'TBH Politoons'
Thanks, again, Tim!
Baron Dave Romm
Political Satire
By Baron Dave Romm
Bad political satire is easy to find. Too many right wingers think that making a scatalogical joke is somehow a political statement. The right wing's obsession with sphincters and excrement and other people's sex lives is disgusting. A conservative is someone who was improperly toilet trained. That stuff was funny when I was eight, but I grew up. Most of the "satire" on right wing talk radio is just recycled bathroom humor that made the girls cry in fourth grade. And it still does, which explains a lot about the conservative movement.
Good political satire is harder to find, but worth the effort. The songs of Tom Lehrer, many written in the 50s and the rest from the 60s, still resonate today and he's part of the vocabulary of musical political satire. It's tempting to talk about him here, but there are many many many sites dedicated to Tom Lehrer, as it should be. I'll go for more recent music. Not all good political satire skewers the right, but somehow the left/center commentary is more cleverly written, more entertaining and more likely to be worth listening to years later.
The Capitol Steps specialize in topical humor, and they'll take on anybody. They're a bunch current and former Congressional staffers working out of Washington DC, and their web site has songs about events in today's headlines. Many of the songs are recorded in front of a live audience. They write new lyrics to old songs (what might be called "political filk"), and are usually dead on. In addition to their parodies, such as Enron-ron-ron (to the tune of Do-Ron-Ron) and Mine Every Mountain, about drilling in ANWAR (both songs can be heard on their site), some albums have an original piece called Lirty Dies, commentary done completely in spoonerisms. They skewer everyone and are frequently hilarious doing it. Their current CD is When Bush Comes To Shove. Get it quick: sometimes the parodies get dated awfully fast. Still, these guys are on top of current events and have a devilishly cynical take on the news. And sometimes, a political joke is funnier when the cycle comes around to it again.
The Foremen only
have four albums out, and much of the first two is in the third
(heck, two of them have the same name). They are technically out of
print, but you can try to get them from Roy Zimmerman's
site. Folk Heroes (1995) and What's Left (1996)
(boasting a quote from Ollie North, "Friends, this is a very weird
group") are the two I have. The first one has their best song,
Building For The Future ("When the hopeless hordes have found
their voice, and a priest can marry the man of his choice, and no one
plays bagpipes or quotes from James Joyce, you'll be there, Buddy
you'll be there.") They wander into partisan territory in Ain't No
Liberal and My Conservative Girlfriend and come up with a
staggering amount of euphamisms for masterbation in Firing The
Surgeon General (hey dittoheads: this is the way to use sexual
innuendo for political commentary). What's Left has a number
of really good bits, from the right wing announcements at Scorched
Earth Day to the brilliant What Did You Do On Election Day and
California Couldn't Pay Our Education to Gingrich's Hidden
Agenda to cutting funding of independent radio in Privateers
of the Public Airwaves. Highly recommended: even though a few
cuts are a shade dated,many are still fresh and relevant.
updated 7/19
The Foremen only have four albums out, and much of the first two is in the third (heck, two of them have the same name). They are technically out of print, but you can try to get them from Roy Zimmerman's site (or start at Roy's homepage). Folk Heroes (1995) and What's Left (1996) (boasting a quote from Ollie North, "Friends, this is a very weird group") are the two I have. The first one has their best song, Building For The Future ("When the hopeless hordes have found their voice, and a priest can marry the man of his choice, and no one plays bagpipes or quotes from James Joyce, you'll be there, Buddy you'll be there.") They wander into partisan territory in Ain't No Liberal and My Conservative Girlfriend and come up with a staggering amount of euphamisms for masterbation in Firing The Surgeon General (hey dittoheads: this is the way to use sexual innuendo for political commentary). What's Left has a number of really good bits, from the right wing announcements at Scorched Earth Day to the brilliant What Did You Do On Election Day and California Couldn't Pay Our Education to Gingrich's Hidden Agenda to cutting funding of independent radio in Privateers of the Public Airwaves. Highly recommended: even though a few cuts are a shade dated, many are still fresh and relevant.
