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"Weird Al" Effect: Difference between revisions
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Related to the concept of a [[Forgotten Trope]], except it is not tropes but works or personalities that have been forgotten. Could be an extreme expression of [[Rule of Funny]] (The music may not have had much staying power, but at least the parody is funny). See also [[Adaptation Displacement]], [[Popcultural Osmosis]], [[Older Than They Think]], [[Coconut Effect]], [[Covered Up]] and [[Revival by Commercialization]].
{{examples}}▼
Not to be confused with some people's tendency to attribute all parody songs to "Weird Al", which is [[Misattributed Song]].
▲{{examples}}
== Trope Namer ==
* For those wondering how people could make such a mistake with [["Weird Al" Yankovic]], he ''does'' also have a lot of original humorous songs. Most of us older folks know him better for his parodies, but he's spanned a few generations since his Dr. Demento days and is [http://www.weirdal.com/ still going strong]. Moreover, knowing '''that''' a song is a parody and knowing the song it parodies are two different things.
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*** Stop Forwarding That Crap To Me - [[Jim Steinman]]
*** Velvet Elvis - early [[The Police|Police]]
*** You Make Me - [[Oingo Boingo]]
*** Don't Download This Song - Charity appeal songs generally
* Referenced in [[The Flash Tub]] [http://www.somethingawful.com/d/flash-tub/gamescott-reviews-cartoon.php Gamescott Review] (which is a parody of both 90's internet videos and internet game reviews) in the end credits, crediting Papa Roach's "Last Resort" to "Weird Al", since Weird Al did cover it in one of his medleys.
* A commercial for pepperoni featured a parody song of "My Sharona"... except that the performer was using an accordion and one-man-band drum, making it clear it was actually a parody of Weird Al's parody of "My Sharona", "My Bologna"!
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== Advertising ==
* The Energizer Bunny, [[Mascot]] for the Energizer brand of batteries for over 20 years, was originally a parody of an ad campaign by rival Duracell, in which a small and cute bunny with a small drum powered by their battery would last longer than one powered by their chief rival - which, back then, was Everlast (Energizer's ad was that its bunny, like its battery, was too large and impressive for Duracell's ad). In part due to its effectiveness as a campaign and in part due to Duracell not keeping up with the trademarks, the original bunny is all but forgotten in North America (although still active in other continents).
* In the early 1980s, there was a series of TV spots for [[wikipedia:Calvin Klein (company)|Calvin Klein Jeans]] in which several top-flight fashion models of the day (notably [[Brooke Shields]] and [[Andie MacDowell]]) would declare that "nothing comes between me and my Calvins", which turned out to be a parody of a series of TV spots for [[wikipedia:Pan American World Airways|Pan Am]] in the 1970s, in which several famous people would declare that "nothing beats Pan Am's experience".
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
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* ''[[Ouran High School Host Club]]'' appears to be headed this way, with more people watching the show having not seen any of the shojo it parodies. The surface humor and well-developed characters serve to attract people who don't get the joke.
▲== [[Comics]] ==
* The pirates in ''[[Asterix]]'' comics are close parodies (allowing for the difference in art style) of Captain Barbe-Rouge (Redbeard) and his crew in the comic of the same name. Originally published in the same magazine as ''Asterix'', ''Barbe-Rouge'' is almost unknown outside France. You have a shot at recognizing them if you've seen one of the 90s cartoon shows, but the parody characters have such a distinct look that it's not obvious.
** Furthermore the pirates, on yet another occasion when their ship is smashed by Asterix and Co, end up in a sequence with them parodying the now somewhat obscure painting "The Raft of the Medusa". Said painting is actually pretty famous in France, and a mainstay of school textbooks on French painting. The parody has untranslatable French puns involving the idiomatic meaning of "médusé" (stupefied). The [[Woolseyism|English translation]] has them say "We've been framed, by [[Stealth Pun|Jericho]]!" <ref>The painting is by Théodore Géricault, whose last name is pronounced close to "Jericho" in French.</ref>
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* ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]'' was originally an underground comic strip parody of [[Daredevil]]; the most obvious aspects being the Turtles' master, Splinter (as opposed to Daredevil's "Stick") and their enemies, the Foot Clan (Daredevil's were the Hand). I don't even need to say which one is better known.
