right about one thing though, that McCain blew the election by choosing Palin as VP. This alienated a crucial bloc of voters – the people who aren’t as smart as they think they are.

By: buddy larsen

buddy larsen — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 03:14:02 +0000

Barry, that’s what dat other Fuhrer promised –”Give me ten years and you will not recognize Germany”. He was right, too.