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wolfpangsWorking on my political science homework, I was answering a discussion question about the history of American journalism and when I was mentioning how the advent of television came with both benefits and dangers for politicians, I was reminded of a rant Dennis Miller did years ago.
Now I don't want to get off on a rant here, but I used to love Dennis Miller. Then, I don't know what happened. I'm sure the obvious assumption is the change in his politics but I don't think that's it--I'm entertained (intentionally) by people with opposing views all the time. Hell, even when he used to express opinions I disagreed with, he'd do it in a clever way. It's like, he just stopped trying to be funny. I just watched a "rant" he did on O'Reilly (oh, brother) concerning James Carville, and I was 3/4 through it before I realized that I hadn't laughed once. Not only were the ad hominem attacks weird and seemingly shoehorned in, the only funny line was one he wrote years ago. (James Carville *does* look like a muppet that's been accidentally washed on hot. It's just a fact.) Or take this fairly recent "quip":
"A new poll shows that Senator Kerry's support in the South is strongest amongst blacks. Kerry's appeal to Southern blacks is obvious. He is a white man who lives far, far away."
Bahaha...wha? That's like, sitcom with laugh track funny. I watched a fairly recent standup special of his and some of it was great. Despite his best efforts, I still have residual affection for Bill Clinton but still, I smiled when Miller said that if Bill were any more lowrent, he'd be a spring break destination. But it just seemed to lose steam (and funny) after that. It's weird. He went from being the witty guy who could effortlessly toss out lines with more bite than an entelodont to that close talker in front of you in the bank line who turns meaningless chitchat into a increasingly heated rant about lady politicians and what else is wrong with the world today as you "uh-huh" your way closer to the door.
'Course, that's just my opinion. I could be wrong.
Anywho, I was thinking of a bit he did in which he mentioned James Stockdale. Stockdale, for those of you who don't know, was a candidate for vice-president in 1992. Years before that, he was in the military. During Vietnam, he was on a mission when he had to eject from his A-4E Skyhawk and when he reached the ground, he was captured and taken to Hoa Lo, which would later become known as the Hanoi Hilton. (Two years after his capture, John McCain's Skyhawk would be shot down, leading to his capture and imprisonment.) Stockdale spent seven years at Hoa Lo, undergoing routine torture. When he returned to the United States, he began teaching at colleges, and wrote several books about his life.
However, despite all that, most people probably know him best for the debate. From ye olde wiki: Stockdale was not informed that he would be participating in the October 13 vice-presidential debate held in Atlanta, Georgia, until a week before the event. He had no formal preparation for the debate, unlike his opponents Al Gore and Dan Quayle. Stockdale infamously opened the debate by saying, "Who am I? Why am I here?" Initially, the rhetorical questions drew applause from the audience, seeming to be a good-natured acknowledgment of his relatively unknown status and lack of traditional qualifications. However, his unfocused style for the rest of the debate (including asking the moderator to repeat one question because he didn't have his hearing aid turned on) made him appear confused and almost disoriented. Seven years later, he would tell Jim Lehrer, "It was terribly frustrating because I remember I started with, 'Who am I? Why am I here?' and I never got back to that because there was never an opportunity for me to explain my life to people."
And perhaps my favorite summation of that debate was by Dennis Miller, if only for that damning last line.
"The reason he had to turn his hearing aid on at that debate is because those fucking animals knocked his eardrums out when he wouldn’t spill his guts. He teaches philosophy at Stanford University; he’s a brilliant, sensitive, courageous man. And yet he committed the one unpardonable sin in our culture: he was bad on television."
As reason.com says, "Dennis Miller put it pretty well, back when Dennis Miller put things pretty well."
Hey, I'm not the only one wondering what the eff. (And as the comments there show, the quality of his past work is certainly debateable, but I'm more concerned with what happened. "There is no joy left in his perspective. There is no sparkle of lightness or pleasure in his eye. It is only dryness and lashing out and death." Yes, this.)
