ANY QUESTIONS?
October 26, 2016 5:53 PM Subscribe
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posted by edheil at 6:14 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by edheil at 6:14 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
Well, and this is only a partial answer, obviously, but--he's his own thing.
And what about the skeletons, then?
posted by PMdixon at 6:16 PM on October 26, 2016 [5 favorites]
And what about the skeletons, then?
posted by PMdixon at 6:16 PM on October 26, 2016 [5 favorites]
And what about the skeletons, then?
They're part of it.
posted by Jugwine at 6:17 PM on October 26, 2016 [87 favorites]
They're part of it.
posted by Jugwine at 6:17 PM on October 26, 2016 [87 favorites]
It's like a merging of the Larry David sketch mentioned and their now-traditional Halloween "Creepy Mechanical Singing and Dancing with skeptical onlookers" idea.
2011 with Jim Carrey
2012 with Bruno Mars
2014 with Jim Carrey
etc.
I'm not complaining though, their weird random stuff is almost always funnier than when they just spout off the funniest jokes I saw on Twitter that week too.
posted by bleep at 6:20 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
2011 with Jim Carrey
2012 with Bruno Mars
2014 with Jim Carrey
etc.
I'm not complaining though, their weird random stuff is almost always funnier than when they just spout off the funniest jokes I saw on Twitter that week too.
posted by bleep at 6:20 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
They're part of it.
Any questions?
posted by jenkinsEar at 6:20 PM on October 26, 2016 [17 favorites]
Any questions?
posted by jenkinsEar at 6:20 PM on October 26, 2016 [17 favorites]
I prefer David's early work, before he sold out and added the S.
posted by InfidelZombie at 6:21 PM on October 26, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by InfidelZombie at 6:21 PM on October 26, 2016 [2 favorites]
Eh. It was a funny sketch but it was no Schweddy Balls.
posted by bondcliff at 6:23 PM on October 26, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by bondcliff at 6:23 PM on October 26, 2016 [4 favorites]
David S. Pumpkins tickled me the same way Mafia Meeting did. I really like late-in-broadcast SNL surreality.
posted by theraflu at 6:26 PM on October 26, 2016 [19 favorites]
posted by theraflu at 6:26 PM on October 26, 2016 [19 favorites]
Slate.com: Why America Needs Tom Hanks to Make Comedies Again
tldr: we kind of miss the old wacky Tom Hanks.
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:26 PM on October 26, 2016 [12 favorites]
tldr: we kind of miss the old wacky Tom Hanks.
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:26 PM on October 26, 2016 [12 favorites]
Page inaccessible to people with adblockers.
There's an interstitial begging you to disable it, but it has an X in the upper-right which took me to the article.
Tom Hanks totally aced every sketch he was in, and something about the Tom Hankiness of David S. Pumpkins managed to make an otherwise meh sketch sublime.
posted by BungaDunga at 6:28 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
There's an interstitial begging you to disable it, but it has an X in the upper-right which took me to the article.
Tom Hanks totally aced every sketch he was in, and something about the Tom Hankiness of David S. Pumpkins managed to make an otherwise meh sketch sublime.
posted by BungaDunga at 6:28 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
I saw this headline earlier in the day. Then, this afternoon I fell asleep for about 20 minutes and had a panic dream about missing a bus. While I was waiting, a car drove by and slowed down, and Tom Hanks was in the passenger seat. He seemed to recognize me and pulled over, presumably to offer me a ride, and then the back door opened and a baby in a David S. Pumpkins onesie and a Tom Hanks mask crawled out. I remember being very scared, and then I was in Grand Central Station.
posted by Room 641-A at 6:30 PM on October 26, 2016 [33 favorites]
posted by Room 641-A at 6:30 PM on October 26, 2016 [33 favorites]
Related: Tom Hanks or Bill Murray? Bill Hanks, Tom Murray? Bill? Tom? Tom/Bill? It's a question that the internet has been wrestling with for days.
posted by effbot at 6:37 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by effbot at 6:37 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
As a person who's feeling a lot of anxiety and "is this real life??" et cetera with the world and the election and this fucking year, I felt very connected to that sentiment of "Am I missing something? How...why...is this a thing?" I feel that way all the time right now.
So basically, David S. Pumpkins is Donald Trump and Right Skeleton is Everyone Is Dying and Left Skeleton is Brexit.
posted by Lyn Never at 6:38 PM on October 26, 2016 [27 favorites]
So basically, David S. Pumpkins is Donald Trump and Right Skeleton is Everyone Is Dying and Left Skeleton is Brexit.
posted by Lyn Never at 6:38 PM on October 26, 2016 [27 favorites]
"how was your weekend?"
