Four Horsemen of the Apopcalypse – Pop culture references in The Colbert Report: December 14-16, 2009
Welcome to No Fact Zone’s weekly roundup of cultural references on The Colbert Report. From Darcy to Danger Mouse, String Theory to Shakespeare, we’ve got the keys to this week’s obscure, oddball, and occasionally obscene cultural shout-outs (hey!).
Hey Zoners! We’re off for break a good long while now, but it’s hard to feel sad after such a great week. Even though it was a day short, I don’t feel cheated at all, there was so much to enjoy! The return of the pinstripe hoodie, top notch musical performances, a simultaneously creepy and adorable take on The Shining. Oh, and my favorite geek-joke of the week: A! u! What were your favorite bits this week? And don’t forget to take the Better Know A Stephen Quiz – post your scores in the comments!
Monday: Intro & Stephen Challenges Shani Davis
“Obama angers our allies. I say he deserves the Nobel Prize about as much as the guy who invented dynamite.”
Ok, completely off topic here, but someday I would really like to hear Stephen say “Dy-no-mite!”. In the mid 19th century, construction relied primarily on the use of gunpowder to blast rock. Nitroglycerin showed promise as a more powerful alternative, but was exceedingly dangerous. Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel sought to create a powerful but safe explosive; his invention, dynamite (essentially nitroglycerin in paste form), revolutionized construction, and earned Nobel his fortune. Perhaps seeking to balance his legacy (an obituary mistakenly published during his life condemned him as “the merchant of death”), Nobel left the bulk of his estate to establish the Nobel Prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace, to recognize those who “have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind.”
Tuesday: Intro & Gold
“Christmas is coming, the goose’s cholesterol count is through the roof.”
Sing along with me, kids – Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat… (sung here by Harry Belafonte), a traditional nursery rhyme & carol in the UK and US (how about where you live?).
“It’s rich with gold! Gold!”
Oh, Yukon Cornelius as a right wing talk show host? I don’t know, he seems too sensible. From the 1964 stop-motion animation classic Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer, narrated by the great Burl Ives.
Wednesday: Opening & Better Know A Stephen
“Merry Christmas, you beautiful old building and loan!“
[You'll only catch this one on the Full Episode, as it's cut off in the video segments] This is at least the second time Stephen has channeled George Bailey, the troubled everyman hero of 1946′s It’s A Wonderful Life. The Frank Capra film follows a discouraged Bailey (played by Jimmy Stewart) and his guardian angel Clarence, who shows him how the world would be a poorer place had he never been born. A holiday classic, just as A Colbert Christmas is destined to be [Wahoo! It's on Hulu (at 27:30)] Go watch it, you know you want to…“Dear Father in heaven, I’m not a praying man, but if you’re up there and you can hear me, show me the way. There’s a bear outside, and I don’t have any nutmeg. I’m at the end of my rope. Show me the way”).
Of all the great segments this week, I think my favorite has to be Stephen’s flashback to the hallway scene from The Shining. Absolutely brilliant, expertly done (plus I love getting little glimpses backstage). The 1980 film, directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Jack Nicholson, was based on Stephen King’s 1977 novel – it still stands as one of the most
terrifying films I’ve ever seen.
And now, the Better Know A Stephen Quiz:
How many Stephens can you name?? Take the quiz, then check against the key below. 1 point for every correct answer, 2 points if you get it without Google! [Answer key is printed in white - highlight the empty space to see the text]. Which Stephens would you most like to see Better Known?
1. Stephen Baldwin 2. Stephen Chow 3. Stephen Collins 4. Stephen Crane 5. Stephen Foster 6. Stephen Fry 7.Stephen Jay Gould 8. Stephen Harper 9. Stephen Hawking 10. Stephen King 11. Stephen Malkmus 12. Stephen Merchant 13. Saint Stephen 14. Stephen Sondheim
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