July 29
...serving up your daily dish.
It starts tonight, (albeit not yet in Baristaville), and we can't help but be intrigued by The Aristocrats. We've never actually heard the joke that inspired the movie, although after some searching, we've gotten the gist of the raunchy riff that hails back to vaudeville days. Going to see stand-up to support my own favorite comic, I've been privy to some pretty dirty stuff. Reviewers, who explain that reading the joke isn't as funny as seeing it performed by hundreds of comedians (duh!), seem to like it. So, we're asking -- will you see it? And have you heard the joke?
July 29, 2005 in Movie Mojo | Permalink
There are versions upon versions, Liz. Yes, I've heard the joke, once, I recall, in Frank Vincent and Joe Pesce's old lounge act before they both became actors (remember those days?) and once at one of those "beefsteak dinners" held as an athletic awards function at a Papist h.s. by the hired toastmaster.
Posted by: cathar | Jul 29, 2005 4:24:25 PM
You should put more web-links into your blog entries!
Posted by: Gonzo Journalist | Jul 29, 2005 11:27:08 PM
If you're curious, watch the south park version (never aired). http://waxy.org/random/view.php?type=video&filename=southpar
k_aristocrats.wmv
Posted by: MrZoobles | Jul 30, 2005 2:37:49 PM
Saw it last night at Union Square in Manhattan. We enjoyed it! The theater was packed. Not for the easily offended, though. The basic idea is (and I'm not giving anything away) that it's a form of joke that's been around since vaudeville days. There's a standard line that starts it, and a standard line that ends it, and what happens in the middle is pretty much whatever horrible stuff the comedian can come up with. But the joke is told mostly between comedians because, generally speaking, it was always considered to push the limits of taste too far to be done in public. The movie isn't a total scat fest, though. There's quite a few genuinely interesting insights as well - it is a documentary after all. And it turns out there are an amazing number of ways to tell the same joke.
Posted by: Captain Vegetable | Jul 30, 2005 5:26:22 PM