"not bad, randomly caught snl and one of the clips amused me a little haha"
"I LIKE WHERE YOU'RE GOING WITH THIS, SIMS, I WANT 750 WORDS ON MY DESK TOMORROW MORNING"
posted by zokni at 6:41 PM on October 26, 2016 [50 favorites]
"not bad, randomly caught snl and one of the clips amused me a little haha"
"I LIKE WHERE YOU'RE GOING WITH THIS, SIMS, I WANT 750 WORDS ON MY DESK TOMORROW MORNING"
posted by zokni at 6:41 PM on October 26, 2016 [50 favorites]
Two funny sketches in one night? You realize this means SNL won't be funny for TWO years now, right?
posted by codacorolla at 6:44 PM on October 26, 2016 [18 favorites]
posted by codacorolla at 6:44 PM on October 26, 2016 [18 favorites]
Any questions? Was Michael Jackson's strained and rhetorical exit from his Ghosts "short" if you know it. I know when I wrote sketches with others, we submerged influences and inspirations and added elements to achieve a different whole along the thinking of amateurs plagiarize and artists steal.
posted by lazycomputerkids at 6:45 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by lazycomputerkids at 6:45 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
I just love how Tom Hanks goes for whatever snl throws at him. This is 100% ridiculous and I love his commitment to that.
posted by fluffy battle kitten at 6:46 PM on October 26, 2016 [13 favorites]
posted by fluffy battle kitten at 6:46 PM on October 26, 2016 [13 favorites]
I can't resist posting my favorite Tom Hanks SNL sketch, "Mr. Short Term Memory: The Hospital," with Phil Hartman and Victoria Jackson.
posted by chambers at 6:51 PM on October 26, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by chambers at 6:51 PM on October 26, 2016 [11 favorites]
Tom Hanks with Stephen Colbert, reunited with Zoltar from "Big".
He's had one hell of a week.
posted by oneswellfoop at 7:06 PM on October 26, 2016 [6 favorites]
He's had one hell of a week.
posted by oneswellfoop at 7:06 PM on October 26, 2016 [6 favorites]
This sketch was definitely in the same universe as Kevin Roberts, and both were hilarious, but I have to give the edge to Kevin.
Also: I'M HIGH ON BATH SALTS!
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 7:13 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
Also: I'M HIGH ON BATH SALTS!
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 7:13 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
Ooh! Ooh! I know this one! It's because SNL wrote an ending!
Less snidely: horror and sketch comedy share the same challenge of having to surprise genre-savvy viewers who have seen it all before (oh, look, it's the "I'm BRIAN BLESSED" / "I'm Brian Fellow!" approach to catchphrases, but his name is David Pumpkins now). So it's really delightful when a haunted house / sketch puts you a little off balance with something that really shouldn't work, goes all in on the premise (and goes meta by declaring it's going all in on it) to the point that you're caught up in the weirdness/metaness and vaguely wondering how it's going to anticlimactically fizzle, then actually pulls it off! The awkward not-workingness of the thing was what made it work the whole time!
posted by knuckle tattoos at 7:16 PM on October 26, 2016 [15 favorites]
Less snidely: horror and sketch comedy share the same challenge of having to surprise genre-savvy viewers who have seen it all before (oh, look, it's the "I'm BRIAN BLESSED" / "I'm Brian Fellow!" approach to catchphrases, but his name is David Pumpkins now). So it's really delightful when a haunted house / sketch puts you a little off balance with something that really shouldn't work, goes all in on the premise (and goes meta by declaring it's going all in on it) to the point that you're caught up in the weirdness/metaness and vaguely wondering how it's going to anticlimactically fizzle, then actually pulls it off! The awkward not-workingness of the thing was what made it work the whole time!
posted by knuckle tattoos at 7:16 PM on October 26, 2016 [15 favorites]
Poll: In David S. Pumpkins on SNL, what does the S stand for?
- Skeletons
- Scary
- Something
- Saturday
I really miss Bosom Buddies (including link for the kids).
posted by soakimbo at 7:32 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
posted by soakimbo at 7:32 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
i'm gonna need a ringtone of david s. pumpkin's song please
posted by entropicamericana at 7:36 PM on October 26, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by entropicamericana at 7:36 PM on October 26, 2016 [5 favorites]
"For over 30 years, Tom Hanks has been one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars — the quintessential Dad. But that simple likability camouflages the political potency of Hanks and the brand of white, middle-class Dad he’s come to represent."
posted by ChuraChura at 7:37 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by ChuraChura at 7:37 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
A lot of Tom Hanks on the blue today.
