Zandra Stacia
2011-05-22 15:54:50 UTC
Last year, when the Kennedy Center named Tina Fey the 2010 recipient of
the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, I was compelled to offer my
opinion that Fey is not funny and that the only reason she was being
honored was because of her imitation of Sarah Palin. Humor, of course,
is in the eye of the beholder. So some people liked what I had to say
about Fey's brand of "comedy" while others vigorously made their
objections known.
Well, last week the Kennedy Center named Will Ferrell the 2011 recipient
of the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. I am now compelled to offer
my opinion that Ferrell is not funny and that the only reason he is
being honored is because of his imitation of George W. Bush. Once again
operating with the understanding that humor is in the eye of the
beholder, some people will like what I have to say about Ferrell's brand
of "comedy" while others will vigorously make their objections known.
The year before Fey was awarded the Twain prize, the Kennedy Center
bestowed it upon Bill Cosby, a true pioneer of American humor. Here is
how I described the Kennedy Center honoring Cosby and Fey in consecutive
years:
The idea of honoring Tina Fey the year after Bill Cosby
is kind of like the Baseball Hall of Fame enshrining
"Marvelous" Marv Throneberry the year after inducting
Mickey Mantle. The Mick and Marvelous Marv were both
baseball players but the similarities end there. Cosby
and Fey are both comedians but there too the similarities end.
Well, honoring Fey and Ferrell in consecutive years is more of a lateral
move. If going from Cosby to Fey is like going from The Mick to
Marvelous Marv then going from Fey to Ferrell is like going from
Marvelous Marv to Choo Choo Coleman. Indeed, much of the Saturday Night
Live cast from the mid-1990s onward could be likened to the 1962 New
York Mets.
But Ferrell is nearly single-handedly responsible for making me stop
watching SNL on a regular basis. I simply found his antics annoying and
unfunny. At best, he was a tenth-rate version of John Belushi or Chris
Farley. At worst, watching his act was like tuning into someone run his
fingers down a blackboard week in and week out.
Nevertheless, I realize Ferrell gained a fan base on SNL which turned
out enthusiastically for his movies such as Old School, Talladega
Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron
Burgundy. Yet the Kennedy Center tells us:
The Mark Twain Prize recognizes people who have had an
impact on American society in ways similar to the
distinguished 19th century novelist and essayist best
known as Mark Twain. As a social commentator, satirist
and creator of characters, Samuel Clemens was a fearless
observer of society, who startled many while delighting
and informing many more with his uncompromising perspective
of social injustice and personal folly.
Notwithstanding his success at the box office, Mark Twain is probably
the last person who comes to mind when discussing the "humor" of Will
Ferrell. Running naked while shouting, "Let's go streaking!!!" doesn't
exactly convey an "uncompromising perspective of social injustice and
personal folly."
This brings me to George W. Bush. Now Ferrell is hardly the first SNL
cast member to impersonate a U.S. President and he won't be the last.
But make no mistake. Ferrell portrays Bush as a stupid and venal man.
Contrast that with Dana Carvey's mimicry of George H.W. Bush, which was
done with affection and in many ways humanized the 41st President. By
Ferrell's own admission, he declined the opportunity to meet Bush
because he doesn't share his politics. Indeed, when Ferrell was told
that Tina Fey thought Ferrell's portrayal of Bush "almost made him
likeable," he responded by saying he tried to make him "fumbling and
bumbling."
Consider also the reception Ferrell received when he took his act to
Broadway in February 2009 shortly after Bush left office with "You're
Welcome America: A Final Night with George Bush." Shortly before its
opening, Patrick Healy of the New York Times wrote, "And who better than
liberal New York theatergoers, they (Ferrell and co-writer and director
Adam McKay) hoped, to appreciate a cutting post-mortem on the Republican
president?" Well, not surprisingly, Ferrell's Bush was a smash hit with
the liberal intelligentsia of the Upper West Side and was nominated for
a Tony Award. Joe Dziemianowicz of the New York Daily News shared this
sentiment when he wrote, "Unlike Dubya, Ferrell is lightning fast on his
feet and turns each ad lib into a burst of hilarity, a mission
accomplished, if you will." Michael Kuchwara of the Associated Press
echoes Dziemianowicz by writing, "As a thinker, Ferrell is a lot faster
with a quip than the bumbler he is impersonating."
I think you get the idea. The only purpose of Ferrell's portrayal of
President Bush is to reinforce liberal hatred of him even after he has
left public life. How else does one explain the video Ferrell made of
Bush's reaction to the death on Osama bin Laden on his website,
funnyordie.com? Of course, if a comedian of conservative inclination
were to write and star in a play about President Obama, there is little
doubt these same critics would cry racism before the curtain went up.
But for publicly deriding a prominent conservative public figure, like
Tina Fey before him, Will Ferrell is celebrated, feted, and given
prestigious awards such as the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.
The only comfort I take in all of this is that Twain's contributions to
American humor will be remembered decades after Ferrell's off-key,
one-note act has been long forgotten.
