Humor based on the September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks were a series of terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda against the United States on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, in which nearly 3,000 people were killed. Jokes based on the events have been made in print and other media since soon after the attacks took place.
A number of scholars have studied the ways in which humor has been used to deal with the trauma of the event,
In contrast to these early jokes about 9/11, late-night comedy shows and humorous publications did not appear for several weeks following the attacks.[4] The Onion, a satirical newspaper, cancelled the issue that had been scheduled to be released on September 11, 2001, and then returned to print with a special edition on September 26, 2001, which was devoted to the attacks.
In literature
The Zero (2006) by Jess Walter is a post-9/11 satirical novel which features a New York City cop who shoots himself in the head and forgets it minutes later; his brain damage accounts for gaps in the story.[6]
In 2016, comedian Billy Domineau uploaded a
On stage
Just a month later, George Carlin addressed the attacks, sarcastically claiming that "otherwise the terrorists win," which he claimed to be the latest mindless mantra. He went on to joke about how in this extreme time he's even willing to cooperate with the US government and "Governor Bush". Then he elaborates his plan for retaliation through the use of "fart warfare".[14]
One notable 9/11 joke was one told by Joan Rivers, a major American comedian, in London in 2002. The joke concerned the widows of fire fighters killed in the attacks, who Rivers said would be disappointed if their husbands had been found alive as they would be forced to return money they had received in compensation for their late spouses.[15] The joke received condemnation from Harold A. Schaitberger, General President of the International Association of Fire Fighters.[16]
Pete Davidson has incorporated several 9/11 jokes into some of his routines. His father, Scott Davidson, was a New York City firefighter serving in Ladder 118 who died in service during the 9/11 attacks; he was last seen entering the Marriott World Trade Center. On September 12, 2021, Davidson and Jon Stewart hosted NYC Still Rising After 20 Years: A Comedy Celebration, a comedy special performed in Madison Square Garden, with proceeds going towards 9/11-related charities. Amy Schumer, Bill Burr, Colin Jost, Colin Quinn, Dave Attell, Dave Chappelle, Jay Pharoah, Jimmy Fallon, John Mulaney, Michael Che, Ronny Chieng, Tom Segura and Wanda Sykes also performed.[17]
On screen
To improve the chance of an Oscar award, a 9/11 joke was cut from Jean Dujardin's 2012 comedy film The Players. The deleted scene featured a man seducing a woman in a New York apartment while an aircraft crashes into the World Trade Center in the background.[18]
In The Simpsons episode "Moonshine River", aired in 2012, Bart tells his father he would desire New York now that his two least favorite buildings have been obliterated, but then quickly adds Old Penn Station and Shea Stadium, after a pause.[19][20]
South Park
In November 2001, South Park released an episode entitled "Osama bin Laden Has Farty Pants". The town is in shock following the events of September 11—for instance, children are sent to school in gas masks for fear of anthrax. Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny are locked into a military plane by mistake and they end up stranded in Afghanistan, where they are eventually captured and held hostage by Osama bin Laden. The boys are ultimately rescued by four local children, and Cartman kills bin Laden in a fight resembling those in Looney Tunes cartoons during World War II.[21] In October 2006, the episode "Mystery of the Urinal Deuce" aired, making fun of the conspiracy theories about the attacks. An outraged Mr. Mackey launches an investigation after an unknown person (later revealed to be Stan) defecates in a school urinal. Meanwhile, Cartman launches his own investigation into September 11, much to the frustration of Kyle, and ultimately comes to the conclusion that Kyle was behind the attack.[22]
Family Guy
In the Family Guy episode "Back to the Pilot", broadcast in November 2011, Brian and Stewie take a trip back in time during which Brian tips off his past self about 9/11 so that the present-day him can play hero and stop the terrorist attacks. This causes George W. Bush to lose re-election, meaning a Second Civil War starts that leads to nuclear attacks on the Eastern Seaboard. Brian and Stewie are then forced to go back and mend the situation, later noting that their celebratory cheers of causing 9/11 to happen again would sound really bad if taken out of context. A Time critic wrote of the episode, "It sounds custom-made for a 'too soon' label, and it probably is. But avid Family Guy viewers live for 'too soon' moments, no matter how sensitive the material."[23] Other news organizations, including Aly Semigran of Entertainment Weekly, also thought the show had gone too far with the reference.[24] Deadline also commented that it "squeaked past the Fox standards and practices department but is sure to raise as many eyebrows."[25]