I vote that if we get one more Hanks post before midnight, October 26th shall forever afterward be known as T.HanksGiving.
posted by Atom Eyes at 7:39 PM on October 26, 2016 [49 favorites]
I vote that if we get one more Hanks post before midnight, October 26th shall forever afterward be known as T.HanksGiving.
posted by Atom Eyes at 7:39 PM on October 26, 2016 [49 favorites]
Eh. It was a funny sketch but it was no Schweddy Balls.
No comparisons: David S. Pumpkins is his own thing.
Ay, Papi!
posted by nubs at 7:40 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
No comparisons: David S. Pumpkins is his own thing.
Ay, Papi!
posted by nubs at 7:40 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
In attempting to understand why this sketch has become a sensation, I point out that the article explaining the sketch asks the fundamental, bedrock question of this benighted year 2016:
Just where did this demented nonsense spring from?
Is that not the question we are all asking as we stumble forward hoping that 2017 might somehow be better? I put it to you, gentle reader, is that not the basic question of life?
David S. Pumpkins is a visionary; a prophet; a soothsayer of the modern age. Any questions? That is all we have - and there are no answers. You might as well dance and be part of it.
posted by nubs at 7:53 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
Just where did this demented nonsense spring from?
Is that not the question we are all asking as we stumble forward hoping that 2017 might somehow be better? I put it to you, gentle reader, is that not the basic question of life?
David S. Pumpkins is a visionary; a prophet; a soothsayer of the modern age. Any questions? That is all we have - and there are no answers. You might as well dance and be part of it.
posted by nubs at 7:53 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
Everybody is overthinking everything nowadays. This about takes the cake as far as that goes. The whole thing screams Beetlejuice meets silly 1980s pop music video to me, but there you are.
posted by blucevalo at 7:53 PM on October 26, 2016
posted by blucevalo at 7:53 PM on October 26, 2016
Y'all don't get it do you... Pumpkins=orange=Trump...
Scared now?
posted by HuronBob at 8:03 PM on October 26, 2016
Scared now?
posted by HuronBob at 8:03 PM on October 26, 2016
Having read the article, I think it's a hit because a) it's funny and Hanks + the skeletons really sell the premise, and b) because it's dabbling in a style of sketch comedy that's closer to Tim and Eric than to the traditional situation comedy that SNL usually works with.
posted by codacorolla at 8:04 PM on October 26, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by codacorolla at 8:04 PM on October 26, 2016 [4 favorites]
I like how a skit about whether a character is a pop culture thing resulted immediately in that character becoming a pop culture thing.
posted by Flashman at 8:10 PM on October 26, 2016 [28 favorites]
posted by Flashman at 8:10 PM on October 26, 2016 [28 favorites]
The fuzzy skeleton hair hypnotized me. Costumes for the win.
posted by amtho at 8:14 PM on October 26, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by amtho at 8:14 PM on October 26, 2016 [6 favorites]
I think the pumpkin suit he was wearing sold out in only like two days. Brace yourselves for a lot of David Pumpkins running around this Halloween.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:27 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:27 PM on October 26, 2016 [3 favorites]
If you've been thinking SNL has been funny again lately, they have 2 new head writers; one is a woman and the other is openly gay (a first).
posted by St. Peepsburg at 8:35 PM on October 26, 2016 [18 favorites]
posted by St. Peepsburg at 8:35 PM on October 26, 2016 [18 favorites]
I like how a skit about whether a character is a pop culture thing resulted immediately in that character becoming a pop culture thing.
It's a perfectly cromulent phenomenon.
posted by dirigibleman at 8:40 PM on October 26, 2016 [10 favorites]
It's a perfectly cromulent phenomenon.
posted by dirigibleman at 8:40 PM on October 26, 2016 [10 favorites]
A kind of dramatic koan, like how it's impossible to make an anti-war movie.
posted by Rat Spatula at 8:50 PM on October 26, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Rat Spatula at 8:50 PM on October 26, 2016 [2 favorites]
How long before the David S. Pumpkins spin-off movie? Is Halloween 2017 too early?
posted by tobascodagama at 9:08 PM on October 26, 2016
posted by tobascodagama at 9:08 PM on October 26, 2016
That's pretty delightful.
posted by deludingmyself at 9:15 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by deludingmyself at 9:15 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
Two funny sketches in one night? You realize this means SNL won't be funny for TWO years now, right?
