Politics For Dummies

At Least Someone's Reading These
In my Sept. 8th blog I refer to how it was I who suggested, in a Sept. 3rd HuffPost article Comment, that Stewart and Colbert make it two separate rallies: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/JonathanDS/restoring-truthiness-colbert-rally-beck_n_704578_59349947.html

This is copyrighted proof that I made my statement prior to it becoming a part of things. I also stated in my Sept. 5th blog article that Jon Stewart and I looked at each other as we drove by each other on Sept. 4th. This also was before my statement had become anything, though based on having influenced Stewart and Colbert many times before in very big ways, it did lead me to suspect that my HuffPost Comment might be turning into something big. Stewart's look might have contained a certain suggestion of this, unless he was thinking, "Why are traffic lights green and red, Christmas colors, why must we Jews put up with this, someday I'm gonna run a traffic light, that'll show those bastards!" This is something all of us Jews think about from time to time, though few of us go through with it.

The following videoclip should be seen in the context I've just described (not the part about traffic lights, the other context):





Saturday Night's Alright For Following Tiny Little Details
I should at some point fit into a blog article how the SNL season premiere several days ago, like nearly every SNL for years and years and years, included a few things for my benefit. I know, I'll include it in this blog article.

Let's see, well for one thing, Amy Poehler's very brief revival of her Kim Jong Il. Her Kim Jong Il originally (a few years back) included referring to him as a film critic ala the Siskel/Ebert show, "At The Movies", as he said something about saving you an aisle seat. I had several days prior to that impression several years ago passed along (I would pass along an idea and they would always use fragments on the next show) the idea of Kim Jong Il being the guest host on "At The Movies" (when Ebert would always have a guest host with him). My idea showed how Kim Jong Il's taste in movies, in terms of why he appreciated the movies he liked, betrayed a strange sort of personality. Perhaps I should take this opportunity to say that I would personally love for him to review any of my videos, I was only joking about the kind of film critic he would be. (I seem to possibly be tangling with Ahmadinejad these days, and one crazy person doing stuff that could lead to nuclear bomb explosions is all I can handle at one time, thank you, would somebody else mind taking on Kim Jong Il?)

And then there was the appearance on SNL several days ago by the Governor of New York, Patterson, wherein they included their usual routine where he walks too near the camera, blocking things. This recurring bit (though previously it involved an SNL Patterson impression without the Patterson) began with something that happened in an Obama/McCain presidential debate hosted by Tom Brokaw (10.7.08), where McCain at the end walks too close to the camera, blocking things, which led to a few laughs when the moment was rerun on various shows. That real-life moment began with something I published at Archive.Org prior to the Brokaw-hosted debate ("Peek-A-Boo, ICU", 9/29/08, and also contained in my 9.28.08 blog article), a comedy idea about that very same (then upcoming) Brokaw-hosted debate. Incidentally, this was not the first time McCain did something in response to my comedy ideas - though you'll NEVER believe my version of what preceded his Palin selection. Anyway, in my Brokaw debate comedy idea, each candidate is on a video cell phone, placed on a table, facing each other. Brokaw inadvertantly puts his water glass down between the two video phones, blocking Obama's view of McCain, which he complains about, while McCain defends Brokaw's right to block his view.

I believe there may have been a few other things on SNL a few days ago regarding me, but who knows. One other thing I noticed on SNL, but NOT regarding me (every now and then I actually notice things that don't regard me, which in itself is yet another fact that many have trouble believing) is that, in their parody of that recent Stallone movie, they included something that brought to mind Jack Black in Sean Daniel's "The Jackal" (I have mentioned Sean Daniel not infrequently in my blogs for reasons I have also mentioned not infrequently). This struck me particularly because when Sheryl Crow was on Leno recently, she did something at the opening of the show out of Sean Daniel's "Animal House" (Ed Helms was sitting on a staircase playing a folk guitar and she took it away and smashed it). Though Sean Daniel did not produce "Animal House", it is an important part of his history, he was the person behind it when he was a decision-maker at Universal. So what's up with all that?

