Humor and U.S. Presidents of the Modern Era Quiz

Answer: Vaughan Meader

This parody album was recorded on October 22, 1962. With an accurate impression of JFK's voice, Meader joked about the Kennedy family's wealth, large family and "vigah". The album was the fastest-selling record of its time, selling 7.5 million copies and winning the Grammy for album of the year.

Answer: Pete Seeger

The name of the song was "Waist Deep in the Big Muddy":
"It was back in nineteen forty-two,
I was a member of a good platoon.
We were on maneuvers in-a Louisiana,
One night by the light of the moon.
The captain told us to ford a river,
That's how it all begun.
We were -- knee deep in the Big Muddy,
But the big fool said to push on."

The song was a symbol of the Vietnam War and President Lyndon Johnson's policy of escalation, leading the United States deeper into a war that was becoming more and more distasteful to the American public. On a side note, I went to high school with Pete's nephew Kim Seeger, a very nice young man.

Answer: Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In

Despite Nixon's campaign managers advising against it, Richard Nixon went ahead and made a cameo appearance on "Laugh-In". He delivered the line in a not altogether un-awkward manner, and it was seen by some as a transparent attempt to win over young people. But hey, he won the election, so who's to say it didn't help.

Answer: Governor Ronald Reagan

On September 13, 1973 Ronald Reagan was the guest of honor being roasted by the likes of his wife Nancy along with Don Rickles, Jonathan Winters, Phyllis Diller, Jack Benny, Dom DeLuise, Pat Henry, Nipsey Russell, Jackie Vernon, and Mark Spitz. Reagan was Governor of California at the time but would become president in 1981. Now if the question was phrased this way: "Who was the first person to serve as President to be roasted on 'The Dean Martin Show'?" then the answer would have been....George Washington! Yes, on March 15, 1974, actor Jan Leighton portrayed George Washington as the posthumous guest roasted on the show.

Answer: Chevy Chase

Lorne Michaels, the longtime producer of "SNL" would tell the "NY Times" that Ford "was just so incredibly decent and good-natured about the skit." "You couldn't imagine Nixon signaling that this was O.K.," Michaels added. He felt it was as though Ford was telling the country that "we could all move on from" Watergate.

But how did Ford get this klutzy reputation in the first place? After all he must've had some physical prowess being a former college football player and an avid skier. He was also however cursed with several ill-timed accidents witnessed in wide margin by the media and public: stumbling down Air Force One's steps in Austria, wiping out on the ski slopes in Colorado, and getting knocked on the head by a chairlift at the ski slopes.

Answer: Dana Carvey

In a famous meeting between the two, George H. W. Bush and Dana Carvey in Bush portrayal mode, the real Bush joked, "Dana, George Bush here. I'm watching you do your impression of me, and I've gotta say - it's nothing like me," Bush says. "Bears no resemblance. It's bad. It's bad. Don't see it. It's totally exaggerated. It's not me - those crazy hand gestures, the pointing thing. I don't do them. Also, 'Na ga da'? Never said it. In all my years of government service, I never once said 'Na ga da.'"

In describing how he devised his imitation of President Bush, Dana Carvey instructs that he starts out imitating Mister Rogers, and then adds in a little bit of John Wayne's swaggering drawl.

Answer: Arsenio Hall

It was the night of June 3, 1992. Do you remember the two songs Clinton played? He performed renditions of "Heartbreak Hotel" and "God Bless The Child". And as for Clinton's appearance on the show, much of it was contributed by Arsenio himself. Apparently Clinton showed up with a "boring" striped tie, so Mr. Hall went backstage and came back with the fancier yellow tie that was seen on the show. Arsenio also reached into his pocket and pulled out the Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses that Bill Clinton wore.

Answer: Murphy Brown

What had Quayle said? At the nonpartisan Commonwealth Club of California on May 19, 1992, he gave a speech and near the end said, "It doesn't help matters when prime-time TV has Murphy Brown, a character who supposedly epitomizes today's intelligent, highly paid professional woman, mocking the importance of fathers by bearing a child alone and calling it just another lifestyle choice." The night right before that speech 38 million viewers watched the season finale of "Murphy Brown", in which Candice Bergen, sang "Natural Woman" to her newborn son.