Reverend Billy C. Wirtz is a force unto himself. Take Tom Lehrer's ability with language and audience interaction, the Foremen's propensity to skewer the right, and filter it through Jeff Foxworthy's southern viewpoint, and you have the Rev. Billy. I only have a couple of his albums. Backsliders Tractor Pull isn't so much political as it is deconstructive. Honky Tonk Hermaphrodite is about a good ol' boy... and girl. He has a Sleeper Hold On Satan and does an ad for Junior's Discount Frozen Embrio World and precisely bounces off Southern stereotypes in A Pinhead Will Survive. I should probably play Mennonite Surf Party right after The Electric Amish... By Songs of Faith and Inflammation, a live CD with introductions and audience laughter, Rev. Billy slips more direct political humor with Right Wing Roundup, though my favorite cut is the string of metaphors he uses to express his love for his wife in Song For Judy ("...the way Elvis loved his mama, the way the Dalai loves his Lama..."). Pro wrestling gets the treatment in Grandma vs. the Crusher and We Dismember These is about nostalgia for political and pop cultural seven-day wonders. While the least overtly political of the three groups discussed here, he's the one I'd most like to see live.
Dave Romm is a conceptual artist with a radio show and a web site and a very weird CD collection. He reviews things at random for obscure web sites. You can read all his music recommendations from Bartcop-E here.
He's Been Busy!
The Worried Shrimp
Permorming In Dallas
Re: Wanda Sykes
Hi Marty,
I just wanted to let you know that Wanda Sykes will be performing at the
Improv here in Dallas next Saturday. It's my partner's birthday so were
doing dinner and the show. I'm curious to see how the Dallasites react to
her jabs against resident Bush. I'll try to send you a review of the show.
Sam
Thanks, Sam - A review would be great - have a wonderful time!
Great Link
from Alan
Marty,
This one is funny as hell:
from Avedon's Sideshow
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon on how TV programs depict her as a ranting, radical loony:
"On one they showed me speaking at meetings, and had a close-up of me waving my fists and screaming. I wondered where the hell I was until I realized it was at a hockey game. That's the kind of misreporting we're dealing with."
For the rest, Susan Sarandon.
And, for interesting reading anytime:
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
As pretty a day as one can hope for.
Today (Monday) is the day the public's airwaves were 'appropriated' to special interests, big money & the benefit of very few. The FCC was supposed to be guarding those airwaves for us - "in the public interest, convenience & necessity" instead of stacking the deck & looting the assets in tandem with the governmental equivalent of Enron. The FCC was not established in
some utopia - every one of the ownership rules had sound reasoning behind it, and the bottom line was to avoid the concentration of power in too few hands. They originally didn't want any 1 entity to own more than 5 am/fm/tv stations nationwide. It was bumped up to 14, but, still....compare 14 (or even 28 combined) radio stations to the over 1200 of
Clear Channel.
Tonight, Monday, CBS opens the night with a RERUN 'King Of Queens', followed by a RERUN 'Yes, Dear', then a
RERUN 'Raymond', followed by a RERUN 'Still Standing', and caps it with a RERUN 'CSI: Miami'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Dave are Adrien Brody, Indianapolis 500 winner Gil de Ferran, and John Mellencamp.
Scheduled on a FRESH Craiggers are Rick Reilly and Ludacris.
NBC starts the evening with a RERUN 'Fear Factor', followed by the Series Premiere of 'For Love Or Money'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Jay are William H. Macy, Steve Edwards, Dorothy Lucey, Jillian Barberie, and Jewel.
On a RERUN Conan are Tom Cavanagh, Patton Oswalt, and Kenny Chesney.
On a RERUN Carson Daly (from 4/9/03), are Eddie Griffin and Cory Branan.
ABC has Stanley Cup Hockey infringing on prime time, so the west coast will have a filler movie, 'A Thousand Acres'.