Wait, Kate McKinnon is taking a two-year break?!
posted by Room 641-A at 9:40 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
Wait, Kate McKinnon is taking a two-year break?!
posted by Room 641-A at 9:40 PM on October 26, 2016 [8 favorites]
It's also funny largely due to Bobby Moynihan who is a goddamned national treasure.
posted by tristeza at 10:21 PM on October 26, 2016 [14 favorites]
posted by tristeza at 10:21 PM on October 26, 2016 [14 favorites]
I think I am the only person I know who really, really doesn't like Tom Hanks as an actor but I thought this sketch was hilarious.
posted by potrzebie at 10:37 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by potrzebie at 10:37 PM on October 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
I knew it had to be new writers! I wonder if the product placement-type ads are how they had to finance new writing talent...
posted by amtho at 10:38 PM on October 26, 2016
posted by amtho at 10:38 PM on October 26, 2016
The tune, I think, is a part of it. The tune is such a beautiful thing. It is a goofy vocal sample, played in an awkward little tune. I do not think David S. Pumpkins would be as funny if the tune was not so perfectly terrible. It is a spot-on parody of that thing your friend who could sorta play music did within twenty seconds of first getting their hands on a sampler.
I think I need to put together a Sexy Diana S. Pumpkins costume.
posted by egypturnash at 1:03 AM on October 27, 2016 [8 favorites]
I think I need to put together a Sexy Diana S. Pumpkins costume.
posted by egypturnash at 1:03 AM on October 27, 2016 [8 favorites]
"Congratulations, everyone. Our Black Jeopardy sketch this week was the sort of work we can really be proud of. Smart, incisive and very funny. I bet tomorrow everyone will be talking about...."
"Hey, Lorne, the phones are lighting up about the dingus in the pumpkin suit."
"...David S. Pumpkins?"
posted by Joey Michaels at 1:18 AM on October 27, 2016 [20 favorites]
"Hey, Lorne, the phones are lighting up about the dingus in the pumpkin suit."
"...David S. Pumpkins?"
posted by Joey Michaels at 1:18 AM on October 27, 2016 [20 favorites]
Slate.com: Why America Needs Tom Hanks to Make Comedies Again
If one of my friends said "America Needs Tom Hanks to Make Comedies Again" I'd consider notifying their family that they were acting bizarrely.
posted by thelonius at 1:41 AM on October 27, 2016 [2 favorites]
If one of my friends said "America Needs Tom Hanks to Make Comedies Again" I'd consider notifying their family that they were acting bizarrely.
posted by thelonius at 1:41 AM on October 27, 2016 [2 favorites]
SPACE PANTS!
Oh wait that's the other one.
posted by ckape at 2:44 AM on October 27, 2016 [5 favorites]
Oh wait that's the other one.
posted by ckape at 2:44 AM on October 27, 2016 [5 favorites]
"Babe, don't let David Pumpkins ruin your night!"
posted by Kitteh at 3:54 AM on October 27, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 3:54 AM on October 27, 2016 [3 favorites]
I want to wear Tom Hanks like a blanket.
That sounded a lot less creepy in my head.
posted by like_neon at 5:20 AM on October 27, 2016 [11 favorites]
That sounded a lot less creepy in my head.
posted by like_neon at 5:20 AM on October 27, 2016 [11 favorites]
David S. Pumpkins - Medium Fiend, Chaotic Evil
posted by HeroZero at 5:44 AM on October 27, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by HeroZero at 5:44 AM on October 27, 2016 [6 favorites]
I now want to announce my entrance into every single room with "READY OR NOT, HERE WE....DANCE?".
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 6:28 AM on October 27, 2016 [9 favorites]
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 6:28 AM on October 27, 2016 [9 favorites]
It's the sheer pride with which the skeletons announce they are "PART OF IT" that has kept me giggling all week.
posted by thecaddy at 7:02 AM on October 27, 2016 [19 favorites]
posted by thecaddy at 7:02 AM on October 27, 2016 [19 favorites]
"Any questions?"
"Yes! SEVERAL!"
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:04 AM on October 27, 2016 [18 favorites]
"Yes! SEVERAL!"
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:04 AM on October 27, 2016 [18 favorites]
because it's dabbling in a style of sketch comedy that's closer to Tim and Eric than to the traditional situation comedy that SNL usually works with.
Really? To me, it seemed like an incredibly standard sketch comedy setup, to the extent that it embodies a lot of the tropes that can make sketch comedy completely intolerable to watch. "Let's do a halloween sketch, but make it as silly as possible" isn't a particularly great pitch for a sketch, and I'd be surprised if SNL hasn't already done several variations of the same thing.
The entire thing works because of the delivery, which Hanks and the skeletons absolutely nailed.
