# Celebrity responses to Onion articles **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 23, 2011, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469 "2011-04-23T17:10:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/1 "2011-04-23T17:10:45Z")
Do people parodied in the Onion ever respond or retaliate? ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/2 "2011-04-23T18:10:25Z")
I’m not a constant reader of The Onion, so fill me in, do they actually name celebrities by name with some ridiculous story, that would warrant such a response? I quickly checked, and 'tho some celebs appear on the first page, they’re not spoofed personally, so I’d need to see a specific celeb and a specific story to look it up. Who, in particular, do you think got burned hard by The Onion? ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/3 "2011-04-23T18:23:00Z")
This is the first thing I thought of: Victim In Fatal Car Accident Tragically Not Glenn Beck [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/-faCh8BUEts/hqdefault.jpg "Victim In Fatal Car Accident Tragically Not Glenn Beck") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-faCh8BUEts) I’d love to see a retaliation to it. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/4 "2011-04-23T18:25:03Z")
Here’s a cut and paste of their entertainment page, just the titles, in most cases. Hardly offensive, IMHO, starlets have to endure every nip slip and upskirt being posted and archived forever, this all seems so harmless: ``` People Who Produce American Culture Warning Nation Ahead Of Time That Rest Of 2011 Going To Be Pretty Rough Millions of People Prince William Would Never Deign To Speak To Captivated By Royal Wedding Vacation-Bound Rush Limbaugh To Do Nothing But Golf And Respect Minorities For 2 Weeks Author Promoting Book Gives It Her All Whether It's Just 3 People Or A Crowd Of 9 People 'Ghost Hunters' Enjoys Surprising 100% Success Rate Writer Unwilling To Admit His Screenplay Perfect Fit For Justin Long Lazy Event Planner Throws 'Bags Of Ice'–Themed Party Jukebox Pretending Oasis CD Too Scratched To Play 5-Year-Old Critics Agree: Movie ‘Cars’ Only Gets Better After 40th Viewing Celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton is writing a children's book entitled The Boy With Pink Hair to be published in September. What do you think? Harry Connick, Jr. Dies In Piano Fire Jesus Surprises '700 Club' With Walk-On Appearance ``` and here’s a title with some of the text blurb Keira Knightley Answers Fan Letter Way Too Quickly ``` ISSUE 47•11 | 03.17.11 | News FORT WAYNE, IN—According to local computer programmer and Keira Knightley fan Tom Hayes, 38, the internationally known English film actress and model responded "much too fast" to the letter he sent just a few days ago. ``` _MODS_ I’m not trying to rip off the Onion, if this is too much content, cut it away, I just don’t want to look too lazy to browse a webpage ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/5 "2011-04-23T18:27:26Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > I’m not a constant reader of The Onion, so fill me in, do they actually name celebrities by name with some ridiculous story, that would warrant such a response? I quickly checked, and 'tho some celebs appear on the first page, they’re not spoofed personally, so I’d need to see a specific celeb and a specific story to look it up. Who, in particular, do you think got burned hard by The Onion? There are 100’s of them,maybe this thread isn’t for you. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/6 "2011-04-23T18:34:52Z")
Well, you could give me some, notice, my cut ‘n’ paste only has about 3 people mentioned by name. The Onion seems to be very abstract with it’s satire, deliberately not naming people by name. I know celebs can be stupidly sensitive on some topics, but sensitive about the Onion? They can’t be that dumb – can they? > **[Dame Edna jibe upsets Salma](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-172755/Dame-Edna-jibe-upsets-Salma.html)** > > In a satirical agony column in Vanity Fair magazine Dame Edna joked about the Spanish language and sparked an angry response from Mexican actress Salma Hayek That story above used to be on Snopes, but has since been abridged, I guess her lawyers made some of a stick. Dame Edna even had a response, “She’s just jealous that Dame Edna was originally considered for the role of Frida” 😛 ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/7 "2011-04-23T18:44:01Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > Well, you could give me some, notice, my cut ‘n’ paste only has about 3 people mentioned by name. The Onion seems to be very abstract with it’s satire, deliberately not naming people by name. I know celebs can be stupidly sensitive on some topics, but sensitive about the Onion? They can’t be that dumb – can they? I give you the 3 people mentioned by name on your cut and paste.There are also 3 people mentioned by name(David Ortiz,Prince William and Mitt Romney) on the current front page. I guess,for Arkcons benefit,I should clarify.Do the people parodied in the Onion ever respond to it?It doesn’t have to be retaliation,maybe they are proud of it and enjoyed it,just looking for comments by the folks mentioned and what they thought of it. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/8 "2011-04-23T18:51:39Z")