Scheduled on a FRESH Jimmy Kimmel are George Lopez, martial arts superstar Stephen Chow, Mark Cohen, and Henry Phillips, with this week's guest co-host Method Man.
The WB offers a RERUN '7th Heaven', followed by a RERUN 'Everwood'.
Faux has the movie 'Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'.
UPN has a RERUN 'The Parkers', followed by a RERUN 'One On One', then a RERUN 'Girlfriends', followed by
a RERUN 'Half & Half'.
A&E has 'Biography' (Tony Curtis), followed by 'Inspector Morse'.
AMC offers a 'special' - 'Young Hollywood Awards', followed by the movie 'Young Guns'.
BBC America offers 'Ground Force', followed by 'Changing Rooms', then 'Jonathan Creek', followed by 'Murder In Mind',
then another 'Murder In Mind', followed by 'So Graham Norton', then another 'So Graham Norton', followed by
'Murder In Mind'.
Bravo has 2 half-hours of 'Cirque du Soleil', followed by 'Michael Jackson', and then 'Circus of The Sky'.
Comedy Central offers the movie 'Held Up', then 2 half hours of 'Trigger Happy TV', followed by:
Scheduled on a FRESH Jon Stewart is Bill Hemmer.
Scheduled on a FRESH Colin Quinn are Greg Giraldo, Rich Vos, Maurice, and Cory Kahaney.
History has 'Wake Island: The Alamo Of The Pacific'.
Lifetime has a 'Golden Girls Reunion'.
TCM has the movie 'Mr. Majestyk' (Charles Bronson as a watermelon farmer), followed by the movie 'Valdez Is Coming', and then the near-classic, 'Dial M For Murder'.
RERUN
FRESH
Anyone have any opinions?
Or reviews?
(See below for addresses)
Actress Queen Latifah plants a kiss on actor Adrien Brody, at the 2003 MTV Movie Awards which were taped in Los Angeles May 31, 2003, spoofing the kiss he gave presenter Halle Berry when Brody won the best actor Academy Award March 2003. The awards show featured musical performances and honored MTV viewers favorite movies and movie stars and will be telecast in the United States June 5.
Photo by Fred Prouser
The Information One-Stop
Moose & Squirrel
Airs June 5th
MTV Movie Awards
Saturday's irreverent MTV Movie Award ceremony honored Yoda for best fight scene from "Star Wars: Episode II-Attack of the Clones," while the raspy creep Gollum from "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" won for "virtual performance" and for best on screen team for its performance alongside human co-stars Elijah Wood and Sean Astin.
Yoda appeared on a giant screen to accept the honor and spoke in his signature circuitous manner.
"Hmmm ... grateful am I to this award receive. To win, I did not expect," he said. "Promise myself cry I would not."
He went on to thank supporters ranging from "Star Wars" creator George Lucas to Wookie Chewbacca, Vin Diesel, space monster Greedo and actor Steve Guttenberg.
The computer-animated Yoda became angry when music played him off the stage.
After the virtual performance award went to Gollum, actor Andy Serkis — who voiced the character and performed the movements for its computer animation — appeared on screen to thank the filmmaker and special effects crew for their work in bringing the monster to life.
Then, the emaciated Gollum clamored over to snatch the trophy from Serkis' hands.
"You're a liar and a thief," Gollum hissed. "It's mine!"
Gollum went on to deliver an expletive-filled tirade against the filmmakers, actors, MTV and audience, while Serkis stood by looking embarrassed.
Rage rapper Eminem claimed the Breakthrough Male trophy for his work in the drama "8 Mile."
"The Two Towers" won best movie, beating "Spider-Man," "8 Mile," "The Ring," and "Barbershop." And "Towers" star Astin used his acceptance speech to apologize for Gollum's uncouth behavior. "Spider-Man's" Kirsten Dunst was named best female star, while Eminem won best male for his role in "8 Mile."
Mark Wahlberg, Samuel L. Jackson, Hugh Jackman, Beyonce Knowles were among the presenters. Rapper 50 Cent, the pop singer Pink and the Russian girl duo t.A.T.u performed.