Maybe the writers anticipated this, but IMO, it would have been very difficult to pull this sketch off with a lesser cast.
posted by schmod at 7:51 AM on October 27, 2016 [6 favorites]
Really? To me, it seemed like an incredibly standard sketch comedy setup, to the extent that it embodies a lot of the tropes that can make sketch comedy completely intolerable to watch. "Let's do a halloween sketch, but make it as silly as possible" isn't a particularly great pitch for a sketch, and I'd be surprised if SNL hasn't already done several variations of the same thing.
The entire thing works because of the delivery, which Hanks and the skeletons absolutely nailed.
Maybe the writers anticipated this, but IMO, it would have been very difficult to pull this sketch off with a lesser cast.
posted by schmod at 7:51 AM on October 27, 2016 [6 favorites]
I hope Tom Hanks' crap movies keep making money so he keeps making them so he keeps hosting SNL and going on Colbert and c.
Not enough that I'd actually pay to see the crap movies but still.
posted by whuppy at 8:13 AM on October 27, 2016
Not enough that I'd actually pay to see the crap movies but still.
posted by whuppy at 8:13 AM on October 27, 2016
The entire thing works because of the delivery, which Hanks and the skeletons absolutely nailed.
I don't think you get the delivery without the commitment. Hanks and the skeletons were absolutely dedicated to being David S. Pumpkins and his B-Boy skeletons. It would've fallen apart without that.
posted by nubs at 8:23 AM on October 27, 2016 [7 favorites]
I don't think you get the delivery without the commitment. Hanks and the skeletons were absolutely dedicated to being David S. Pumpkins and his B-Boy skeletons. It would've fallen apart without that.
posted by nubs at 8:23 AM on October 27, 2016 [7 favorites]
Really? To me, it seemed like an incredibly standard sketch comedy setup, to the extent that it embodies a lot of the tropes that can make sketch comedy completely intolerable to watch.
I agree. The Tim & Eric version of this would have the haunted elevator guests sitting in stunned silence the whole time.
posted by tobascodagama at 8:57 AM on October 27, 2016 [2 favorites]
I agree. The Tim & Eric version of this would have the haunted elevator guests sitting in stunned silence the whole time.
posted by tobascodagama at 8:57 AM on October 27, 2016 [2 favorites]
The first time I watched it I thought he said 'Im David Pumpkins and I am going to SCAM the crap out of you!' and I spent the rest of the sketch waiting to see how he was going to scam them and how awesome it was that he announced his scam intention upfront. I was hoping it would end with them walking out with boxes of Amway or something.
posted by ian1977 at 8:58 AM on October 27, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by ian1977 at 8:58 AM on October 27, 2016 [5 favorites]
Whoa, whoa, whoa. It's late night TV, but it's still on a major network. Amway is way too scary for anywhere but HBO.
posted by tobascodagama at 9:09 AM on October 27, 2016
posted by tobascodagama at 9:09 AM on October 27, 2016
Okay okay. Pampered Chef then.
posted by ian1977 at 9:15 AM on October 27, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by ian1977 at 9:15 AM on October 27, 2016 [3 favorites]
It's a simple concept being executed perfectly by a group of talented professionals. Hanks and the skeletons are going broad. They're committed fully, but stop just shy of being too hammy. Bennet and Bayer are playing perfect straight (wo)men. They aren't just playing straight to David S Pumpkins, but also to Kenan, who is the glue that really holds the whole skit together.
The pace of the whole thing is perfect as well. The Pumpkin-free floors are timed just right to let the skit breathe. And each appearance of David and/or the skeletons is JUST different enough from what came before to create the twist on what's expected that is the root of all comedy.
And that song. I wouldn't be surprised if that the origin of the sketch was something along the lines of "I found this perfectly terrible song, what kind of skit can we build off of this?" "Maybe a Halloween thing?" "What kind of cheesy Halloween stuff does wardrobe have?"
posted by Uncle Ira at 9:25 AM on October 27, 2016 [7 favorites]
The pace of the whole thing is perfect as well. The Pumpkin-free floors are timed just right to let the skit breathe. And each appearance of David and/or the skeletons is JUST different enough from what came before to create the twist on what's expected that is the root of all comedy.
And that song. I wouldn't be surprised if that the origin of the sketch was something along the lines of "I found this perfectly terrible song, what kind of skit can we build off of this?" "Maybe a Halloween thing?" "What kind of cheesy Halloween stuff does wardrobe have?"
posted by Uncle Ira at 9:25 AM on October 27, 2016 [7 favorites]
...but also to Kenan, who is the glue that really holds the whole skit together.
IMO Kenan is SNL's secret weapon. Dude has been on the show 13 years now and keeps working away. And he seems like he's game for almost anything without taking it all too seriously.
