# In Jokes and Running Gags: Lemme In! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 4, 2008, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781 "2008-06-04T17:57:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2008, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/61 "2008-06-08T11:43:35Z")
[QUOTE=Jophiel] My nine year old son was watching one of the Indiana Jones movies a few weeks back, heard the scream and said “That’s the same yell the guy makes in Star Wars (Return of the Jedi) when he falls in the sand pit!” So there ya go. It’s so over-used now that even nine year olds are picking up on it. [/QUOTE] I noticed it myself a long time ago but didn’t know that it was a named phenomenon. I’m grateful to the Dope for making me feel a little less alone in this respect. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2008, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/62 "2008-06-08T14:02:55Z")
[QUOTE=Plynck] I don’t know if it’s a running gag, but has Jeff Bridges ever been in a movie where he _hasn’t_ removed his shirt? [/QUOTE] I don’t remember him being shirtless in _Iron Man_. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2008, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/63 "2008-06-08T15:18:03Z")
The Simpsons are always mocking the Fox network. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2008, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/64 "2008-06-08T20:13:12Z")
I saw The Langoliers the other day, and I realized I had seen Steven King in at least a couple of movies based on his work. Does that happen often? ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2008, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/65 "2008-06-09T04:28:42Z")
[QUOTE=AskNott] I saw The Langoliers the other day, and I realized I had seen Steven King in at least a couple of movies based on his work. Does that happen often? [/QUOTE] I think he’s in most, if not all, of them. If anyone has any hard facts on this, please feel free to correct (or agree with) me. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2008, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/66 "2008-06-09T13:55:01Z")
[QUOTE=featherlou] I think he’s in most, if not all, of them. If anyone has any hard facts on this, please feel free to correct (or agree with) me. [/QUOTE] Quite a few of them, at least. Off the top of my head: **Creepshow** is obvious, because he was a whole segment. He also showed up as a truck driver in **Creepshow 2**. He was a caretaker in **Sleepwalkers** , and the minister at Gage’s funeral in **Pet Sematary**. And I’m sure there were others, but they’re not springing to mind just now. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2008, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/67 "2008-06-09T16:42:31Z")
[QUOTE=Max Torque] Quite a few of them, at least. Off the top of my head: **Creepshow** is obvious, because he was a whole segment. He also showed up as a truck driver in **Creepshow 2**. He was a caretaker in **Sleepwalkers** , and the minister at Gage’s funeral in **Pet Sematary**. And I’m sure there were others, but they’re not springing to mind just now. [/QUOTE] [Several others](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000175/#actor). (Note how most of them have as alternate titles “Stephen King’s …”) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2008, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/68 "2008-06-09T17:20:09Z")
[QUOTE=Kythereia] Likewise, there’s a Superman in every episode of _Seinfeld_. [/QUOTE] [This guy seems to say not quite.](http://www.supermanhomepage.com/tv/tv.php?topic=articles/seinfeld) [This seems to have an exact tally.](http://www.eeggs.com/items/1139.html) > [@](#): > > Once and for all, NOT EVERY EPISODE CONTAINS A REFERENCE TO SUPERMAN. Out of 180 episodes, there are 24 that include a verbal reference. The refrigerator magnet does not appear until the 56th episode and the figurine doesn’t show up until the 81st episode. The final count is 124 episodes with a Superman reference of some sort and 52 with no Superman reference whatsoever. I could go into great detail if any of you are still not convinced, but I’d rather not waste space here.. ---
**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:** [June 9, 2008, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/69 "2008-06-09T18:12:12Z")
[QUOTE=Max Torque] Quite a few of them, at least. Off the top of my head: **Creepshow** is obvious, because he was a whole segment. He also showed up as a truck driver in **Creepshow 2**. He was a caretaker in **Sleepwalkers** , and the minister at Gage’s funeral in **Pet Sematary**. And I’m sure there were others, but they’re not springing to mind just now. [/QUOTE] In _Maximum Overdrive_, an ATM machine calls him an asshole. ---
