Laws of Creativity

I know all the lyrics to the extended theme song of "Pinky and the Brain." 

. . . This twilight campaign, 

Is easy to explain: 

To prove their mousey worth, 

They'll overthrow the Earth, 

The Pinky, 

The Pinky and the Brain Brain Brain Brain Brain Brain Brain Brain BRAIN!

NARF! 

And I didn't even google them beforehand.

For us elderly people, "Animaniacs" was our childhood, chock-full of fabulous segments: "Katie Ka-Boom," "Buttons and Mindy," "Slappy Squirrel," and, of course, "Pinky and the Brain." Then P&B got a show in their own right. 

Consider my delight that it got a "Letter of Recommendation," by Jonah Weiner. Brilliantly, he connects the show's predictable format to a concept I found inherently Jewish. 

To explain: P&B, for those who know, has the same setup, episode after episode: 

1) "Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?" 

2) Elaborate, insane scheme goes awry; 

3) "What we do every night, Pinky: Try to take over the world!" 

And yet, as Weiner elaborates, there is genius insanity in-between, despite abiding to a limited frame. Pinky's befuddled responses to pondering were so hysterical I would be in stitches ("I think so, Brain, but me and Pippi Longstocking—I mean, what would the children look like?") Brain's elaborate plots were so complex and calculated to exploit mundane human weaknesses that you wondered if the writers were high. 

Weiner is saying that constraint allows for wacky creativity. And is that not the Jews? 

We have waaaaay more rules and regulations, yet a multitude of sects flourish with individuality, never mind the individuals within the individuality. Then there are those who do their own Judaic thang without an identifying sect. If anything, a life free of restriction results in the boringly repetitive. Hedonism is same-old, same-old. 

TGIF

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What a Nice Comedian

I like to think of myself as a funny person. I revel in humor. I strive to crack a rib laughing. My favorite character in Law & Order is Detective Lenny Briscoe (Jerry Orbach), who always had a quip when leaving the crime scene. Yeah, I know there's a body, but one can still be tasteful.

But I don't like meanness. Mocking someone is not humor. Because I believe humor = poking fun at oneself, those lacking a funnybone think I'm being serious and scootch nervously away. Amy Schumer understands: Either you got it or you don't.

A new crop of comedians are foregoing the kvetching and snarkiness ("Try Some Sweet-Tempered Stand-Up"). 

Comedy clubs have long been packed with head-shakers airing grievances and heatedly picking apart nonsense. But Ms. Long is part of a new breed of young performers more likely to begin a joke with affection than annoyance and to end with ridiculousness, not ridicule. This sunnier stand-up is in part a function of the times, when social media keeps count of likes and favorites, and late-night television is a chummy safe space for celebrities. But the hopefulness is also a refreshing artistic change of pace, a backlash against generations of smug finger-pointing and knowing raised eyebrows.

I recently enjoyed a badchan's performance and—yup—he was making choizik of himself non-stop. The beauty of such a method is that if one sporadically points fun at others, it is okay, because he has already raked himself over the coals.

 

Mr. Gondelman is pushing back on the caricature of the millennial generation as coddled narcissists — besides defending participation trophies, he also stands up for selfies — while lampooning those who suggest that the problem with the way we raise kids is an abundance of sensitivity and generosity. He’s killing, with kindness.

Mocking oneself also means that one is more likely to heard without resistance later on if deeper subjects are raised. Very crafty indeed.

TGIF

• I adore Bassem Youssef. But he should have been interviewed by funnier people; and 

• Do all singles get the same lines from the well-meaning but off-base? Apparently. YEEEEEES—

TGIF

That's why I hate to lend pens.

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1)

Know your history, kids.

2) Kudos to this Momma who is doing something tangible about texting while driving awareness.

TGIF

Holy Post-Its, Batman!

While I'm Dreaming

While this blog is Star Wars themed, my actual superhero obsession is Batman. Before Christian Bale showed up. 

Batman doesn't need radioactive spiders or alien parentage. Not only that, he's not so cheerful about taking the bad guys alive. Those goody-goody two-shoes superheros can be tiresome.  

So when I stumbled across this survey of "What Your Superhero Crush Says About You," I scrolled through to see what my thing for Bats means. 

Not only is Batman a crime fighter, he's also a billionaire playboy. "You may be attracted to wealth," says Lombardo. "And you probably enjoy the challenge of getting the man who everyone else wants."

Possible Pitfalls: "There will be a lot of competition for his heart, so he'll frequently be tempted by others," says Lombardo.

Wait a sec, that is not me at all! 

I scrolled through the other superheros. The other options weren't so much better. Apparently, they all have really annoying pitfalls.

Eh. I wasn't made to stitch the holes in a superhero cape.