Friday, December 20, 2013

AMAZING Bill Maher -- HIS HAIR HAS GOTTEN DARKER AND FULLER

I think Bill Maher is GREAT...the Mort Sahl of our time...

I don't miss "Real Time," and it's one of the few weekly shows I care about at all.

But when you get to be "our" age...Bill and I...one thing that one also notices is..."How are you holding up..." hair-wise. Face-wise. As in, "Does Bob Costas look waxy...like he's had some work done...how's Letterman's hair...is Howard Stern using hair dye...is Billy Crystal's receding hair line being halted by transplants..."

With Bill...who did throw a million bucks away on Obama's campaign...did he spend another million for work on...a receding hairline and a dye job?

Compare and older picture of Bill...and wonder if his Christmas gift to himself wasn't to re-emerge for the new "Real Time" season with a really different look...

AND NOW...

New Rules...if a celebrity gets "refurbished" tell us who did the job and how much, so we can get it too. UNLESS your name is Joan Rivers

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

ANCIENT Jokes in PLAYBOY'S Jan-Feb 2014 Issue

Who's the jokes editor at Playboy? Henny Youngman's still alive?

"The Playboy Philosophy," judging from the Jan-Feb 2014 issue's joke page, seems to be Henny's quote: "A joke isn't old if you haven't heard it before."

The "monkey" joke...that goes back to Flip Wilson, circa 1966. Flip stretched it for a few minutes, and set the story on a train. The conductor tries to calm the woman down as she says, "I've never been so insulted!" He replies, "On behalf of the railroad, we are going to give you a free meal. And maybe we can find a banana for your monkey."

As for the pathetic "he honored her offer" gag...that goes back to Limerick, Ireland. Or Stonehenge. Just embarrassing.

Which reminds me of a story....

At one time, I was the "jokes editor" for a sophisticated (?) magazine called High Society. Let's say that the title of the magazine was the only thing sophisticated about it. In my time there, they went through four editors. The fourth was a woman, and one day when I dropped off my pages, she said, "We've got to talk."

Stricken by my charm and good looks, perhaps?

"It's about your joke page."

Oh.

"I don't think these jokes are funny."

Is it possible that some women just have no sense of humor?? In response to her sour grimace, I pointed out that I was trying my best to award money to ANYONE who could send in a funny joke. Since this rarely yielded more than two or three gags that barely made me smile, I filled in the rest. "Give me an example of a joke you thought was funny," I said, "And I'll try to find more like it."

"I didn't find any of them funny," she replied. "I want jokes like Playboy runs!"

To which I replied, "I don't find the jokes in Playboy funny. Most of them are old and boring."

Her spacious office contained a magazine rack filled with the competition. She strode over, grabbed the latest issue of Playboy, and intently stared at the joke page. She kept on staring.

She kept on staring.

Finally, she tossed the magazine down and said, "I want jokes like Playboy USED to run!"

Hey, maybe that explains what Playboy is doing. They're going back to find jokes that USED to be funny.

They're re-working gags off comedy albums from 50 years ago.

It was red hot mama Pearl Williams (contemporary of Belle Barth and Sophie Tucker) who told the joke about the fake gold earrings. Only in her version, the woman was going to bed with a gypsy. The punchline, which I know from memory: "Tell him his earrings aren't solid gold!"

This was followed by Pearl tinkling the ivories and playing a few bars of "Golden Earrings." Which beat doing a rimshot.

The joke below that? "Marriage," I'm paraphrasing but I think this is accurate, "is like going to a bank. You put it in, you take it out...you lose interest!"

Professor Irwin Corey, who is over 90 years old. And that gag of his is at least 60.

Monday, December 16, 2013

Bugger the Bastard at LONDON DAILY MAIL re. Peter O'Toole Censorship

Last time I checked, the word "BASTARD" was still in the dictionary, and among other things, a pseudonym for an illegitimate child.

The British word "BUGGER," is so old it's as toothless as the orifice that usually gets buggered. It's more often used as a noun, and a pseudonym for bastard. As in "poor old bastard" or "poor old bugger." How are either of these ancient, familiar, mild terms offensive, especially from old PETER O'TOOLE?

and

We're getting pretty coy and silly with the asterisks. Psst...when you pronounce that last word, asterisk, you're saying "ass..." so maybe asterisk itself should be rendered as ******* for having an ass to risk.

B***** or the "N-word" or the "C-word" or the "F-word" -- what's the point if we all know what that word actually is?

