In “The Ghost Breakers” (1940), did Bob Hope really compare Democrats to zombies, or is that a dub that’s making the rounds?
Many people did not like FDR and his New Deal policies, too socialistic. It would not be too far fetched that a line in a movie would refer to FDR’s democratic followers as zombies.
The dislike between the two parties is not recent.
Bob Hope was a Republican and considered a Conservative, though he did alienate many right leaning friends in the 80s when he spoke out for Gays and to get a cure for Aids.
So, that joke could easily be his own.
Snopes says it is a real movie quote: Greatest Movie Line Ever | Snopes.com
Keep in mind, Will Rogers was a Democrat and said this over 100 years ago:
“I’m not a member of any organized political party…. I’m a Democrat.”
Pretty mild political joke. Hope also made jokes about Hoover too. I think he had no problem making fun of both sides of the aisle.
I like this one:
In context of the conversation, that could be interpreted to mean that Democrats would be expected to do more and better than regular people. Of course, that’s not what he does mean.
The joke refers to the fact that many large cities at the time were controlled by political machines which were often aligned with the Democratic Party. Cities run by political machines were notoriously corrupt and one thing they were frequently accused of was having party hacks impersonate dead people to cast votes.
Bob Hope also had this exchange from The Ghost Breakers in 1938. Which proves that he had no problem reusing material.
Bear in mind that Bob Hope never came up with any of his own jokes. He had a crack team of underpaid writers and a terrific memory.