[Vice Preseident Biden apparently gets a kick out of the Onion articles about him](http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_theticket/20110128/ts_yblog_theticket/biden-thinks-the-onions-spoofs-of-him-are-hilarious) ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/9 "2011-04-23T19:00:19Z")
> [@mozchron](#): > > [Vice Preseident Biden apparently gets a kick out of the Onion articles about him](http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_theticket/20110128/ts_yblog_theticket/biden-thinks-the-onions-spoofs-of-him-are-hilarious) Thank you ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/10 "2011-04-23T19:22:11Z")
Sometimes the people parodied in comedy decide to be good sports and play along with the joke. Consider Gerald Ford’s reaction to Chevy Chase’s sketches about him on _Saturday Night Live_: [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/29/washington/29chevy.html](http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/29/washington/29chevy.html) ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/11 "2011-04-23T19:54:49Z")
A little while after [this article](http://www.theonion.com/articles/this-american-life-completes-documentation-of-libe,2188/) came out, Ira Glass did a great segment on TAL about the Onion and their writing process. (I’m suddenly remembering, or misremembering, that I think the episode was called “Tough Room”). Not sure if his choice to do this segment had anything to do with the article, but he did mention at one point that he was a victim of Onion satire and that “it hurt”. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/12 "2011-04-23T20:09:48Z")
Janet Reno showed up on SNL right after she and Clinton left office. She went on the Janet Reno dance skit with Will Ferrell who played Reno. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/13 "2011-04-23T20:16:13Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > Janet Reno showed up on SNL right after she and Clinton left office. She went on the Janet Reno dance skit with Will Ferrell who played Reno. George Bush, Sr, taped a bit for SNL after he left office, too, playing off of Dana Carvey’s impression of him. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/14 "2011-04-23T20:23:28Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > The Onion seems to be very abstract with it’s satire, deliberately not naming people by name. 😕 They often satirize (maybe even insult) people directly, by name, especially people in sports. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/15 "2011-04-23T20:25:12Z")
Probably the most famous SNL cameo was Streisand showing up during Coffee Talk, the actors did not know she was going to be there. ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/16 "2011-04-23T21:13:13Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > Janet Reno showed up on SNL right after she and Clinton left office. She went on the Janet Reno dance skit with Will Ferrell who played Reno. > [@Miller](#): > > George Bush, Sr, taped a bit for SNL after he left office, too, playing off of Dana Carvey’s impression of him. > [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > Probably the most famous SNL cameo was Streisand showing up during Coffee Talk, the actors did not know she was going to be there. I was hoping to hear Onion stories,not SNL. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/17 "2011-04-23T21:26:35Z")
> [@MadTheSwine](#): > > I was hoping to hear Onion stories,not SNL. I’m guessing the average celebrity has no idea what The Onion is. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/18 "2011-04-23T21:28:26Z")
The Economist posted a link to [this story](http://www.theonion.com/articles/the-economist-to-halt-production-for-month-to-let,20090/) on their official Facebook page. ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/19 "2011-04-23T21:37:15Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > I’m guessing the average celebrity has no idea what The Onion is. Then I guess I wont be hearing stories about average celebrities. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469/20 "2011-04-23T21:43:40Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > Hardly offensive, IMHO, starlets have to endure every nip slip and upskirt being posted and archived forever, this all seems so harmless. Endure? They do that shit on _purpose_ because they _want_ the attention. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-responses-to-onion-articles/579469.md?page=2)