He looks like he's having a complete blast doing this.
posted by JoeZydeco at 9:47 AM on October 27, 2016 [15 favorites]
IMO Kenan is SNL's secret weapon. Dude has been on the show 13 years now and keeps working away. And he seems like he's game for almost anything without taking it all too seriously.
He looks like he's having a complete blast doing this.
posted by JoeZydeco at 9:47 AM on October 27, 2016 [15 favorites]
I'm not really an SNL fan and haven't really watched much of it since before Kenan joined the cast. But, from what I have seen, I agree that he's criminally underrated.
I think he's underrated precisely because he tends to play glue characters like this one. He's too much part of the gag to be a true straight man, but he's kind of playing straight in that his role is mostly to set up the gag rather than to pick up any laughs on his own. (His weary response to "Why would you go all-in on David Pumpkins?" is a pretty great laugh-line, though.)
posted by tobascodagama at 9:55 AM on October 27, 2016 [7 favorites]
I think he's underrated precisely because he tends to play glue characters like this one. He's too much part of the gag to be a true straight man, but he's kind of playing straight in that his role is mostly to set up the gag rather than to pick up any laughs on his own. (His weary response to "Why would you go all-in on David Pumpkins?" is a pretty great laugh-line, though.)
posted by tobascodagama at 9:55 AM on October 27, 2016 [7 favorites]
"There are 100 floors of frights, they're not all going to be winners"
Basically SNL in a nutshell.
posted by GuyZero at 10:03 AM on October 27, 2016 [14 favorites]
Basically SNL in a nutshell.
posted by GuyZero at 10:03 AM on October 27, 2016 [14 favorites]
Just to keep the Kenan love-derail going, I missed linking this Slate.com article from SNL head writer Bryan Tucker.
"Here’s a secret. If you’re a Saturday Night Live writer, and you want to get an extra laugh in your script, just add this line: “KENAN REACTS.” Sure, it’s sort of cheating. But we still do it sometimes. Because it works."posted by JoeZydeco at 10:03 AM on October 27, 2016 [23 favorites]
So basically, David S. Pumpkins is Donald Trump
Donald J. Trumpkins, surely.
posted by tonycpsu at 10:28 AM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
Donald J. Trumpkins, surely.
posted by tonycpsu at 10:28 AM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
I knew it had to be new writers!
Not only is Sarah Schneider co-head writer now, this skit was written by her former College Humor colleague Streeter Seidell (of the previously-on-MetaFilter prank wars).
posted by Banky_Edwards at 10:48 AM on October 27, 2016
Not only is Sarah Schneider co-head writer now, this skit was written by her former College Humor colleague Streeter Seidell (of the previously-on-MetaFilter prank wars).
posted by Banky_Edwards at 10:48 AM on October 27, 2016
(I guess I should more accurately note that the skit was written by Streeter and the skeletons, Mikey Day and Bobby Moynihan.)
posted by Banky_Edwards at 10:51 AM on October 27, 2016
posted by Banky_Edwards at 10:51 AM on October 27, 2016
Kenan's role in these sketches is kind of interesting too. He's not the straight-man (ie. Will Ferrell's Alex Trebek) – he's definitely in on the joke – but he also has a weird knack for shifting between the foreground and background, and injecting humor during a lull in the script, without ever being the direct focal point.
I'm not entirely sure what you'd call this role, but he's really good at it.
tl;dr; If they're remaking Clue, Kenan should play Wadsworth.
posted by schmod at 11:19 AM on October 27, 2016 [11 favorites]
I'm not entirely sure what you'd call this role, but he's really good at it.
tl;dr; If they're remaking Clue, Kenan should play Wadsworth.
posted by schmod at 11:19 AM on October 27, 2016 [11 favorites]
Not only is Sarah Schneider co-head writer now
This is one of those weird coincidence things that really wigs a person out sometimes. I'm almost the same age as SNL's Sarah Schneider (seriously, off by a couple of days), and I briefly dated a girl once named Sarah Schneider who was similarly close to my age, but it's not the same Sarah Schneider.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:00 PM on October 27, 2016
This is one of those weird coincidence things that really wigs a person out sometimes. I'm almost the same age as SNL's Sarah Schneider (seriously, off by a couple of days), and I briefly dated a girl once named Sarah Schneider who was similarly close to my age, but it's not the same Sarah Schneider.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:00 PM on October 27, 2016
I really miss Bosom Buddies
♫ Who ii-is it??
David S. Pumpkins!
posted by MtDewd at 2:36 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
♫ Who ii-is it??
David S. Pumpkins!
posted by MtDewd at 2:36 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
"For over 30 years, Tom Hanks has been one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars — the quintessential Dad. But that simple likability camouflages the political potency of Hanks and the brand of white, middle-class Dad he’s come to represent."