** Matt Murdock was hit in the eyes with chemicals in his origin story, while rescuing a blind man from an oncoming truck. In the Ninja Turtles version, the chemical canister bounced off his head, ''specifically'' "near his eyes", and a nearby boy's pet turtles took the hit instead. In some versions the second boy resembles Matt Murdock more, but originally it was a boy named Chester.
** Also, the Turtles names. Most modern junior high students know enough about art to recognize the artists whom [[Leonardo da Vinci|Leonardo]] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michelangelo Michelangelo] are named after, but most need a search engine to find out who the historic [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donatello Donatello] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael Raphael] were.
* Even with proper annotation you'll be hard pressed to identify most of the references to Victorian literature in ''[[The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen]]'', with bonus points if you're even aware of the original work.
** To understand how far Alan Moore goes, there are references to ''Victorian porn novels that have been out of print for decades'', and visual reference gags can number in the triple figures ''on one page''. It gets even worse once he gets into the twentieth century.
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* Seeing as ''[[Viz]]'' started as a parody of British children's comics and now the genre it parodies is all but dead with the exception of [[The Beano]] and [[The Dandy (comics)|The Dandy]] and Viz even outsells those two now.
▲== [[Fanfic]] ==
* ''[[My Immortal]]'' achieved much of its infamy for taking ''[[Harry Potter]]'' fanfic clichés to absurd levels. However, ''My Immortal'' long ago transcended the ''Harry Potter'' fandom and will thus likely by many people's first encounter with ''Potter'' fanfiction. Some even [[Watch It for the Meme|Read It For The Meme]] while being unfamiliar with the actual ''Potter'' series. If you're a ''Potter'' fan, you may find it amusing to see [[Draco in Leather Pants]] taken to the point where Draco is an ultra-sensitive wussy. If not, he's just some guy acting stupid. It's also likely many readers, especially outside the United States, will be unfamiliar with the goth/prep sterotypes which the story runs on. For example, Hot Topic is a U.S. retail chain with a [[The Man Is Sticking It to the Man]] reputation, making Tara's view of it as some edgy, non-mainstream place hilarious. But only if you get the reference.
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** The page quote for [[Retired Gunfighter]] is taken from a ''[[Twilight Zone]]'' episode. Said quote will be immediately familiar to any fan of Brooks' movie, as the Waco Kid's quote about his past is a very closely drawn parody of the (forgotten) original.
** An even more well-known example from ''Blazing Saddles'': "We don't need no steenkin' badges!" More people know the ''Blazing Saddles'' version of this quote than know the original from ''[[The Treasure of the Sierra Madre]]''.
*** Or even Weird Al's version from [[UHF (film)|UHF]]: "Badgers? Badgers? We don't need no steenkin' badgers!"
* The titular character of ''[[Dr. Strangelove]]'' (played by Peter Sellers) was a memorable wheelchair-bound (usually) ex-Nazi scientist with an [[Evil Hand]]. Most people who see the movie nowadays don't realize that the ex-Nazi scientist was a stock character in the 50's.
** Dr. Everett Scott from ''[[The Rocky Horror Picture Show]]'' is also a parody of this archetype, and being wheelchair-bound is a definite homage to Kubrick.
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** Actually, when Elizabeth Taylor first walks into the house, and her character spontaneously says "What a dump," her delivery is just like Bette Davis's. It's only after she asks her husband where the line is from, and repeats it several times that she exaggerates it. She escalates both her nagging and her delivery, and in fact, isn't really attempting to accurately imitate Bette Davis in the first place.
*** Taylor and Richard Burton have a long and meaningless discussion where they try to remember the name of the movie. They remember every other detail, including plot minutiae, the stars, Bette Davis and Joseph Cotten, quotes from the movie, but not the title. They even remember that it was a Warner Bros. picture. ''[[Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?]]'' is also a Warner Bros. film.
