Philosophy
Last week was the anniversary of Bob Denver's death. Best known for his role as Gilligan, perhaps the more influential role was the one that really put him on the cultural map, Maynard G. Krebs in "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis." Maynard G. Krebs, a beatnik, was one of the first counter-culture characters to appear in mainstream entertainment. He was lazy, sloppy, and daft, but gentle and harmless. The character filled the slot of the dizzy blonde and created template for the way that the counter-culture would be henceforth portrayed. From Maynard G. Krebs you get a straight line through George Carlin's Al Sleet the hippy-dippy weatherman (with all the hippy-dippy weather, man), to Cheech and Chong, to Reverend Jim, to Dharma Finklestein. Steven Wright and Mitch Hedberg were able to play off the archetype and add a hint of the Shakespearean wise jester, but not far beneath was Maynard G. Krebs. On the one hand, the picture is kind in that these characters always have a good heart and the best of intentions. At the same time, while the character wants the world to be a better place, s/he is too idealistic and naive to be taken seriously. They present no real reason to question the status quo, but in their ignorance, show that it is essential that things be as they are. The counter-culture is caricatured as being made up of folks who are harmless as long as they remain marginalized, which because of their lack of sense, need to be.
This is precisely how we saw the millions of anti-war protesters treated by CNN and the networks ten years ago. If ten tea-partiers get together, that's big news of a growing social movement; but if the streets of every major metropolitan area across the globe are filled with those who are advocating for peace, then they need to just be patted on the head and ignored. Anyone who questions the structure becomes seen as Maynard G. Krebs. Just as news has become entertainment, the narratives that the news creates to make sense of events derive from entertainment. Bob Denver may be gone, but we are all Maynard G. Krebs now.
- Gandhi's Legacy
Yesterday was Mohandas Gandhi's birthday. A brilliant man who was also a stunningly capable leader, two things that do not often get combined, much less come together at the right place at the right time. Now, though, it seems that Gandhi is simply...
- Drugs And Comedy
My Fellow Comedists, I've been thinking about the way comics' whose on-stage personas were tied to supposed drug use have changed with time. The originals were those whose acts hinged on their being drunks. Foster Brooks made a career of it, but...
- Meme: Passion Quilt
I generally avoid blog memes, but Janet tagged me with an interesting one -- and it's the end of finals week... The challenge is: Post a picture or make/take/create your own that captures what YOU are most passionate for students to learn about. Give...
- Rip Maynard Ferguson
We lost another great one yesterday, jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson passed away at 78. A big man, Maynard had the ability to hit notes that a trumpet was not made to hit. During his solos, he would work up a scale and just when you thought there was...
- Marie Maynard Daly...1st African American Woman In The Us To Earn A Ph.d. In Chemistry
Marie Maynard Daly April 16th, 1921 to October 28th, 2003 Marie Maynard Daly [Wikipedia] Distinguished African-American Scientists of the 20th Century by James H. Kessler, J. S. Kidd, Renee A. Kidd, and Katherine A. Morin ISBN-10: 0897749553 ISBN-13:...
Philosophy
Bob Denver and the Cultural Caricature of the Counter-Culture
Last week was the anniversary of Bob Denver's death. Best known for his role as Gilligan, perhaps the more influential role was the one that really put him on the cultural map, Maynard G. Krebs in "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis." Maynard G. Krebs, a beatnik, was one of the first counter-culture characters to appear in mainstream entertainment. He was lazy, sloppy, and daft, but gentle and harmless. The character filled the slot of the dizzy blonde and created template for the way that the counter-culture would be henceforth portrayed. From Maynard G. Krebs you get a straight line through George Carlin's Al Sleet the hippy-dippy weatherman (with all the hippy-dippy weather, man), to Cheech and Chong, to Reverend Jim, to Dharma Finklestein. Steven Wright and Mitch Hedberg were able to play off the archetype and add a hint of the Shakespearean wise jester, but not far beneath was Maynard G. Krebs. On the one hand, the picture is kind in that these characters always have a good heart and the best of intentions. At the same time, while the character wants the world to be a better place, s/he is too idealistic and naive to be taken seriously. They present no real reason to question the status quo, but in their ignorance, show that it is essential that things be as they are. The counter-culture is caricatured as being made up of folks who are harmless as long as they remain marginalized, which because of their lack of sense, need to be.
This is precisely how we saw the millions of anti-war protesters treated by CNN and the networks ten years ago. If ten tea-partiers get together, that's big news of a growing social movement; but if the streets of every major metropolitan area across the globe are filled with those who are advocating for peace, then they need to just be patted on the head and ignored. Anyone who questions the structure becomes seen as Maynard G. Krebs. Just as news has become entertainment, the narratives that the news creates to make sense of events derive from entertainment. Bob Denver may be gone, but we are all Maynard G. Krebs now.
- Gandhi's Legacy
Yesterday was Mohandas Gandhi's birthday. A brilliant man who was also a stunningly capable leader, two things that do not often get combined, much less come together at the right place at the right time. Now, though, it seems that Gandhi is simply...
- Drugs And Comedy
My Fellow Comedists, I've been thinking about the way comics' whose on-stage personas were tied to supposed drug use have changed with time. The originals were those whose acts hinged on their being drunks. Foster Brooks made a career of it, but...
- Meme: Passion Quilt
I generally avoid blog memes, but Janet tagged me with an interesting one -- and it's the end of finals week... The challenge is: Post a picture or make/take/create your own that captures what YOU are most passionate for students to learn about. Give...
- Rip Maynard Ferguson
We lost another great one yesterday, jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson passed away at 78. A big man, Maynard had the ability to hit notes that a trumpet was not made to hit. During his solos, he would work up a scale and just when you thought there was...
- Marie Maynard Daly...1st African American Woman In The Us To Earn A Ph.d. In Chemistry
Marie Maynard Daly April 16th, 1921 to October 28th, 2003 Marie Maynard Daly [Wikipedia] Distinguished African-American Scientists of the 20th Century by James H. Kessler, J. S. Kidd, Renee A. Kidd, and Katherine A. Morin ISBN-10: 0897749553 ISBN-13:...