Maybe it's generational (he's 10 years older than me) but I don't think of him as a Dad. At all. Maybe a boyfriend or husband? But looking through his 81 IMDB credits, there's a conspicuous absence of family movies -- movies about families. I think of him as the (white, middle-class) everyman, but he gets to be that everyman who faces a challenge and becomes the everyhero. He's like a human Buzzfeed list about "30 Citizen-Heroes."
posted by Room 641-A at 3:57 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
Maybe it's generational (he's 10 years older than me) but I don't think of him as a Dad. At all. Maybe a boyfriend or husband? But looking through his 81 IMDB credits, there's a conspicuous absence of family movies -- movies about families. I think of him as the (white, middle-class) everyman, but he gets to be that everyman who faces a challenge and becomes the everyhero. He's like a human Buzzfeed list about "30 Citizen-Heroes."
posted by Room 641-A at 3:57 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
Yeah Tom Hanks doesn't scan as "dad" to me, as in dad jokes and dad jeans. He seems more like a worldly uncle. You know the type of white boomer male that is a Vietnam Vet and now he's into meditating, possibly goes to AA but doesn't talk about and has a long term live in partner with teenage sons. Then again my dad and his friends don't seem like "dads" to me either, as least not the same way Kevin Costner does.
posted by kittensofthenight at 4:33 PM on October 27, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by kittensofthenight at 4:33 PM on October 27, 2016 [2 favorites]
I've watched SNL more or less every week since the mid 90s, although I missed the early 2000s, and I think a few comments have already described why David S Pumpkins works. This cast, and last season's, is just really good at their job. They don't showboat, they don't embrace cheap characters, they very much focus on the sketch. I think including a lot more flmed pieces gives them time to focus. Also, this is just my opinion, but I think the UCB and alt-comedy becoming more mainstream has really influenced SNL.
posted by kittensofthenight at 4:38 PM on October 27, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by kittensofthenight at 4:38 PM on October 27, 2016 [4 favorites]
thecaddy: It's the sheer pride with which the skeletons announce they are "PART OF IT" that has kept me giggling all week.
That got me, but even better was when, in the wake of David S. Pumpkins, the couple are utterly nonplussed by Sadako. "Yeah, the girl from The Ring. I can see why that's scary."
posted by panglos at 5:33 PM on October 27, 2016 [4 favorites]
That got me, but even better was when, in the wake of David S. Pumpkins, the couple are utterly nonplussed by Sadako. "Yeah, the girl from The Ring. I can see why that's scary."
posted by panglos at 5:33 PM on October 27, 2016 [4 favorites]
Once you've experience David Pumpkins, it's hard for anything else to frighten you.
posted by ckape at 6:41 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by ckape at 6:41 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
So is there a tvtropes keyword for Manufactured Popness or something? Bob the Builder and (especially) Snowden The Completely Legitimate Snowman crept up on me like this.
posted by Rat Spatula at 9:05 PM on October 27, 2016
posted by Rat Spatula at 9:05 PM on October 27, 2016
The tune reminds me of the early days of the internet "Hamster Dance".
posted by a humble nudibranch at 10:08 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by a humble nudibranch at 10:08 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]
Rat Spatula, I am seized with a desire to know more about Snowden The Completely Legitimate Snowman but my web searches turn up nothing; help?
I really enjoyed that in the Haunted Elevator sketch the members of the couple never really insult or belittle each other. It's a small thing but that loving relationship made it easier for me to enjoy her comforting his distress ("don't let David Pumpkins ruin your night").
And the things Mark (the hellevator operator) says in his Pumpkins defenses -- that the scariest thing is the unknown, that the scariest things are what your mind comes up with -- are things I have heard used as explanations of genuinely scary experiences, but never as excuses for why you should be scared by this thing. Just because something is kind of inexplicable and offputting does not actually make it scary; the mini case studies of the different exhibits on the different floors help demonstrate that, actually, "scary" is a subcategory and not all surprises are in it. I come away from Haunted Elevator with a meditation on fear, which is certainly more than I come away from most sketches with.
posted by brainwane at 5:49 AM on October 28, 2016 [3 favorites]
I really enjoyed that in the Haunted Elevator sketch the members of the couple never really insult or belittle each other. It's a small thing but that loving relationship made it easier for me to enjoy her comforting his distress ("don't let David Pumpkins ruin your night").