**Author:** ![MOLLYBIRD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c67d28/32.png) [@MOLLYBIRD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MOLLYBIRD)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/70 "2008-06-13T19:55:49Z")
I don’t think there was a single episode of NYPD Blue when someone didn’t use the word “absolutely.” ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/71 "2008-06-14T01:42:55Z")
Practically every early episode of _Garfield and Friends_ has a reference to the Klopman Diamond. Writer Mark Evanier has stated it comes from an old joke (“It comes with a curse.” “What is it?” “Mrs. Klopman.”), but the real reason he kept using the name because he thought it sounded funny. The poor playing of the Cleveland Indians became the running gag later in the show’s run. ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/72 "2008-06-14T03:31:39Z")
Every episode of the kids show _Higglytown Heroes_ has a yard gnome in it somewhere. No idea why. ---
**Author:** ![Oy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bc8723/32.png) [@Oy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oy)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/73 "2008-06-14T15:22:26Z")
Can someone please tell me the origin of “The irony, it burns!”? ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/74 "2008-06-14T21:37:27Z")
[QUOTE=pulykamell] [This guy seems to say not quite.](http://www.supermanhomepage.com/tv/tv.php?topic=articles/seinfeld) [This seems to have an exact tally.](http://www.eeggs.com/items/1139.html) [/QUOTE] In the same vein, in a great many but I don’t think all, the aliens from the first episode of South Park appear in cameos in other episodes. ---
**Author:** ![Gukumatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/74df32/32.png) [@Gukumatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gukumatz)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/75 "2008-06-14T22:38:02Z")
[QUOTE=Oy!] Can someone please tell me the origin of “The irony, it burns!”? [/QUOTE] As far as I’ve been able to find out, it’s a perversion of “The light! It burns!” The word “Thoroughly” is also something of a fantasy - or at least Terry Prattchett - trope. It’s usually very menacing. It’s referenced in Neil Gaiman’s Stardust, where the bad guy rides away saying something like “Hurt them . . . thoroughly!” ---
**Author:** ![Oy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bc8723/32.png) [@Oy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oy)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/76 "2008-06-14T23:35:00Z")
[QUOTE=Gukumatz] As far as I’ve been able to find out, it’s a perversion of “The light! It burns!” [/QUOTE] Thank you so much! This set me off on a search as to the origin of \*that \* line. Yes, I know it was used in a Simpsons episode, but it sounds too familiar - I’m thinking it’s got to be from a movie/book/TV show. ---
**Author:** ![Aziraphale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/46a35a/32.png) [@Aziraphale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aziraphale)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2008, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/77 "2008-06-15T00:37:47Z")
The black-and-white stripe pattern of Beetlejuice’s suit appears somewhere in every film directed by Tim Burton. Or at least I’m pretty sure it’s in every one; there might be an exception or two. If there is, I can’t remember it though. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2008, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/78 "2008-06-15T01:01:06Z")
**Re: The Wilhelm:** . . . and then you’ve got me, who has known about it for a decade and seen dozens of movies that use it, but has never noticed it while watching one. So it might not haunt you after all. I picked up on the Goofy Holler being everywhere at a very young age, but as far as screams go, Wilhelm is pretty bland and unremarkable. ---
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2008, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/79 "2008-06-16T04:18:59Z")
I used to have a [Banker’s Lamp](http://www.officemax.com/omax/catalog/sku.jsp?skuId=20977141&cm_mmc=GBase-_-Furniture-_-Office_Lighting-_-Desk_Lamps&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=20977141#), and I saw it in a movie (Stephen King’s Langloiers). Then I saw it in another movie, then another, then some tv shows. Sorry I don’t remember offhand which other movies or shows they were but this lamp has been in at least 10 movies. Is there some significance to this? ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2008, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781/80 "2008-06-16T05:07:21Z")
Although it probably isn’t intentional, most of Steven Spielberg’s film have a at-first reluctant father who eventually comes to terms with his children. This is probably more of a motif than a running gag. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-jokes-and-running-gags-lemme-in/451781.md?page=5)