A Fish Called Goofy

In my previous blog of November 18th, entitled, "Tortured By The Truth (or The Goofy Misconduct of Senator McCain)", I was primarily presenting an open letter to Jon Stewart. Therefore, my experience led me to sorta kinda expect that some form of acknowledgment might be discernible the following night. This acknowledgment could in fact be found the following night, when Stephen Colbert (Colbert's show being the "companion show" to Stewart's) appeared on Letterman:


As I have been something of an influence on Stewart's show, so have I been something of an influence on Colbert's. My 12.2.08 blog describes my very significant influence on his Christmas Special with Elvis Costello; my 1.30.09 blog contains a videoclip detailing my influence regarding Colbert's interview of Paul McCartney; my "Mall Man, The Trailer" video, posted on YouTube August 2006, was the inspiration behind that painting he had of three Stephen Colberts, one behind the other (it started two months later, with two Colberts in October 2006, which became three in October 2007).

So why not take this opportunity to post here my submission when Colbert had his green screen contest in August 2006:



As another footnote to a footnote to a footnote to a footnote (give or take a footnote) regarding McCain and Palin (see my previous blog of 11.18.09), I consider of relevance the fact that I was a significant influence on the Michael Palin movie, "A Fish Called Wanda," including the origin of the title. No time to explain now, must start my Thanksgiving vacation immediately, gotta run, Happy Thanksgiving!


Sit Back And Be Counted
For those who want their viewing of it to be counted, I have posted on YouTube the Weekly Monk/Steinhoff Videoclip, 11.13.09 (the same one that appears in my 11.15.09 blog), under the name, "Monk's Advanced Juggling Technique".

If It's Not In The News It Couldn't Have Happened

I believe my previous, November 6th blog did some stage setting for this blog.

Well, firstly, no it didn't seem that Ben Stiller had anything to say on Letterman for my benefit. Yet nevertheless I should make mention of the fact that my Stuart ("Ben Stiller's Producer Partner at Red Hour") Cornfeld video, which accompanied my August 13th blog, featured a pirate costume and a thought towards seeing it in context, while Stiller told of a pirate costume being witnessed out of its proper context. So, same discussion perhaps, though nothing pointing to me.

A few other things of general significance have happened regarding me since my last blog, however, tons of backstory would be required to zero in on the context into which I would put these particular things. One involves Karl Rove, but it's sort of a long way to go and for what? Another involves me apparently being followed around over this past weekend by people cued by a sophisticated database of information regarding me, but what else is new? So I guess a few things will get buried, at least for now.

In my last (11/6/08) blog I promised a more explicit rendering of the result from my having created the comedy sketch idea, "The Weight" (first referred to in my Oct. 26th blog). In a way, my previous, November 6th blog already said it all on this subject, for those willing to do the due diligence follow-up research on their own. Nevertheless, I've also made a videoclip, just to make things more difficult for the skeptical, and for those pretending to be skeptical for ulterior purposes:





And lastly, my occasionally referred to comedy sketch idea (intended for SNL), "Peek-a-Boo, ICU", first referred to in my Sept. 28th blog, a sketch idea which led to an oft-referred to occurrence during the Brokaw-moderated second presidential debate (though one doesn't hear anyone attributing it to my sketch idea), experienced another inside-reference. On the November 1st Saturday Night Live, during the second-to-last sketch of the evening (on a night when McCain himself, in person, was occasionally surfacing in comedy sketches, poised to provide a certain form of closure to the world preceding the November 4th election), one looking for my "Peek-a-Boo" would have been particularly aware of this moment:

I Now Pronounce This Ring Open

On October 1st my blog asked that Paul McCartney and Denny Laine (McCartney’s main musical collaborator after John Lennon) reunite for Billy Joel's and Bruce Springsteen’s concert for Obama on October 16th, which was to be (and was) attended by Obama. The day following my blog, October 2nd, the “What Goes On” Beatles website carried an article about an October 11th Denny Laine concert. That article offered several email addresses that might easily lead to Denny Laine, and so, being handed this the day after my Denny Laine blog, I emailed several people, under the Subject line, “Laine Help In A Specific Way,” a paraphrase of the line from the title song of the Beatles movie, “Help”: “I never needed anybody’s Help In Any Way.”

