Obama imitator is taken seriously

[Ron_Tomkins]

Not too long ago I opened a thread about Conservative Comedians, asking about them, where they are, and arguing that I don't think we can just flat out say "Well, Republicans don't have a sense of humor"

However, it does seem it's harder for Republicans to make fun of themselves than it is of Democrats. Just now I was watching an episode of the Jon Stewart show where he mocks Obama's attempt to sympathize with Puerto Ricans on his 4 hour stay at Puerto Rico. That is, Stewart will occasionally mock democrats (such as Anthony Weiner) and you will never hear the audience booing because he's mocking their side.

That is, however, exactly what you will expect from a Republican audience;
Comedian Reggie Brown, an incredible Obama impersonator who gets it as close as possible, was jeered at this hilarious speech he gave at a Republican Convention, when his jokes began to take a turn against the Conservatives themselves:



Audience sense of humor = FAIL

 

[elbe]

I mentioned it in another thread, but I have the impression that the right views dissent as weakness and will always try to defend and never criticize their own, at least not publicly. But that's just how it looks to me.

 

[JoeTheJuggler]

And at the same time at least a couple of people on the right are urging them to be more politically expedient than insist on ideological purity. (I don't mean to Godwin the thread, but that notion of "purity" really smacks of Nazism or Bolshevekism.)

But then you've got the Tea Party side of the GOP that seems to view compromise (much less self-criticism) as weakness.

 

[Biscuit]

Any particular point I should be watching for? I don't have 18 minutes to sit through that.

 

[Ron_Tomkins]

Any particular point I should be watching for? I don't have 18 minutes to sit through that.

Not really. His routine does have some hilarious moments that made me literally laugh out loud at centimeters from the screen. But that's just me. The only "relevant" part is near the end, when you start witnessing the audience's disapproval with the comedian. And then someone kind of escorts him out of the stage.

 

[marksman]

You don't mock your audience. And when you mock someone from your own party, you make fun of them for not being sufficiently in line with party ideals.

Jon Stewart can make fun of Obama, particularly when Obama falls short of Democratic ideals (like when his short PR trip indicated a non-genuine cynical interest in Puerto Rico). But Jon Stewart generally doesn't make fun of his audience (unless he will imply they smoke pot or drink to excess, which his audience isn't going to take as an insult).

Similarly, the Obama impersonator can make fun of Obama. And he could have thanked Romney for his help in getting Obamacare passed. Even though that was making fun of a Republican, you'd be making fun of him for not being sufficiently GOP.

Similarly, Jon Stewart can make Obama jokes at the DNC. But if he begins mocking the DNC for not, say, not defending Wiener and acting like a bunch of moralistic Republicans, you can bet that people will be offended. But Jon Stewart's smart enough to know better than to make such a joke at the DNC; this comedian was not.

 

[elbe]

You don't mock your audience. And when you mock someone from your own party, you make fun of them for not being sufficiently in line with party ideals.

Are you joking or do you not watch a lot of comedy?

 

[Varanid]

That impression was scary good. Wow.
I am not sure there was much humor though. And the humor I did recognize was weird and uncomfortable.

 

[A Laughing Baby]

Man, I sure did love the Sanford and Son joke, and the one where the whole joke was "Obama is half black lol." Really insightful, hard-hitting comedy there.

 

[hgc]

That impression was scary good. Wow.
I am not sure there was much humor though. And the humor I did recognize was weird and uncomfortable.

Yeah, he's a got a lot more going for him as an impersonator than as a comedian. If they had a good joke writer, it may have worked out better, but then I don't think he has much in the way of comic timing. He'd be better off as a Romney impersonator (if he looked like Romney).

Skewing the inside crowd would have worked better if the jokes were funny. Or maybe the last thing that crowd would have wanted was a near-Obama making them laugh at themselves.

 

[Snide]

Yeah, he's a got a lot more going for him as an impersonator than as a comedian. If they had a good joke writer, it may have worked out better, but then I don't think he has much in the way of comic timing. He'd be better off as a Romney impersonator (if he looked like Romney).

Skewing the inside crowd would have worked better if the jokes were funny. Or maybe the last thing that crowd would have wanted was a near-Obama making them laugh at themselves.