Meanwhile the
However, perhaps reflecting how the acceptability to mainstream broadcasters of jokes referencing the 9/11 attacks has evolved only gradually, the DVD release of the earlier
In print
Satirical newspaper The Onion cancelled their Volume 7 Issue 32 of the paper, scheduled to be released on September 11. John Krewson, a writer for The Onion at the time, said "For one thing, distribution would have been a nightmare. Second of all, we just didn’t think anyone was ready for a bunch of wacky jokes that were no longer relevant." The paper also skipped the following Issue 33 as the staff went on a week-long break to reflect on the tragedy. Initially, the writing staff had considered not referencing the attacks at all in the following issue, with writer Todd Hanson saying "Our normal, irreverent, edgy, cynical, dark humor wasn’t going to be emotionally appropriate with this situation." Multiple employees threatened to quit if the paper ran an issue focused on the attacks, but no employee left once the paper was released. The paper went on to release Issue 34 of the paper on September 27, with most articles being in response to the attacks. The leading article was titled "U.S. Vows To Defeat Whoever It Is We're At War With", with other headlines such as "American Life Turns Into Bad Jerry Bruckheimer Movie" and "Not Knowing What To Do, Woman Bakes American-Flag Cake". The Onion's Editor In Chief Robert Siegel later said of the issue "Everything in that issue either needed to make a point or express something people were feeling." Jokes that directly poked fun at the loss of life were cut, such as "America Stronger Than Ever Says Quadragon Officials", with the writers preferring to make jokes about how the American people were feeling at the time. No writers were credited with writing their respective articles, with all articles being credited to The Onion. The issue was well-received by both critics and the public.[30][31][32]
In advertising
In the days before the 15th anniversary of the attacks in 2016, Miracle Mattress of
The company soon pulled the ad, but copies were saved and uploaded to the Internet, where it and Miracle became the subject of intense and vociferous criticism.
Online
See also
- "Mystery of the Urinal Deuce," a South Park episode related to 9/11 conspiracy theories.
- List of cultural references to the September 11 attacks
- List of entertainment affected by the September 11 attacks
- Cultural influence of 9/11
- Humor based on the Holocaust
References
- ^ Brottman, Mikita (February 12, 2012). "What's So Funny About 9/11?". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012.
- ^ Ellis, Bill (June 6, 2002). "Making a Big Apple Crumble: The Role of Humor in Constructing a Global Response to Disaster". New Directions in Folklore. Archived from the original on April 21, 2012.
- ^ Lewis, Paul (2006). Cracking Up: American Humor in a Time of Conflict.
- ^ .
- ^ Ellis, Bill (October 2001). "A Model for Collecting and Interpreting World Trade Center Disaster Jokes". New Directions in Folklore (5). Archived from the original on September 30, 2012. Retrieved May 14, 2012.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
- ^ Domineau, Billy (August 2, 2016). "The Twin Towers". Google Docs. Archived from the original on September 6, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
- ^ Kickham, Dylan (August 4, 2016). "Seinfeld 9/11 spec script author says episode should've existed, but couldn't". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on October 7, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
- ^ Czajkowski, Elise (August 5, 2016). "Seinfeld 9/11 script: a work of genius or just pretty, pretty good?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on September 10, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
- ^ Buss, Andrew. "The legend of how Gilbert Gottfried turned a 9/11 joke into The Aristrocrats". The Laugh Button. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
- ^ David Fox, Jesse (September 9, 2019). "Gilbert Gottfried's History With the Aristocrats, the Joke That's Always There When He Needs It". Vulture. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
- ^ DiGiacomo, Frank (August 7, 2005). "Why Have a Night Like This In times Like These?'". Archived from the original on October 10, 2008. Retrieved April 13, 2012.