The event at the Shrine Auditorium is more satire than ceremony, honoring show-business types for such categories as best kiss and villain. The rain-drenched upside smooch between "Spider-Man" Tobey Maguire and Dunst won for kiss and 12-year-old Daveigh Chase collected the villain honor for playing the evil little girl who kills people through their television sets in "The Ring."
Singer Justin Timberlake and Seann William Scott (Stifler from the "American Pie" movies) hosted. Timberlake and Scott appeared in one of the ceremony's traditional movie spoofs, parodying "The Matrix Reloaded." In the short, Timberlake used his 'NSync dance moves to pummel a growling computerized "agent" played by Scott.
The 12th annual ceremony is scheduled to air June 5 on MTV.
MTV Movie Awards
MTV Movie Awards Web site
Filmmaker and author Michael Moore, left, shakes hands with former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and Secretary of State Madeleine Albright during a 'Book and Author Breakfast' in which the two spoke at the Book Expo L.A., Sunday, June 1, 2003, in Los Angeles. Both Moore's, yet untitled new book and Albright's autobiography, 'Madame Secretary' are soon to be released.
Photo by Lee Celano
Has Received Many Marriage Proposals
Dalai Lama
Numerous women have over the years offered to marry the Dalai Lama, the celibate Tibetan spiritual leader told a German magazine.
The exiled leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner told the weekly Die Welt am Sonntag, due to appear on Sunday, that many women have followed him on his travels and "lots of them have said they wanted to marry me."
The Dalai Lama had addressed an ecumenical gathering of Germany's young Christians in Berlin on Friday.
The Dalai Lama, a vegetarian, said he preferred watching animal documentaries that "show true life," and that he sometimes was afraid that in his next life he would be reincarnated as an animal.
He told Die Welt am Sonntag that he intended to gradually withdraw from political functions, but "I will continue until my death to devote myself to the promotion of human values and harmony."
Dalai Lama
Playwright Gets Acting Bug
August Wilson
After more than two decades in theater, August Wilson finally has the acting bug.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of such acclaimed Broadway plays as "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" and "Joe Turner's Come and Gone" made his stage debut two weeks ago with "How I Learned What I Learned," a monologue about growing up black in Pittsburgh's Hill District.
And, years after he turned down roles in Spike Lee's "Malcolm X" and Alan Pakula's "The Pelican Brief," he makes his movie debut this month as narrator of "The Naked Proof," an independent film premiering at the Seattle International Film Festival.
In "How I Learned What I Learned," Wilson, 58, plays a more serious role: himself. Pacing the Seattle Repertory Theater's stage in a brown jacket and tweed cap, occasionally lighting a Marlboro, he recalls his early adulthood, proud mother, poet-junkie friends and the street ethics of 1950s Pittsburgh.
August Wilson
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
Ends Tour In Liverpool
Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney got back to where he once belonged on Sunday, wrapping up his world tour with an emotion-charged concert in the birthplace of the Beatles.
From the moment he tore into the Beatles back catalog, 35,000 people leapt to their feet and clapped in unison. For ardent Beatle fans, McCartney was replaying the soundtrack of their lives and they sang along to every number.
"It's great to be home," he said, launching into "All My Loving" that was played out against a nostalgic video backdrop of newsreel footage of Sixties Beatlemania.
McCartney played 25 of the Beatles' greatest hits, twice as many as the world's most famous pop group used to perform at gigs together in their heyday.
Paul McCartney
Actors gather on a set made to look like the Congo in Africa, for a special episode of 'ER,' Wednesday, April 30. 2003, in Kualoa, Hawaii. Hawaii is becoming a hotspot for location shoots in the movie industry, because of it's ability to look like exotic places from around the world and it's convienent location.
