Catch This
I caught NBC's show about TV's 50 funniest catch phrases. The results come from the Paley Center For Media, and there was some sort of vote involved, though I have no idea who voted.
Most of the choices (see below) were expected, but I still have some problems.
First, the whole idea of a catch phrase makes some comedy writers (I'm thinking of John Cleese in particular) despair. Nothing funny is being said (usually)--instead of an actual joke, it's a cheap stunt that gets a Pavlovian response from the audience. Of course, this is also why many comedy writers love catch phrases.
The other point is, just what is a catch phrase? In a lot of the cases on the list, it's actually a common phrase many say, not something original to the character. I'm not sure if it's fair to call that a catch phrase, unless a particular character makes it his own.
Now on to particulars.
"Let me show you something" isn't much of one. I like Fire Marshall Bill, but this phrase never stuck out to me that much.
Doesn't #41 get it wrong? Isn't it "Hug it out, bitch!"?
#38 comes from the Smothers Brothers' act--the TV show only amplified it. I'm not sure it deserves to be called a true TV catch phrase.
I like Arrested Development, but "I've made a huge mistake" never struck me as something especially memorable from the show.
"Here come de judge" may be best known from Laugh-In, but it was an old catch phrase that originated with Pigmeat Markham.
"Up your nose with a rubber hose" from Welcome Back, Kotter, which had trouble getting on the air as it was, was merely a softer version of Gabe Kaplan's original comedy routine "Up your hole with a mello roll."
I ignored some weaker choices higher up the list, but "don't be ridiculous," if it's gonna be on this list at all, seems high.
I'm not sure if "I'm Gumby, dammit!" should make a top 50 list of phrases from SNL. Nor is it Eddie Murphy's best line. (By the way, did this prepare the way for "I'm Rick James, bitch!"?)
What is anything from Family Matters doing in the top 20?
"Will you stifle?" is not a bad choice from All In The Family, but single words like "Dingbat" and "Meathead" are just as memorable.
Nothing wrong with "hated it," though I wouldn't say it's the the best that In Living Color had to offer. The "Homey" line is a bit better, but I wouldn't call it a top ten choice.
Friends wasn't exactly a catch phrase sort of show. "We were on a break" qualifies, I guess, but just barely. It's not like it was identified strongly with a character so much as a character in a moment. Anyway, it's better that "How you doin'?," which shouldn't be ranked at all, much less #3.
I got a lot of trouble with #12, "That's what she said." I don't deny the line is identified with Michael Scott in The Office. But do the people who "voted" for it understand, that this is an old dumb line that unfunny people have been saying for decades (the same sort of way that the Wayne's World characters are funny not because they say funny things so much as they say stupid things that a certain type says)? Do they understand that the reason it's funny (if it is funny) is because it's not funny, but Michael Scott thinks it is. (Maybe they get it, I just wonder. Most catch phrases don't come with this much irony.)
"Excuuuuse me!" is another one of those catch phrases that comes originally from a comedy act, and was popularized further by a TV show.
"Burn!" shouldn't be on this list, much less the top ten. It is an accurate portrayal of what teenagers might say in the 70s (I think), but it's not much more than that, and doesn't deserve to be particularly associated with a TV show.
The top choice is not a catch phrase, at least not one from Seinfeld. I remember I had a good friend in law school who always used to say "yada yada" and I called her up after that episode (which is called "The Yada Yada," incidentally) to tell her about it. But it was only used in this one episode, where the gang discussed it as a phrase more than anything else. It certainly wasn't one that they regularly used on the show. So it's absurd that it's in the #1 slot.
50. “Hello, Newman” from Seinfeld
49. “Missed it by that much” from Get Smart
48. “Yeah, that’s the ticket” from Saturday Night Live
47. “God’ll get you for that” from Maude
46. “Hey, Hey, Hey” from What’s Happening
45. “Holy crap” from Everybody Loves Raymond
44. “Let me show you something” from In Living Color
43. “Nip it” from The Andy Griffith Show
42. “Thank you beddy much” from Taxi
41. “Do you wanna hug it out” from Entourage
40. “Watch it sucka” from Sanford and Son
39. “Jane you ignorant slut” from Saturday Night Live
38. “Mom liked you best” from The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
37. “Sit on it” from Happy Days
36. “Now cut that out” from The Jack Benny Comedy Program
35. “I’m Larry, this is my brother Darryl…” from Newhart
34. “What you see is what you get” from The Flip Wilson Show
33. “I’ve made a huge mistake” from Arrested Development
32. “I know nothing” from Hogan’s Heroes
31. “Here come de judge” from Laugh-In
30. “You look marvelous” from Saturday Night Live
29. “I’m comin’ to join ya Elizabeth” from Sanford and Son
28. “Would you believe” from Get Smart
27. “Up your nose with a rubber hose” from Welcome Back, Kotter
26. “Ohhhh Rob” from The Dick Van Dyke Show
25. “Kiss my grits” from Alice
24. “Nanu, Nanu” from Mork and Mindy
23. “Don’t be ridiculous” from Perfect Strangers
22. “I’m Gumby, dammit” from Saturday Night Live
21. “No soup for you” from Seinfeld
20. “One of these days, pow right in the kisser” from The Honeymooners
19. “Did I do that” from Family Matters
18. “Will you stifle” from All in the Family
17. “Eat my shorts” from The Simpsons
16. “Hated it” from In Living Color
15. “Well isn’t that special” from Saturday Night Live
14. “Sock it to me” from Laugh-In
13. “We were on a break” from Friends
12. “That’s what she said” from The Office
11. “It’s going to be legendary” from How I Met Your Mother
10. “Homey don’t play dat” from In Living Color
9. “Excuuse me” from Saturday Night Live
8. “Lucy, you’ve got some splainin’ to do” from I Love Lucy
7. “Oh my god! They killed Kenny” from South Park
6. “Burn” from That ‘70s Show
5. “We are two wild and crazy guys” from Saturday Night Live
4. “Ayyyy” from Happy Days
3. “How you doin’” from Friends
2. “D’oh” from The Simpsons
1. “Yada, yada, yada” from Seinfeld
posted by LAGuy @ 12:35 PM
10 Comments:
I watched the same show and had even more problems than you.