At the October 16th Billy Joel/Bruce Springsteen concert for Obama, according to an Associated Press article, Laine and McCartney did not appear. The article did not state this specifically, however, we will assume that it would have mentioned this had it occurred. Okay, I can see that.

What the article also did was to mention the fact that Billy Joel played the title song from the Beatles movie, “A Hard Days Night”. The Beatles have created a substantial number of songs. I therefore find it noteworthy that from all of the Beatles material to draw from (or not), I referred to the title song of one of the two Beatles movies in my efforts to make something happen at that October 16th concert, and the title song from the other Beatles movie was in actuality performed at that same concert.

This is far from the first time I had an influence on Billy Joel, who once sat next to me on an airplane in 1978, several weeks before Paul McCartney sent me a letter, which was several weeks before I graduated from CalArts.

Changing the subject, but remaining on a related topic, some may have noticed that my September 28th blog announced a new Saturday Night Live sketch idea of mine, “Peek-A-Boo, ICU”, including a link to where one could read it. This is also evidence of when I wrote it, because archive.org indicates, in a non-transmutable way, the date when things are posted there. My sketch was about the then upcoming presidential debate hosted by Tom Brokaw, and more specifically, about people’s views being blocked. In the actual debate, McCain’s actual blocking of Brokaw’s actual view became the actual source of much actual humor. Nor was this the first time McCain helped himself to my material, his last appearance on The Daily Show being another example. Are you ready to consider that it was deliberate when McCain blocked Brokaw's view? Okay, well I can appreciate how difficult it must be to accept the idea that at times my influence, at least on a certain, secret track, should be as powerful as, say, Paul McCartney’s. As for me, I've been seeing the extent of my influence in an unobstructed way for most of my life.

Peek-A-Boo, ICU

Having recently been reinstated as a secret, unacknowledged contributor to "The Daily Show", "The Colbert Report", and "Saturday Night Live", I therefore felt it as not inappropriate to come up with something. First though, a brief mention regarding the recent indications of reinstatement:

1. I've already referenced the Daily Show indications in recent blogs.
   
2. On SNL last night they had the joke that Sarah Palin went to see "The Bush Doctrine" movie in NYC's Times Square, and found the title misleading. In my Sept. 16th blog, I refer to my joke that Sarah Palin found misleading the title of the movie, "An Inconvenient Truth" - it was not about dismantling the idea that the stork brings babies (my implication being that she had attempted to provide a form of sex education to her one-time unpregnant daughter). Were one familiar with the consistency with which SNL has made reference to my material, one would be more likely to appreciate this as more than coincidence.
3. Several days ago when I was thanked at work during a national videoconference for organizing the videoconference, I made a muscle and pointed to it. That night at the opening of "The Colbert Report", Colbert made muscles in general reference to the greatness attributed to him. Were one familiar with my past observations that "The Colbert Report" occasionally gathers material from infiltrating my work situation (there are only several people regarding whom I consistently make this claim, Colbert being one of them), one would be more likely to appreciate this as more than coincidence.

And now my new SNL idea:

PEEK-A-BOO, ICU

A comedy sketch idea by Jonathan D. Steinhoff, 9/28/08

[Tom Brokaw is sitting alone on a stage, at a table, facing the audience. On the table are two video cell phones, perched on cell phone stands, facing each other. On one cell phone can be seen live, standing at a podium, McCain, Obama is seen live standing at a podium on the other cell phone. A clear water glass and a water glass pitcher are also on the table.]