- ^ Holt, Jim (August 27, 2011). "The Encyclopedia of 9/11: Humor". New York. Archived from the original on April 15, 2012.
- ^ https://scrapsfromtheloft.com/comedy/george-carlin-complaints-grievances/
- ^ "Joan Rivers Jokes About 9/11 Victims". IMDb. May 1, 2002. Archived from the original on April 17, 2015. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
- ^ "IAFF Rebuts Joan Rivers Humor on 9-11". International Association of Fire Fighters. May 3, 2002. Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
- ^ Michallon, Clémence (September 10, 2021). "Pete Davidson co-hosting 9/11 benefit with Jon Stewart". Independent. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
- ^ Allen, Peter (March 1, 2012). "9/11 joke in Jean Dujardin film 'cut so he could win Oscar for The Artist'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
- ^ Semigran, Aly (October 1, 2012). "The Simpsons' Season 24 Premiere: I Was Saying 'Boo-Urns'". Hollywood.com. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
- ^ David Sullivan, Robert (September 30, 2012). "The Simpsons: "Moonshine River"". The A.V. Club. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
- ^ "Osama bin Laden Has Farty Pants- South Park on Comedy Central". May 22, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
- ^ "Mystery of the Urinal Deuce - South Park on Comedy Central". May 22, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
- ^ Pous, Terri (November 14, 2011). "Did Family Guy's 9/11 Satire Go Too Far for a Laugh?". Time. Archived from the original on November 15, 2011. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ Semigran, Aly (November 14, 2011). "'Family Guy' 9/11 gag: Did they finally go too far this time?". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 16, 2011. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (November 14, 2011). "'Family Guy' On 9/11 Attack: "Let It Happen"". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 15, 2011. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20140428231727/http://www.mania.com/10-questions-family-guys-seth-mcfarlane-part-two_article_39625.html
- ^ imdb.com Archived February 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Family Guy: Meet the Quagmires (2007), Quotes. Retrieved July 17, 2013
- ^ "Family Guy - Visiting Ground Zero". YouTube. Archived from the original on January 14, 2017. Retrieved November 29, 2016.[dead link]
- ^ Pierson, Robin. "Episode 9 - Back to the Woods". The TV Critic. Archived from the original on April 19, 2014. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
- ^ VanHooker, Brian (June 29, 2020). "An Oral History of The Onion's 9/11 issue". MEL Magazine. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
- ^ Stableford, Dylan (August 25, 2011). "Remembering The Onion's 9/11 issue: 'Everyone thought this would be our last issue in print'". The Cutline. Yahoo News. Archived from the original on August 8, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
- ^ "Fast Chat: The Onion". Newsweek. October 21, 2001. Archived from the original on September 23, 2017. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- ^ Jamie Narrientos (September 8, 2016). Mattress company airs offensive 9/11 commercial (Online video). Archived from the original on September 8, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2016.
- ^ Bonnano, Mike (September 15, 2016). "What We Learned at Miracle Matress" (PDF).
- ^ Hibberd, James (September 9, 2016). "9/11-themed mattress ad might be most offensive commercial ever". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 10, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
- ^ Hess, Amanda (July 6, 2015). "Teenagers and 9/11 trutherism jokes: How these memes became a phenomenon". Slate Magazine. Archived from the original on September 11, 2016. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
- ^ Edwards, Chris (August 3, 2023). "Social media users in Japan share 9/11 memes in response to Barbenheimer promotion". NME. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
External links
- Khitrov A. "Irony about Tragedy: The Onion’s treatment of 9/11[permanent dead link]" Topos. 2012. Vol. 2. P. 153–167.