Stephen Colbert: the mouth that roared

Filed under: Constructive Criticism — MrBogle @ 7:17 pm

“Satire is moral outrage transformed into comic art” Philip Roth once declared. He should have added: it’s on the wane.

It’s been almost a week since Stephen Colbert headlined at The Washington Steno Pool’s annual dinner, zeroing in on both Bush and the Steno Pool itself. And, the results are finally dribbling in. Depending on the amount of Kool-Aid in your system, Colbert was “ballsy,” or “crude,” or “strident,” or “dull” or “brave” or “embarrassing” or “heroic” or “cringe-inducing” or “sarcastic” or someone who “needed editing.”

Okay. Let me be the first to say it.

He was fucking funny as Hell. When I first saw Colbert’s routine, taping it for my wife, I literally fell over laughing. When I showed it to my wife, later, she gasped over some of the jokes and, then, laughed out loud, raucously.

This was fearless, funny political satire. Bush, in Joe McCarthy terms, was hilariously called out by Shecky R. Murrow; not only in front of the alleged media but in front of the world.

But a comedian is only as good as his straight-man. And, watching Bush react, (lips pursed in “sucking lemon” mode, face eventually getting so mottled as to resemble the Doppler radar map announcing the arrival of Hurricane Katrina) made Colbert’s routine a true case of “Mission Accomplished.”

Colbert stunned both the President and his lackeys (some actually fled) as well as the MSM toadies in attendance. That is what political satirists are supposed to do. And political satire is a lost art, these days, in America. There are maybe three practitioners left. But Colbert is special because he launches his barbs in character, the character being a Right Wingnut. He’s the President’s biggest fan and, in defending him, unintentionally disses him. This is nothing short of genius.

I can’t remember any satirist, but for Will Rogers, who offered political commentary couched in character. And, hey, for all I know, Will really did offer zingers, off-stage, while dressed in a cowboy suit and twirling a lariat. But the fine art of socio-political humor has been whittled down, of late. There are no Twains, Bierces, Menckens, Parkers, Bruces, Sahls or Belzers, anymore. Most mainstream folks, these days, find Jay Leno cutting edge.

In other words, if you hire a comedian for one of these gatherings, you expect the set-up and the limp punchline. Another set-up. Another limp punchline. That passes for humor. On TV, Leno zeroes in on Bush’s stupidity before dredging up more old Clinton jokes. Letterman goes for the throat before, alas, also dredging up more old Clinton jokes.

But for Jon Stewart and, sometimes, Bill Maher, Colbert is the only one out there willing to dance on the razor’s edge.

Today? Truthiness is considered awkward. (Note: the dwindling amount of editorial cartoons in American newspapers. We don’t want to think before we laugh. We just want to laugh. Re-write? Get me Marmaduke!)

The Colbert routine was important for two reasons. First, he managed to look the President in his eye as he belittled just about every cause the President has foisted upon a post 9/11 dazed populace. Two, he brought up every failure, in twenty minutes, the President and his toady press corpse has allowed to happen since 9/11.

And, oh yeah, it was funny as Hell.

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