=========================================
I have to agree about Ferrell being unfunny and totally juvenile. All
one has to do is see the couple of episodes of The Office on which he
recently appeared. Boorrrrrriiingggg! (Sorry, that was juvenile of me.)
the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, I was compelled to offer my
opinion that Fey is not funny and that the only reason she was being
honored was because of her imitation of Sarah Palin. Humor, of course,
is in the eye of the beholder. So some people liked what I had to say
about Fey's brand of "comedy" while others vigorously made their
objections known.
Well, last week the Kennedy Center named Will Ferrell the 2011 recipient
of the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. I am now compelled to offer
my opinion that Ferrell is not funny and that the only reason he is
being honored is because of his imitation of George W. Bush. Once again
operating with the understanding that humor is in the eye of the
beholder, some people will like what I have to say about Ferrell's brand
of "comedy" while others will vigorously make their objections known.
The year before Fey was awarded the Twain prize, the Kennedy Center
bestowed it upon Bill Cosby, a true pioneer of American humor. Here is
how I described the Kennedy Center honoring Cosby and Fey in consecutive
years:
The idea of honoring Tina Fey the year after Bill Cosby
is kind of like the Baseball Hall of Fame enshrining
"Marvelous" Marv Throneberry the year after inducting
Mickey Mantle. The Mick and Marvelous Marv were both
baseball players but the similarities end there. Cosby
and Fey are both comedians but there too the similarities end.
Well, honoring Fey and Ferrell in consecutive years is more of a lateral
move. If going from Cosby to Fey is like going from The Mick to
Marvelous Marv then going from Fey to Ferrell is like going from
Marvelous Marv to Choo Choo Coleman. Indeed, much of the Saturday Night
Live cast from the mid-1990s onward could be likened to the 1962 New
York Mets.
But Ferrell is nearly single-handedly responsible for making me stop
watching SNL on a regular basis. I simply found his antics annoying and
unfunny. At best, he was a tenth-rate version of John Belushi or Chris
Farley. At worst, watching his act was like tuning into someone run his
fingers down a blackboard week in and week out.
Nevertheless, I realize Ferrell gained a fan base on SNL which turned
out enthusiastically for his movies such as Old School, Talladega
Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron
Burgundy. Yet the Kennedy Center tells us:
The Mark Twain Prize recognizes people who have had an
impact on American society in ways similar to the
distinguished 19th century novelist and essayist best
known as Mark Twain. As a social commentator, satirist
and creator of characters, Samuel Clemens was a fearless
observer of society, who startled many while delighting
and informing many more with his uncompromising perspective
of social injustice and personal folly.
Notwithstanding his success at the box office, Mark Twain is probably
the last person who comes to mind when discussing the "humor" of Will
Ferrell. Running naked while shouting, "Let's go streaking!!!" doesn't
exactly convey an "uncompromising perspective of social injustice and
personal folly."
This brings me to George W. Bush. Now Ferrell is hardly the first SNL
cast member to impersonate a U.S. President and he won't be the last.
But make no mistake. Ferrell portrays Bush as a stupid and venal man.
Contrast that with Dana Carvey's mimicry of George H.W. Bush, which was
done with affection and in many ways humanized the 41st President. By
Ferrell's own admission, he declined the opportunity to meet Bush
because he doesn't share his politics. Indeed, when Ferrell was told
that Tina Fey thought Ferrell's portrayal of Bush "almost made him
likeable," he responded by saying he tried to make him "fumbling and
bumbling."
Consider also the reception Ferrell received when he took his act to
Broadway in February 2009 shortly after Bush left office with "You're
Welcome America: A Final Night with George Bush." Shortly before its
opening, Patrick Healy of the New York Times wrote, "And who better than
liberal New York theatergoers, they (Ferrell and co-writer and director
Adam McKay) hoped, to appreciate a cutting post-mortem on the Republican
president?" Well, not surprisingly, Ferrell's Bush was a smash hit with
the liberal intelligentsia of the Upper West Side and was nominated for
a Tony Award. Joe Dziemianowicz of the New York Daily News shared this
sentiment when he wrote, "Unlike Dubya, Ferrell is lightning fast on his
feet and turns each ad lib into a burst of hilarity, a mission
accomplished, if you will." Michael Kuchwara of the Associated Press
echoes Dziemianowicz by writing, "As a thinker, Ferrell is a lot faster
with a quip than the bumbler he is impersonating."
I think you get the idea. The only purpose of Ferrell's portrayal of
President Bush is to reinforce liberal hatred of him even after he has
left public life. How else does one explain the video Ferrell made of
Bush's reaction to the death on Osama bin Laden on his website,
funnyordie.com? Of course, if a comedian of conservative inclination
were to write and star in a play about President Obama, there is little
doubt these same critics would cry racism before the curtain went up.
But for publicly deriding a prominent conservative public figure, like
Tina Fey before him, Will Ferrell is celebrated, feted, and given
prestigious awards such as the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.
The only comfort I take in all of this is that Twain's contributions to
American humor will be remembered decades after Ferrell's off-key,
one-note act has been long forgotten.
=========================================
I have to agree about Ferrell being unfunny and totally juvenile. All
one has to do is see the couple of episodes of The Office on which he
recently appeared. Boorrrrrriiingggg! (Sorry, that was juvenile of me.)