Monty Python. An Attempt to Revive a Dead Parrot?

[swee'pea99]

[QUOTE 3191586, member: 1314"]Bunch of posh white boys with a sense of entitlement who said nothing to me about my life.[/QUOTE]
That complaint is just wrong on so many levels.

1) Some are posh, some aren't.
2) 'White'? Is that not racist, used as a criticism?
3) How did this 'sense of entitlement' manifest itself?
4) What in the world ever made it incumbent on comedians to 'say something to people about their life'?

 

[shouldbeinbed]

Posh: but not quite the dirt under their fingernails son of a diplomat or a cousin of one of the current Tory big hitters.

White: bang to rights lock em up. Wonder if Richard Pryor was so angry at life because he didn't come up with the Lumberjack song or nudge nudge wink wink.

How many people came out of 60's oxbridge without a sense of entitlement however they went in and who told the Rolling Stones they could play the sort of music they chose to, people adapt to circumstance and interest. John Cleese doing photo stories in america on a magazine Terry Gilliam animated for is hardly swanning around saying don't you know who I am.

Nothing about your life: didn't we all have exploding penguins on top of the telly and Cardinal Richlieu impersonators attacking us with soft furnishings?

 

[Ganymede]

That complaint is just wrong on so many levels.

1) Some are posh, some aren't.
2) 'White'? Is that not racist, used as a criticism?
3) How did this 'sense of entitlement' manifest itself?
4) What in the world ever made it incumbent on comedians to 'say something to people about their life'?

I don't think it's racist for CoG to mention that they are white. He's merely pointing out that the Pythons are far removed from him and his life experience. Comedians may not have an obligation to say things about peoples' lives but if you don't have anything in common with them then you're less likely to find them funny.

They're pretty far removed from my life too and I find them only intermittently funny, so I'd stand with CoG on that too. I saw Life of Brian recently and realised how many of their jokes rely on the grammar school or private school male experience. Funny but limited - and made by clever men who sometimes hit the nail on the head.

I'd say to CoG's comment - yes they don't say anything about your life but I wouldn't expect them to. Frankly I wouldn't bother looking for a reflection of my life in most comedy - most of it bores me and seems like a waste of time! There are a few comics I like but I find most stand-up embarrassingly feeble and samey. It's mostly a "Look at ME" boy's club and you have to wade through a lot of dross to find the gems.

I've met a couple of the Pythons in real life, and Michael Palin stands out for me as a humane and caring person who is giving back a lot of his privilege to society in the form of charitable activity - he supports difficult projects like the care of prisoners' families and the rehabilitation of torture victims, and he does it without fanfare. He may have been lucky and carefree as a successful young man but he's far from "entitled" now, so I'd like to mention that.

 

[Archie_tect]

I went back and had another go watching the second half as someone had said it was better.... but fell asleep after ten minutes. Ah well.