Now I don't want to get off on a rant here, but I used to love Dennis Miller. Then, I don't know what happened. I'm sure the obvious assumption is the change in his politics but I don't think that's it--I'm entertained (intentionally) by people with opposing views all the time. Hell, even when he used to express opinions I disagreed with, he'd do it in a clever way. It's like, he just stopped trying to be funny. I just watched a "rant" he did on O'Reilly (oh, brother) concerning James Carville, and I was 3/4 through it before I realized that I hadn't laughed once. Not only were the ad hominem attacks weird and seemingly shoehorned in, the only funny line was one he wrote years ago. (James Carville *does* look like a muppet that's been accidentally washed on hot. It's just a fact.) Or take this fairly recent "quip":
"A new poll shows that Senator Kerry's support in the South is strongest amongst blacks. Kerry's appeal to Southern blacks is obvious. He is a white man who lives far, far away."
Bahaha...wha? That's like, sitcom with laugh track funny. I watched a fairly recent standup special of his and some of it was great. Despite his best efforts, I still have residual affection for Bill Clinton but still, I smiled when Miller said that if Bill were any more lowrent, he'd be a spring break destination. But it just seemed to lose steam (and funny) after that. It's weird. He went from being the witty guy who could effortlessly toss out lines with more bite than an entelodont to that close talker in front of you in the bank line who turns meaningless chitchat into a increasingly heated rant about lady politicians and what else is wrong with the world today as you "uh-huh" your way closer to the door.
'Course, that's just my opinion. I could be wrong.
Anywho, I was thinking of a bit he did in which he mentioned James Stockdale. Stockdale, for those of you who don't know, was a candidate for vice-president in 1992. Years before that, he was in the military. During Vietnam, he was on a mission when he had to eject from his A-4E Skyhawk and when he reached the ground, he was captured and taken to Hoa Lo, which would later become known as the Hanoi Hilton. (Two years after his capture, John McCain's Skyhawk would be shot down, leading to his capture and imprisonment.) Stockdale spent seven years at Hoa Lo, undergoing routine torture. When he returned to the United States, he began teaching at colleges, and wrote several books about his life.
However, despite all that, most people probably know him best for the debate. From ye olde wiki: Stockdale was not informed that he would be participating in the October 13 vice-presidential debate held in Atlanta, Georgia, until a week before the event. He had no formal preparation for the debate, unlike his opponents Al Gore and Dan Quayle. Stockdale infamously opened the debate by saying, "Who am I? Why am I here?" Initially, the rhetorical questions drew applause from the audience, seeming to be a good-natured acknowledgment of his relatively unknown status and lack of traditional qualifications. However, his unfocused style for the rest of the debate (including asking the moderator to repeat one question because he didn't have his hearing aid turned on) made him appear confused and almost disoriented. Seven years later, he would tell Jim Lehrer, "It was terribly frustrating because I remember I started with, 'Who am I? Why am I here?' and I never got back to that because there was never an opportunity for me to explain my life to people."
And perhaps my favorite summation of that debate was by Dennis Miller, if only for that damning last line.
"The reason he had to turn his hearing aid on at that debate is because those fucking animals knocked his eardrums out when he wouldn’t spill his guts. He teaches philosophy at Stanford University; he’s a brilliant, sensitive, courageous man. And yet he committed the one unpardonable sin in our culture: he was bad on television."
As reason.com says, "Dennis Miller put it pretty well, back when Dennis Miller put things pretty well."
Hey, I'm not the only one wondering what the eff. (And as the comments there show, the quality of his past work is certainly debateable, but I'm more concerned with what happened. "There is no joy left in his perspective. There is no sparkle of lightness or pleasure in his eye. It is only dryness and lashing out and death." Yes, this.)
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no subject
Date: 2008-06-22 06:43 pm (UTC)That's just silly. One of his SNL Weekend Update successors, Norm MacDonald is a card-carrying conservative pro-lifer and supports McCain for election in the U.S. (though he's Canadian) and I think he's hilarious. Perhaps because he doesn't appear to take himself seriously. Even his more radical statements come off as "I'm funnin' with ya" whereas Miller's "rants" have a really serious tone. In that they're seriously unfunny.
I think when you sign on to be a Fox News correspondant, you are no longer the one delivering the jokes, you ARE the joke.
no subject
Date: 2008-06-22 07:59 pm (UTC)"Lesson for today: do not try to ditch a war hero."
no subject
Date: 2008-06-23 12:30 am (UTC)The smeared lipstick was A+++.