# What pop culture do you only know of from parody? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 1, 2008, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899 "2008-07-01T14:11:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2008, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/61 "2008-07-02T05:26:42Z")
[QUOTE=ArizonaTeach] I have never seen \*Airport \* or \*Zero Hour \* or any of those disaster movies. I can damn near quote every line of dialogue from _Airplane!_ though. [/QUOTE] I only rented \*Zero Hour \* recently, and I was amazed at how close _Airplane!_ stayed to it. Firesign Theater albums are full of references to stuff I hadn’t read yet, like to _Skin of Their Teeth_, plus a quote from House on Pooh Corner which I didn’t get until I read it to my kids one day. ---
**Author:** ![coffinjumper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8baadc/32.png) [@coffinjumper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coffinjumper)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2008, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/62 "2008-07-02T06:56:04Z")
Everything I know about Star Wars I got from Spaceballs, Weird Al, and Robot Chicken. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2008, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/63 "2008-07-02T08:58:56Z")
About 98% of all recent pop-culture (since I stopped reading Entertainment Weekly about 7-8 years ago) I get entirely from watching E!'s **The Soup**. That show is not only the funniest thing on TV, its the voice of reason which prolongs my faith in the future of Western Civilization!! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ronald\_C.Semone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/cc9497/32.png) [@Ronald\_C.Semone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_C.Semone)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2008, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/64 "2008-07-02T13:41:44Z")
[QUOTEFrom my own youth, more than anyone else Edward G. Robinson and Peter Lorre are familiar to me as Bugs Bunny parodies. I could recognize their faces and voices instantly despite never having watched any of their films.[/QUOTE] That’s one of the saddest things I have heard in weeks. ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2008, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/65 "2008-07-02T14:40:10Z")
[QUOTE=mbh] Most people’s first exposure to opera is through Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. I have seen Wagner’s “Ring” cycle, but I have not yet seen “The Barber of Seville”. I was familiar with parodies of “We don’t need no stinking badges” long before I saw _Treasure of the Sierra Madre_. [/QUOTE] I still haven’t seen the Ring cycle . . . but I have seen Anna Russell’s explanation of it. (Not parody, but funny, and educational, too!) > [@Cisco](#): > > I eventually got into Conan through the parody Groo the Wanderer. I hadn’t thought of Groo in years. Aragones, wasn’t it? I have learned a lot in this thread. That _Basketball Jones_ was a spoof, for instance. I had no idea. RR ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2008, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/66 "2008-07-02T14:44:36Z")
[QUOTE=Ronald C. Semone] That’s one of the saddest things I have heard in weeks. [/QUOTE] Well, I’ve since seen a couple of Lorre’s films, but truth be told I haven’t seen much from before the '60s. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2008, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/67 "2008-07-02T17:28:29Z")
Anyone else noticed the “Ayn Rand Dating Service” ad at the bottom of the page," for admirerese of Ayn Rand’s novels"? ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/68 "2008-07-03T12:38:45Z")
[QUOTE=gaffa] It wasn’t until years later that I learned that what was being parodied was a real show. Or that [Alan Whicker](http://www.alanwhicker.co.uk/) wasn’t invented from whole cloth by the Pythons. [/QUOTE] There’s probably tons of pop-culture parodies in Python than fly right over the heads of Americans, and just seem like another non-sequitur among many. Lemon curry? On the other hand, rewatching the old Warner Brothers cartoons with a bit more knowledge of the movies (especially, oddly enough, the Warner Brothers movies) of the era can be pretty rewarding. There’s a scene in one where a tired-looking guy sitting at a bar pushes a typewriter toward the bartender, who says, “Here’s your change , Mr. Milland,” and gives him a bunch of tiny typewriters… ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/69 "2008-07-03T13:47:38Z")
[QUOTE=Ichbin Dubist] There’s a scene in one where a tired-looking guy sitting at a bar pushes a typewriter toward the bartender, who says, “Here’s your change , Mr. Milland,” and gives him a bunch of tiny typewriters… [/QUOTE] Now that you mention it, what is that about? I know it has to be referring to Ray Milland, but I don’t get the typewriter reference. RR ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/70 "2008-07-03T14:33:15Z")
