Scene: The 2006 White House Correspondence Associations Dinner at the Washington Hotel in Washington D.C. Stephen Colbert, at the time halfway through his first year as host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report," wherein he plays his far-right conservative alter ago of the same name (but with a French accent), is the night's final post-dinner guest speaker following then President George W. Bush. The room is surrounded by members of the media, famous celebrities including tennis player Anna Kournikova and actor George Clooney, the President, members of his cabinet, and several pro-Bush sympathizers. Many in the room, and I assume the few hundred watching it on C-SPAN, are certain that Colbert will deliver an act that will feature plenty of light jokes and humor not to heavy on criticism and satire of "Dubya" and his policies.
What instead follows is a brilliant (and gutsy, considering that the President was less than ten feet away) twenty four minute comedy act in which Colbert wonderfully satirizes Bush's philosophy, beliefs, and lifestyles as President, along with the negative aspects of his administration over the past five years, all while still acting in character as one of Bush's staunchest supporters. Take a look for yourself...
Five years later, and that (to me, at least) is still one of the ballsiest things that a comedian has ever done. I mean, for God's sakes, Bush and his cronies were literally within walking distance from him and he spent the time cleverly criticizing them directly to their faces! And the fact that all President Bush could do was sit back and take it, appearing to not having been hurt or shocked at all by Colbert's word, makes the speech even more marvelous!
Since that twenty four minute comedy act five years ago, Colbert has gone on to become part of other great and hilarious moments, whether it was on "The Colbert Report," or on NBC during his memorable three-man "fight" with Jon Stewart and Conan O'Brien during the '07-'08 Writer's Strike and parody of Rebecca Black's "Friday," or (more recently) as co-host of the 215,000 strong (or, if Glenn Beck were counting, 750,000 people) Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. Yet, no matter what has happened in these past five years, I still feel like nothing in his career has yet to what he did on that unforgettable Saturday evening in April, 2006. It's just one of those things that no man of his professions has had the guts (and the smart writing staff) to do before or will probably ever do again unless the circumstances were perfect like it was for Colbert in '06. Plus, he was just basically saying what nearly 68 percent of Americans were thinking about George W. Bush at the time who weren't members of the WHCA press or Kanye West, whether it was his administration's actions following Hurricane Katrina or his "Mission Accomplished" speech that still remains one of his biggest embarrassments as President to date. And that is why you can't help love that man!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you just have any suggestions or
tips for my next blog entry, e-mail me at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mails are greatly appreciated.
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