The creator of "Murphy Brown", Diane English issued this rejoinder: "If the Vice President thinks it's disgraceful for an unmarried woman to bear a child, and if he believes that a woman cannot adequately raise a child without a father, then he'd better make sure abortion remains safe and legal."

Answer: Bob Dole

His first appearance on the late night circuit was on funnyman David Letterman's "Late Nite". The other guests were broadcaster Ted Koppel and singer Mary Chapin Carpenter. Subsequently he appeared many times on "Larry King Live", and on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart".

He made a cameo on "Saturday Night Live", and on the sitcom "Suddenly, Susan", He even made a slew of comedic commercials for such products as Dunkin' Donuts, Visa, Viagra, and even appeared alongside Britney Spears in a Pepsi-Cola commercial (thank God not the Viagra commercial).

Answer: "And that's pretty much how you're going to run the country"?

George W. Bush actually appeared via satellite, not in person that night on CBS's "The Late Show with David Letterman". Strangely after that quip, Bush decided to dig in and make jokes about Letterman's recent heart bypass surgery. Predictably those jokes did not go over well at all, and in fat elicited boos from the audience. One example:

Letterman: "You often say: I'm a uniter, not a divider. What does that mean?"
Bush: "It means when it comes time to sew up your chest cavity, we use stitches as opposed to opening it up."

Answer: Darrell Hammond

One of Al Franken's favorite "Saturday Night Live" sketches was the one written by Jim Downey, in which Darrell Hammond played Al Gore in a presidential debate. Among Hammond's many other impressions are Vice President Dick Cheney, President Bill Clinton, "Hardball" host Chris Matthews, Sean Connery (on "SNL's" "Celebrity Jeopardy"), Regis Philbin, Donald Trump and others. Hammond was a "Saturday Night Live" cast member from cast member from 1995 to 2009.

Answer: Will Ferrell

That word was coined by writer James Downey, debuted October 7, 2000 in a sketch featuring Will Ferrell portraying George W. Bush in a debate against Al Gore (portrayed by Darrell Hammond). Ferrell used the word in answer to moderator Jim Lehrer's (played by Chris Parnell) question: "...I will ask each candidate to sum up, in a single word, the best argument for his candidacy. Governor Bush?"
Ferrell answered, "Strategery."

Answer: Steve Carell

Senator McCain's bus was called the Straight Talk Express, and when correspondent Carell boarded he asked John McCain such fluffy questions as what was his favorite movie, and what was his favorite book. But this tactic was a set-up as Carell, without breaking stride, would zing him with the tough probe: How could he justify his criticism of pork-barrel politics with the fact that "while you were chairman of the Commerce Committee, that committee set a record for unauthorized appropriations." The show's head writer Ben Karlin claims that the question actually poses a true fact, but as McCain reacted momentarily speechless, caught off guard, Carell broke the silence as he starts laughing "I'm just kidding! I don't even know what that means!"

Answer: South Park

"That's My Bush!" aired from April 4 to May 23, 2001. Trey Parker and Matt Stone were the creators and Timothy Bottoms portrayed President George W. Bush. The episodes were in order:
"An Aborted Dinner Date"
"A Poorly Executed Plan"
"Eenie, Meenie, Miney, MURDER!"
"S.D.I. - Aye-AYE!"
"The First Lady's Persqueeter"
"Mom 'E' D.E.A. Arrest"
"Trapped in a Small Environment"
and
"Fare Thee Welfare"

Answer: John Kerry

John Kerry, a senator from Massachusetts, rode in on a Harley Davidson that he borrowed. He was decked out in a leather jacket, blue jeans and a denim shirt. The interview itself though with Jay Leno wasn't filled with comic bits that much; it was mostly a political discussion. Kerry criticized Bush's handling of the Iraq War, and said afterward that he had a good time on the TV show.

He joked (half-joked?) "If I wasn't in public life, I would have kept the bike."