With respect to the OP I am forty-mumble years old and have lived in the US my whole life and have never seen the movie _It’s a Wonderful Life_ but have seen innumerable parodies on sitcoms or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/71 "2008-07-03T14:48:38Z")
[QUOTE=RiverRunner] Now that you mention it, what is that about? I know it has to be referring to Ray Milland, but I don’t get the typewriter reference. RR [/QUOTE] The Lost Weekend ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/72 "2008-07-03T14:56:19Z")
Ray Milland’s character, a writer, is an alcoholic. In desperation for money to pay for a bottle, he pawns his typewriter. The joke is getting “change” for one’s typewriter. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/73 "2008-07-03T17:52:01Z")
> [@](#): > > by **Sublight** > From my own youth, more than anyone else Edward G. Robinson and Peter Lorre are familiar to me as Bugs Bunny parodies. I could recognize their faces and voices instantly despite never having watched any of their films. Don’t bet on it. I was about almost at the end of _The Maltese Falcon_ before I realized why Joel Cairo’s voice sounded so familiar. Peter Lorre was not one tenth as ugly as the cartoonists draw him; and, in the films I’ve seen, he was not one tenth as creepy as the impersonators play him. I have seen a fair number of his films, but never the ones on which the caricatures are based. (I’m guessing either _M_ or _The Cat and the Canary_.) ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/74 "2008-07-03T18:13:03Z")
He was extraordinarily creepy in _M_. An outstanding portrayal. You can see the compulsion that he cannot deny. The kind of acting that gets people ostracized because he was so damn good that people would wonder if he _was_ a child-molesting murderer. That good. ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/75 "2008-07-03T18:18:01Z")
My only knowledge of **2 Girls 1 Cup** comes from the numerous “reaction” videos. I hope to keep it that way. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/76 "2008-07-03T18:23:07Z")
[QUOTE=mbh] Don’t bet on it. I was about almost at the end of _The Maltese Falcon_ before I realized why Joel Cairo’s voice sounded so familiar. [/QUOTE] Actually, that’s the film of his that I saw first, and I did recognize him. Sure he was a caricature in the cartoons, but so were Bogart, Robinson and all the rest. ---
**Author:** ![InappropriateHumor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eb8c5e/32.png) [@InappropriateHumor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InappropriateHumor)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2008, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/77 "2008-07-03T19:07:37Z")
I had never heard of [Marlene Dietrich](http://youtube.com/watch?v=x7Y4jFNWHy8) before [Lili Von Shtupp](http://youtube.com/watch?v=6-pmpgrYQgs) , as portrayed by Madeline Kahn. Fwiggin’ funny! Links are YouTube. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/78 "2008-07-04T05:06:25Z")
[QUOTE=Krokodil] 50s[The Continental](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0294036/), an actual TV show circa 1952, inspired a MAD magazine parody and a recurring SNL character. Guess which versions I’m familiar with. [/QUOTE] Seriously… it was a show! I thought they pulled that right out of thier asses. Wow! ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/79 "2008-07-04T05:15:32Z")
I 'm familar with both and did not know that! [QUOTE=Priceguy] I’ll have to re-listen to the Lehrer song. They don’t sound identical in my head. [/QUOTE] [from wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Elements_(song)) > [@](#): > > The Elements" (1959) is a song by musical humorist Tom Lehrer, which recites the names of all the chemical elements known at the time of writing, up to number 102, nobelium. It can be found on his albums More Songs by Tom Lehrer and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer. The song is sung to the tune of the Major General’s Song from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan.[1] [Elements](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmwlzwGMMwc) [Pirates](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6dHk73jyho) ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899/80 "2008-07-04T05:31:25Z")
[QUOTE=mobo85] The Lost Weekend [/QUOTE] Which remimds me that I only know that through parody/satire/homage. (That _is_ the one where the guy is walking, and it’s all black, except for al lthe neon signs for bars/booze/etc…?) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-pop-culture-do-you-only-know-of-from-parody/454899.md?page=5)