# Jokes that, nowadays, need explaining **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comedian-jokes\ **Created:** [September 25, 2020, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466 "2020-09-25T02:53:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/322 "2020-10-12T19:52:43Z")
> [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > This, of course, is the modern assumption, projected back through generations of “everyone I know voted for Dukakis” media gatekeepers and the sort of insidery horse-race watchers for whom scripted debate “zingers” have meaning. The “joke that needs explanation” part is that Bush absolutely crushed Dukakis in the election, winning 40 states including several that never went Republican again, and blasting through his September poll numbers to an extent that suggested something was seriously wrong with the poll methodology. The three things most people remember about 1988 (the huge impact of Bentsen’s insult, the election being a close call that turned on nonsense incidents like Dukakis in the tank, and the Willie Horton narrative) are all wrong. lolwhut? The previous poster had speculated about “I knew Joe Blow, and you are no Joe Blow.” I was explaining where the expression most likely originated. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/323 "2020-10-12T19:55:14Z")
> [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > The MS/cars thing dates to the mid 90s when absolutely nothing in the Windows or Mac environments worked reliably. Teenagers who have only used Windows 7 and 10, OSX, and iOS/Android devices have no frame of reference for programs that never do what they are supposed to, systems that crash for no reason daily, and the need to spend hours on end configuring every new hardware component or installed program. Anything that relies on “the typical consumer-grade computer is shit” absolutely does need explaining, as it hasn’t been true for a long time. It may have been true ten years ago when Windows 7 was around. But anyone who’s using Windows 10 has a frame of reference for jokes about how Microsoft products don’t work reliably. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/324 "2020-10-12T22:58:20Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > And then served one term as a failed president. Fun fact: his son invaded Iraq, created ISIS, destabilized the Middle East and hastened the decline of America. Now that’s funny. This isn’t GD, and Bush’s (either one) competence isn’t the topic. Lay off the politics. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2020, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/325 "2020-10-12T23:01:03Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > This isn’t GD, and Bush’s (either one) competence isn’t the topic. Lay off the politics. To be fair, madmonk didn’t bring up the topic of Bush. He was responding to a political post somebody else had already made. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/326 "2020-10-13T02:23:29Z")
I thought that the rule against political jabs only applied in GQ. When has it ever been a rule in CS? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/327 "2020-10-13T02:27:18Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > I thought that the rule against political jabs only applied in GQ. When has it ever been a rule in CS?, It’s clearly a hijack in this thread. If you want to question moderation, take it to ATMB. Colibri ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/328 "2020-10-13T04:29:03Z")
My Pop told me once that back in the 30’s and 40’s there was a joke where a businessman stopped at a newsstand and looked at the front page of the morning edition. The attendant asked him if he wanted to buy the paper to which the man replied “I’m just looking for an obituary”. The newsstand attendant refuted “but sir, the obituaries aren’t on the front page”. To wit the businessman exclaimed “The sonofabitch I’m waiting for will be!” Between the newsstand, morning edition, and the joke itself, there would be a lot to explain in that one now days. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/329 "2020-10-13T05:43:23Z")
Oh no, not at all. I turn daily to Google news… 😝 😆 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/330 "2020-10-13T05:54:25Z")
I’ll hazard a guess here: If it was in the '30s AND '40s, and the guy was a “businessman,” he was hoping that FDR would die (because of the New Deal). ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/331 "2020-10-13T09:21:33Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I’ll hazard a guess here: If it was in the '30s AND ‘40s, and the guy was a “businessman,” he was hoping that FDR would die’ I think the specific term is “Drop Dead”, but yes. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/332 "2020-10-13T13:00:13Z")
This was a b&w episode either of _Bewitched_ or _The Munsters_: it involved distracting the stodgy old boss by casting a spell to make him horny for his secretary. He starts hitting on her and eventually chases her around her desk. The perpetrator(s) get what they want and leave, then the spell wears off. The old stodgy boss regains his composure, and is obviously ashamed of his behavior. “My apologies, Miss secretary. I don’t know what came over me. It must have been a reaction to the medicine I’m taking for iron poor blood.” Back in those days, Geritol was frequently hawked in commercials as the cure for advanced age ailments such as “iron poor blood” and became the meme of its day. It was also 12% alcohol, so its drunk-making potential was a running joke. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/333 "2020-10-13T14:39:46Z")
That boss-chasing-secretary-around-the-desk was a thing in itself; very common in jokes and cartoons, including in “family” publications. It was always presented as funny. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/334 "2020-10-13T14:52:51Z")
Yeah, “boss chasing secretary around her desk” is how we kick off the movie “_Nine To Five_” too. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/335 "2020-10-13T15:26:55Z")
OTOH, it was a common joke that the secretary would “steal” the husband from his wife. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/336 "2020-10-13T15:30:24Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > That boss-chasing-secretary-around-the-desk was a thing in itself; very common in jokes and cartoons, including in “family” publications. It was always presented as funny What did people believe would happen if/when he caught her? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/337 "2020-10-13T15:33:24Z")
The boss was like Wile E. Coyote. He never caught his quarry (in the cartoons). ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/338 "2020-10-13T15:59:58Z")
I have one that I never really understood at the time, although I’m sure it made sense to others. But I’m guessing it would need some 'splainin now. It’s from an old Mary Tyler Moore episode. Someone in the office - I think it was Ted Baxter - was trying to come up with a punchline for a knock-knock joke. “Knock knock.” “Who’s there?” “Anna Marie Alberghetti.” “Anna Marie Alberghetti who?” I only knew Anna Marie Alberghetti from her “Good Seasons” salad dressing commercials at the time. Was she a semi-obscure actress doing TV ads, like Rula Lenska having friends over for coffee? Anyway, at the end of the show he finally comes up with his punchline, which was a line from a song, and went something like “Anna Marie Alberghetti in a taxi, baby…” So a two part explanation: 1. Who was Anna Marie Alberghetti? 2. What song/lyric was being referenced? ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/339 "2020-10-13T16:31:18Z")
The song is The Darktown Strutters’ Ball. One of the worst puns ever. Of course, nowadays, we don’t use the term “Darktown” so much… ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/340 "2020-10-13T17:16:18Z")
Yes, she was a minor actress best known for her salad dressing commercials. Apparently, Dean Martin recorded “DSB.” The first verse is _I’ll be down to get you in a taxi, honey._ _You’d better be ready around half past eight._ _Ah, baby, don’t be late; I want to be there when the band starts, honey._ _Well, just remember when we get there, honey_ ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466/341 "2020-10-13T17:51:59Z")
Wow, yeah that’s pretty lame… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jokes-that-nowadays-need-explaining/921466.md?page=18)