How is Jack Benny's "Now cut that out," which originated on radio, a TV catch phrase? If that line qualifies, surely the Lone Ranger's "Hi-Yo Silver" was even more deserving of inclusion.
Did the list compilers never watch Mission: Impossible? Or any of the various Star Treks? "This tape will self-destruct in five seconds," "He's dead, Jim" and "Make it so" were surely more iconic than "hug it out" or "hated it" or "burn."
It seemed very character on Happy Days chased a catch phrase at one time or another. "I found my thrill," "I still got it," and "Wa wa wa" could have easily filled in for "Sit on it."
Game shows were completely overlooked. "Come on down" and "I'll take {blank} for $200, Alex" are more famous than many sayings on the list. As were "Holy this" and "Holy that" from Batman, not to mention "Bat this" and "Bat that."
And where in the name of Conrad Stafford Bain was what in my opinion was the single greatest omission: "What'chu talkin' 'bout, Willis?"
If Benny and the Smothers Brothers hadn't (wrongly) snuck onto the list, I'd have said none of the compilers were born before 1980.
That's a good point--too often these lists have a short memory. Only shows on recently, or still in heavy reruns.
The list is funny catch phrases, so I guess only comedy shows were included.
"Norm!"
I saw this too and thought it was summer filler come early.
A better title might have been "Memorable Catch Phrases" because (as LA Guy notes)they're not all that funny.
I thought the Honeymooners' line should have been "To the moon, Alice!" but maybe thats because I worked with some folks who always said when they got frustrated.
Henry Winkler explained that "ayyy" was his bowdlerized version of a NY street profanity and suggested people try to mentally substitute the profanity whenever they hear Fonzie do his shtick. Did he mean "fuck"? That doesn't seem to work.
NE Guy
And while SNL got its fair share of spots, they ccould have added Emily Litella's "Never mind. [Bitch]" but maybe there's only room for one Jane Curtin put down.
Also "I'm .....and you're not"- good enough for a President to speak, good enough for this list. (they put in Nixon's line after all)
I just saw Susan Boyle's second appearance on Britain's Got Talent, and was surprised in her little banter with Simon that she said "I know nothing," and shook her jowls like Sgt. Schultz.
I am amazed that some of these catch phrases retain a life of their own even with people who probably never have seen the orioginal incantation. I suppose Boyle is old enough to have seen Hogan's Heroes when she was little - is it still in reruns in England? I suppose some of these catch phrases serve a valuable purpose, allowing people to say something short that carries a long subtext of connotations. But they only work if they come from shows that remain in reruns.
The whole list could have been Saturday Night Live catchphrases, since their job is generating them. Maybe they should do a special show just for that.
Big surprise. Another TV show has been produced with an agenda. MORE CALCULATED PR CRAP FOR THE RICH. 'The Philanthropist' hasn't even premiered yet. But I know what to expect. More brainwash plots: 'The rich are good'. 'The rich are smart'. 'The rich are sexy'. 'The rich create jobs'. 'The rich pay more taxes'. 'The rich give back'. 'The rich want to make the world a better place'. Of course, they will villianize the occasional rich 'outlaw' or 'scumbag'. But the group as a whole will be shown in a positive light. More caring, more compassionate, more generous, ect. At least those who take up 'philanthropy' or 'good will'. Which in the real world, as they know, as they plan, as they deliberately publicize, includes ALL OF THEM. What a sham. Its already quite evident that the lead character will be another filthy rich 'good guy'. Of course, the same old plugs for medical testing, pharmaceuticals, universities, credit cards, and world travel will be thrown in. EVERY SINGLE EPISODE. Afterall, NBC has greedy coorporate sponsors and a juggernaut parent company to cater to. Go ahead and watch. But don't be their little puppet. DON'T FALL FOR THE CALCULATED PR CRAP. REMEMBER: EVERY SINGLE TOP EXECUTIVE ON THE PLANET HAS TAKEN UP 'PHILANTHROPY' OR 'GOOD WILL'. INCLUDING THOSE WHO WORK IN THE ENERGY, FINANCE, AND PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES. ITS A SHAM. NOTHING BUT TAX DEDUCTIBLE PR CRAP. THE RICH DO NOT WANT TO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE. THEY WANT TO APPEAR AS IF THEY DO. OTHERWISE, THEY WOULDN'T CONCENTRATE THE WORLD'S WEALTH AND RESOURCES TO BEGIN WITH. THIS TV SHOW IS JUST ANOTHER CALCULATED TRICK TO SHOW THEM IN A MORE POSITIVE LIGHT. DON'T FALL FOR IT. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A MULTI-MILLIONAIRE HUMANITARIAN. EXTREME WEALTH MAKES WORLD PROSPERITY ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE. WITHOUT WORLD PROSPERITY, THERE WILL NEVER BE WORLD PEACE OR ANYTHING EVEN CLOSE. GREED KILLS. IT WILL BE OUR DOWNFALL.
This is part of a much larger and vital issue. Search the following line: "The campaign to divert our attention has taken a new turn."
WOW- thats the longest catchphrase I've ever read
i would go with what you talkin about willis
mikey in mich
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