Who is the London Daily Mail to censor Peter O'Toole?? Who would've been offended by "Bastard" and "Bugger," especially in a newspaper that routinely prints rude photos of idiot celebrity "wardrobe malfunctions," grotesque pictures of victims of violence, and the hate-screeds of religious fanatics? Why not censor coverage of crimes such as school shootings, on the grounds that publicizing them only encourages copycats?

We all know which words Peter O'Toole was using, so who was being spared here? A few little old ladies? A few 4 year-olds just beginning to learn to read?

Somebody decides for Peter O'Toole what the public is allowed to hear from him? There's now a law against "bugger" and "bastard" even when used in a colorful, comic way?

B-word, B-word, you F-words at the London Daily Mail! Eat S-word!

Friday, December 13, 2013

TYPO POSITIVE - AND SACRILEGE, TOO

Say it isn't so...

What? Another one of the poorly trained, totally inferior "comedy stars" of today is going to boldly take over an iconic comedy role?

Add a bit of insult to the injury...spell Leslie Nielsen's name wrong, too.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Typo Positive: POW! A Pregnant Elderly Care Giver?

Sad story...also sad that Ms. Pow couldn't phrase the headline any better.

What? This guy ran over a pregnant elderly caregiver? 24?

Is 24 elderly? And how elderly are you before you can't get pregnant?

Oh.

Ms. Pow could've simply typed written :24 year old," and later described the good work she did as a caregiver for the elderly. But maybe she was busy multi-tasking, texting while driving...

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Kim Kardashian...talentless trashy media whore...and CHEAP, too. EBAY "CHARITY" AUCTIONS

Kim Kardashian? Right, the slutty nobody who came to fame because of a leaked porn video. As if "daughter of a creepy lawyer who helped get O.J. off" made her so newsworthy. Now that Kim is a multi-millionaire, you'd think she's at least try and change her image by dressing well, and...always good...giving money away.

Who knew the tacky airhead was CHEAP, too? The latest news is her "charity" auctions on eBay...make more money for HER than for the charities!

Miss Selfie couldn't even go halfies...as in "50% of the auction will go to charity." She squeezed it down to just 10%.

Most good charities are non-profit. Her excuse is that eBay and Paypal take out a high percentage in fees. NO, they don't. If you auction off a dress for $100, they'll take 10% each. There's no excuse for not at least going 50-50.

Oh yeah...Miss 10 Percent to Charity has enough money for...GOLD TOILETS!

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Ronnie Smith "Libya's Best Friend" de-Friended by Sniper

A 33 year-old teacher from Texas, Ronnie Smith decided to educate kids in Libya, and called himself "Libya's Best Friend."

In case you can't guess what happened next, here's one of today's news reports...

Some say he should never have gone to Libya.

Well...you might remember my YouTube video and Groucho imitation after Moammar was shot:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTquHnLvzXY

But really, if you'd care to Google the name "Philip Chism," you'll know that it's just as risky to be an honest, dedicated teacher in Massachusetts. Or any other state of the Union. What 14 year-old Philip did would probably sicken even a Libyan sniper.

You could say this Ronnie Smith was a hero. Or at least, a great optimist.

He was also a bit odd, as you'd expect from somebody named Ronnie Smith. Here, on Twitter, just days before his demise, he tells the world about...a butt sprayer...

What does this teach us?

Use your butt sprayer while ye may, because there's no warranty on your ass, and it may not last as long.

In addition to Warren Zevon's "enjoy every sandwich," now there's Yomna..."enjoy every peanut butter cookie," whether you can sing Happy Birthday in Arabic or not.

As Groucho said of Harpo, "he was a nice man, and that's as good an epitaph as any." Ronnie Smith: a nice man; and a humanitarian, an idealist, an optimist, and for a little while, a maker of peanut butter cookies and smiles. Hopefully his teachings will not be forgotten.

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

The PITH of SMITH

I'm in the latest cyber-issue of PLANET PROCTOR (edited by Firesign Theater's Phil Proctor)

Just a little bit of wit. Or is it?

Huh? Well, maybe it's profound.

Or funny.

When I was putting together the "Comedy Quote Dictionary" (Doubleday) I noticed how many sages (from Oscar Wilde and Mark Twain to P.T. Barnum and Yoko Ono) were quoted for some bit of wisdom. If you say it with just the right gravity, or while carrying a rolled up copy of The New Yorker, your funny remark might be taken seriously. Or vice versa.

Monday, December 2, 2013

Are you SURE you don't want to read more likable death stories...

No proofreaders.

After all, the phrase "YOU MAY ALSO LIKE..." is ALWAYS appropriate at the end of a story...

...and the bots ALWAYS make sure to match up likely links for you to click...