And the things Mark (the hellevator operator) says in his Pumpkins defenses -- that the scariest thing is the unknown, that the scariest things are what your mind comes up with -- are things I have heard used as explanations of genuinely scary experiences, but never as excuses for why you should be scared by this thing. Just because something is kind of inexplicable and offputting does not actually make it scary; the mini case studies of the different exhibits on the different floors help demonstrate that, actually, "scary" is a subcategory and not all surprises are in it. I come away from Haunted Elevator with a meditation on fear, which is certainly more than I come away from most sketches with.
posted by brainwane at 5:49 AM on October 28, 2016 [3 favorites]
Is Kenan like the fun friend who watches SNL with you, but makes it funnier because he gets it while also knowing how ridiculous it is? Kind of like an audience surrogate, but a really good audience surrogate?
posted by amtho at 1:21 PM on October 28, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by amtho at 1:21 PM on October 28, 2016 [3 favorites]
I assume (however wrongly) the people who made the music were inspired by MC Miker G and DJ Sven.
Maybe it's generational (he's 10 years older than me) but I don't think of him as a Dad. At all.
Probably generational, yes. Tom Hanks dancing like a goofball dad in a video aimed at "the youths."
posted by chrominance at 3:45 PM on October 28, 2016
Maybe it's generational (he's 10 years older than me) but I don't think of him as a Dad. At all.
Probably generational, yes. Tom Hanks dancing like a goofball dad in a video aimed at "the youths."
posted by chrominance at 3:45 PM on October 28, 2016
(eh, maybe I'd change that to "maybe generational." My point is I think he totally does come off like a dad now, even if he hasn't really played dad roles throughout his career.)
posted by chrominance at 3:49 PM on October 28, 2016
posted by chrominance at 3:49 PM on October 28, 2016
Rat Spatula, I am seized with a desire to know more about Snowden The Completely Legitimate Snowman but my web searches turn up nothing; help?
Is this the Snowden The Completely Legitimate Snowman you're all thinking of?
posted by Servo5678 at 4:04 PM on October 28, 2016
Is this the Snowden The Completely Legitimate Snowman you're all thinking of?
posted by Servo5678 at 4:04 PM on October 28, 2016
Also in this wonderful, wonderful genre, Alan: The Future of Casual Entertainment.
posted by MrBobinski at 7:01 PM on October 28, 2016
posted by MrBobinski at 7:01 PM on October 28, 2016
David S. Pumpkins is now in every horror movie — any questions?
posted by Room 641-A at 10:32 PM on October 28, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Room 641-A at 10:32 PM on October 28, 2016 [3 favorites]
I'm going to be hitting my neighborhood's Dog Costume Parade in about a half hour - and it's just occurred to me now that we are probably going to see a whole crapton of "David Pupkins"'s.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:52 AM on October 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:52 AM on October 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
Pics please, EC!
posted by Room 641-A at 12:24 PM on October 29, 2016
posted by Room 641-A at 12:24 PM on October 29, 2016
I'm back - there was only one "David S. Pupkins", but it was just a random pumpkin costume and looked nothing like the pumpkin suit thing. Stranger Things and Game of Thrones carried more weight in the pop culture department, and grand prize was a wholly original thing (the "Dolly Llama" - they took a 3-foot-tall llama model, stuck it on a wheeled platform, and hollowed out the neck so they could stuff their chihuahua in there so its head could poke out).
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 2:22 PM on October 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 2:22 PM on October 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
A coworker saw a David Pumpkins at a Halloween party last night, but without his dancing skeletons, so in that regard, was it really even David S. Pumpkins at all?
posted by Servo5678 at 7:04 AM on October 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by Servo5678 at 7:04 AM on October 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
was it really even David S. Pumpkins at all?
Obviously not. The skeletons are part of it.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:48 AM on October 30, 2016 [6 favorites]
Obviously not. The skeletons are part of it.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:48 AM on October 30, 2016 [6 favorites]
My favorite David S. Pumpkins piece so far is by Sara Benincasa, What David S. Pumpkins Taught Me About Life.
posted by Kattullus at 12:42 PM on October 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 12:42 PM on October 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
I feel like the Internet getting so in the weeds with David Pumpkins is making it less funny. People, it's OK to just like a thing and then move the fuck on.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:49 PM on October 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by tobascodagama at 12:49 PM on October 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
You haven't really met the Internet, have you?
posted by tonycpsu at 1:14 PM on October 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by tonycpsu at 1:14 PM on October 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Sure, it's inevitable, but I don't have to like it.
posted by tobascodagama at 2:14 PM on October 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by tobascodagama at 2:14 PM on October 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
65 trick-or-treaters, zero David S. Pumpkinses. Boo.
posted by Etrigan at 6:06 AM on November 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Etrigan at 6:06 AM on November 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
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