Brokaw: Good evening everyone, and welcome to the second presidential debate. Some of you may have noticed that, instead of Senators John McCain and Barrack Obama being present together onstage, there are instead video cell phones on the table, upon which each can be seen, live. You see (clears throat), we noticed at the previous presidential debate that the candidates seemed a little reluctant to speak directly to each other.

Obama: John wouldn’t even look at me, Tom.

McCain: I was trying to concentrate.

Brokaw: And so what we’ve done here, the thing we decided to do…

Obama: I had nothing to do with this decision. Absolutely nobody checked with me first.

McCain (smiling and winking): Uh, nor, uh, me, right Tom?

Brokaw: What we’re doing is, we have two video cell phones with each candidate, the video cell phones positioned to face each other. Our hope is that gradually the candidates will feel more comfortable with each other, and later on during the debate perhaps, we can remove the video cell phones and have them face each other directly.

Obama: As you wish. (muttering) Might as well be a radio debate.

McCain: We did quite well before there even was such a thing as television, or cell phones, or…. Whatever you want to do, Tom.

[Brokaw pours himself some water, has a sip, then places the water glass in between the two video cell phones.]

Brokaw: My first question is for you, Senator McCain.

Obama: Excuse me, uh, Tom, I’m sorry to interrupt, but, uh, you put your water glass on the table between the two video cell phones. So that, well, now all that I can see is the water glass, basically. I can make out a little bit of movement of colors on the other side of the water glass, but other than that….

McCain: That’s perfectly okay with me, Tom, if you want to put your water glass there that’s fine, I don’t mind a bit.

Obama: I can just sort of make out the color of Senator McCain’s clothes now with the water glass there. Is this supposed to be like some amusement park mirror debate? Because, I mean….

Brokaw: Should I move the glass to the left or the right. I’m not sure which way….

McCain: It’s fine where it is, Tom. I would prefer that you leave your glass where it is.

Obama: You know, metaphorically, this all sort of reminds me of the way Senator McCain’s vice presidential running mate, Sarah Palin, seems to find things to hide behind whenever she’s called upon to answer a real question.

McCain: Please, we’re just talking about where Tom wants to put his water glass. For goodness sake, he is the debate moderator, isn’t he entitled to a glass of water?

Obama: John, is that really the issue? Tom, uh, to the left, Tom. No, that just made it worse.

Brokaw: This way then?

McCain: I’m still waiting for the first question.

Obama: It really shouldn’t be so complicated to move a water glass away from two cell phones.

Brokaw: Yes, well, if you recall, in the previous debate, Senator McCain demonstrated a certain reluctance to look directly at you.

McCain: I was just trying to concentrate.

Obama: I see, so then the truth is, Tom, you deliberately placed the water glass there to block our view of each other.

Brokaw: I’m sorry John, I told you he wouldn’t go along with the water glass thing.

McCain: I have no idea what you’re talking about, Tom.

Obama: It’s like I’m looking at an amusement park mirror.

McCain: You’ve said that already.

Obama: Tom, can I at least ask that you drink some more water out of the glass, I can sort of see his form better when there’s less water in the glass.

McCain: Can we just wait until Tom is thirsty before we ask him to drink more water? For goodness sake.

Brokaw: That might be a good question. John, would you say the glass is half full or half empty?

Obama: Why would you ask - Tom, I just want you to drink a little more water. Now look, I’ve shown I’m ready to compromise on this, even more than I should, quite honestly. I didn’t ask you to remove the glass altogether.

Brokaw: John? Half full, half empty. Which would you say?

McCain: I, uh….

Brokaw: Senator McCain, one last time, half-full or half-empty?

McCain: Half full or half empty?

Obama: I just sort of see this white blur. And now I know you’re going to try to say that remark is racially motivated, but it’s the truth, I….

McCain: Here’s what Senator Obama doesn’t understand.

Obama: What? What don’t I understand?

McCain: Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!

THE END