I agree. What I found funny (strange) was how heartily some people laughed at the really lame, "I celebrated half the month (Feb)" joke. It was worth a mild chuckle at best. It would rank on the bottom of a typical Leno monologue, yet some just howled. Odd.

 

[A Laughing Baby]

I agree. What I found funny (strange) was how heartily some people laughed at the really lame, "I celebrated half the month (Feb)" joke. It was worth a mild chuckle at best. It would rank on the bottom of a typical Leno monologue, yet some just howled. Odd.

It's a race-based joke while being milquetoast enough to say that it wasn't a racist joke. It's a chance to make "the President is black! LOL!" jokes without being called out on it. See also: the reaction to the Sanford and Sons joke (which was, as far as I can tell, a joke that was literally just "The president is black!").

 

[TraneWreck]

You don't mock your audience. And when you mock someone from your own party, you make fun of them for not being sufficiently in line with party ideals.

[...]

Similarly, Jon Stewart can make Obama jokes at the DNC. But if he begins mocking the DNC for not, say, not defending Wiener and acting like a bunch of moralistic Republicans, you can bet that people will be offended. But Jon Stewart's smart enough to know better than to make such a joke at the DNC; this comedian was not.

I believe you need to familiarize yourself with the concept of a "roast."

 

[Ron_Tomkins]

You don't mock your audience. And when you mock someone from your own party, you make fun of them for not being sufficiently in line with party ideals.

There is no such rule and as matter of fact a lot of comedians do mock their audiences efficiently. You just have to do it "with style" so to speak. In other words, no matter how harsh you may mock your audience, if the jokes are in fact funny, the audience can laugh at themselves.

At the Comedy Cellar in new York, this is almost a motto. In fact, prior to the beginning of the show, they warn the audience not to take it seriously when the comedians mock them.

Jon Stewart can make fun of Obama, particularly when Obama falls short of Democratic ideals (like when his short PR trip indicated a non-genuine cynical interest in Puerto Rico). But Jon Stewart generally doesn't make fun of his audience (unless he will imply they smoke pot or drink to excess, which his audience isn't going to take as an insult).

Stephen Colbert, on the other hand, will in fact mock his audience from time to time and again, as long as everyone understands that nothing that comes out of the comedian's mouth is to be taken seriously, there's no reason to get offended.

Similarly, Jon Stewart can make Obama jokes at the DNC. But if he begins mocking the DNC for not, say, not defending Wiener and acting like a bunch of moralistic Republicans, you can bet that people will be offended. But Jon Stewart's smart enough to know better than to make such a joke at the DNC; this comedian was not.

I wouldn't "bet" on it. I think we would have to see what would actually happen. People aren't always emotionally reactive. It all depends on how the comedian delivers the joke. As George Carlin said "I believe you can joke about anything. It's all about how you construct the joke".

And again, your analogy isn't quite accurate. You said Jon Stewart never mocks his audience, but that analogy is invalid because Reggie Brown wasn't mocking his audience. He was mocking the Republican candidates. So it actually is exactly as the analogy I originally presented:

* Stewart mocks Obama (which his audience supports) and his audience laughs
* Reggie Brown mocks Republican candidates (which his audience supports) and his audience jeers him and takes it seriously


Same exact scenario. Two different outcomes. So my point does rest.

 

[marksman]

I believe you need to familiarize yourself with the concept of a "roast."

Was this at a roast? If so, i retract my comments.

 

[marksman]

* Reggie Brown mocks Republican candidates (which his audience supports) and his audience jeers him and takes it seriously

I thought it was said he was mocking the GOP, not the candidates. My apologies if I misunderstood.

 

[TraneWreck]

Was this at a roast? If so, i retract my comments.

He was clearly roasting the candidates, making fun of them. The Roast format has become popular in political circles. The Whitehouse Correspondents' dinner has essentially become a roast.

 

[johnny karate]

"John King served [Pawlenty] up a ball softer than Barney Frank's backside."

queerz r teh funny lolz

 

[A Laughing Baby]

I think that's more of a "Barney Frank is fat! LOL!" joke than a "Barney Frank is gay! LOL!" joke. Though it probably has some implications of that second one in there.

 

[elbe]

Random related followup: I've seen Stewart lightly mock his audience on the Daily Show, usually in a self deprecating style.