Photo by Ronen Zilberman
Mark Wills Performed Private Concert
Jessica Lynch
Mark Wills recently performed a special private concert for Army soldier Jessica Lynch, who was kidnapped, injured and finally rescued in Iraq. The singer was visiting with and playing for small groups of injured soldiers at Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, D.C. when he learned that Lynch was hospitalized there, according to The Tennessean.
Wills is scheduled to perform at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville on June 6. His current single, "When You Think Of Me," continues to climb the country singles charts.
Jessica Lynch
Formerly 'The Vidiot'
Offers To Serve The Queen
Dame Edna
Resplendent in jewel-encrusted glasses under her sculpted lilac coiffure, Australia's superstar housewife Dame Edna Everage has volunteered to step in as the Queen's representative in Australia.
After years of international success, Dame Edna, the creation of comic Barry Humphries, arrived back in Australia just as Governor-General Peter Hollingworth quit amid claims that as an archbishop he covered up for paedophile priests in the 1990s.
As the country debates who should replace Hollingworth, callers to talkback radio shows suggested Dame Edna should take up the vice-regal post -- and Humphries, with his trademark disarming wit and satire, was quick to jump at the chance.
"She's the perfect choice. A friend of the queen, admired by the royal family, yet an avid republican!" Humphries told interviewers before kicking off an 11-week tour of his new show, "Back to My Roots and Other Suckers", in Canberra on June 3.
The scandal over the governor-general was, however, an ideal opportunity for Humphries to indulge in his favoured pastime -- baiting any fellow Australians with pretensions.
Humphries, 69, has made a career out of turning the petty snobberies of the Australian suburbs into comedy and pushing the boundaries of political correctness.
For more, Dame Edna
Naked anti-G8 protesters splash water in a fountain in front of Lausanne's train station May 31, 2003. The demonstrators took part in protest march ahead of the summit of the Group of Eight leading industrialized countries that will be held June 1-3 in the French spa town of Evian on the shores of Lake Geneva.
Photo by Dominique Favre
Los Angeles Officials Order Rate Cut
Adelphia
Los Angeles city officials on Friday ordered bankrupt cable television provider Adelphia Communications Corp. to reverse a rate increase on about 230,000 subscribers that was imposed last year.
The city council voted 13-0 to order Adelphia to roll back rate increases that began to take effect last summer, which in some cases raised customers' monthly bills as much as 9 percent. The city has the authority to overrule rate hikes it finds to be unjustified under Adelphia's franchise agreement.
A spokeswoman for council member Jack Weiss said the rollback would take effect in 60 days, unless Adelphia appeals to the Federal Communications Commission.
City officials, including the city attorney, vowed last August to fight the rate hikes, days after the city granted Adelphia a temporary extension of its franchise agreement.
Adelphia
Catherine's Palace, St. Petersburg
from Alex
Marty...here's another photo of St.Petersburg from when I was
there in 1994.
Alex
Thanks, Alex!
Attacked Again
Little Mermaid
Vandals poured white paint on Copenhagen's famed statue of the Little Mermaid, police said. The paint was removed early Sunday.
Created in 1913 in tribute to Danish storyteller Hans Christian Andersen, who wrote "The Little Mermaid" fairytale, the landmark statue draws an estimated 1 million visitors a year and has been a repeated target of vandals.
The mermaid was beheaded in 1963 and 1998, and her right arm was sawed off in 1984. Authorities in 1990 discovered an 7-inch gap in her neck in what was believed to be an attempt to saw her head off.
Little Mermaid
Defending Quiksilver Pro Fiji champion Australian Michael Lowe rides the pipe to advance to round four of the Quiksilver Pro at Cloudbreak Reef, Tavarua Island in Fiji Sunday June 1, 2003. Lowe beat Brazilian Peterson Rosa (pictured right) to set up a round four clash with last years runner-up Floridian Shea Lopez (USA).
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'Ark of Darkness'
"The Ark of Darkness", a Political/Science-Fiction work, in tidy, weekly installments (and updated every Friday).
'The Osbournes'
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 4
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 3
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 2
'The Osbournes' ~ Page 1