* Many of the movies and cultural references mentioned in ''[[The Rocky Horror Picture Show]]''{{'}}s opening song "Science Fiction Double Feature" (as well as references throughout) are completely lost on the younger fans of
* ''[[Full Metal Jacket]]'': Mention the name "Gomer Pyle" to someone. A younger person will probably think of " {{spoiler|the fat Marine recruit who blows his brains out}}" instead of "the gas station worker from ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'' who got a spin off sitcom where he was in the Marines" (Which is where the name came from and why Gunny Hartman gives it to him).
* How many people remember "I Can't Turn You Loose" or the ''[[Peter Gunn]]'' Theme as anything other than the wacky chase music and walking around music (respectively) from ''[[The Blues Brothers]]''?
** Moreover, people tend to recognize the latter from the classic arcade game ''[[Spy Hunter]]'' then from the show itself.
*** Sopranos fans recognize it as a song mixed with "Every Breath You Take".
* The dialog between Han and Leia in
{{quote|"Scarlett, you do like me, don't you?"
That was more like what she was expecting.
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"That's not true! I like nice men--men you can depend on to always be gentlemanly." }}
* Probably more people nowadays recognize "Heeeeeere's Johnny!" as something [[Jack Nicholson]] said in ''[[The Shining]]'' than as Ed McMahon's introduction of Johnny Carson on ''[[The Tonight Show]]''.
* The call and response "You remind me of the babe (what babe?)" isn't originally from ''[[Labyrinth]]'', but instead references the 1947 [[Cary Grant]]-starring
* ''[[The Goonies]]'': People are more likely to assume "Hey you guys!" is from this film rather than ''[[The Electric Company]]''.
* Say "It's showtime!" to anyone born before 1960 and that person is likely to think of Roy Scheider in ''[[All That Jazz]]''. But say the same line to anyone born after 1960 and ''that'' person will probably think of [[Michael Keaton]] in ''[[Beetlejuice]]''.
** Unless he's an anime fan, in which case he'll think of ''[[The Big O]]''.
* [[I Can See My House From Here]] most likely didn't originate from [[Hot Shots]]. But, good luck finding someone who knows where it '''did''' come from...
* The afterburners on the airship from ''[[The Mummy Trilogy|The Mummy Returns]]'' are a [[Call Back]] to the turbos from ''[[Airwolf]]'', which in turn are a [[Call Back]] to
* Everybody knows [[Die Hard|John McClane]]'s catchphrase "
== [[Literature]] ==
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** Similarly, more people recognize Mike Myers' "Simon" sketches than "Simon in the Land of Drawings", the British series that it spoofed.
*** Not if they are old enough to have watched [[Captain Kangaroo]] as kids.
** The [https://web.archive.org/web/20100704183644/http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/prose-and-cons/278825
* ''[[Horatio Hornblower]]'' had an obvious influence on ''[[Star Trek]]'' frequently acknowledged by people who worked on the series. Now ''Trek'' is arguably better known. [[Star Trek: The Original Series|The original series]] was also influenced by the TV Westerns of its day, but now more people have heard of ''Star Trek'' than ''[[Gunsmoke]]''. [[Gene Roddenberry]] specially referenced the highly successful show ''[[Wagon Train]]'' in his original pitch and as a result the eight-season show is probably best known for being mentioned in Roddenberry's famous pitch "[[Wagon Train to the Stars]]".
* ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' popularized many old and obscure Sci-Fi movies simply because the old and obscure movies were the cheapest to get the rights to.
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** "Mine eyes have seen the glory of the burning of the school..." AKA "Glory, Glory, Hallelujah/Teacher hit me with a ruler..."; every UGA fan has this stuck in their heads.
** Plus the Engineers drinking song, "Lady Godiva". Many Engineering students only know this song with the words: "We are, we are, we are, we are, we are the engineers. We can, we can, we can, we can demolish forty beers!".
* [[National Lampoon]]'s ''[[Deteriorata]]'' is obviously a parody of ''[[w:Desiderata|Desiderata]]'', but the style is a parody of a hit record recording of ''Desiderata'' made by Les Crane in 1971, including the [[narm]]y "You are a child of the universe" chorus.
* Allan Sherman's breakout hit ''Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh!'' is more well-known than its source, Amilcare Ponchielli's ''Dance of the Hours''.
** And nowadays the K9 Advantix commercial that uses a lyrically changed version of the song is probably more well-known to younger audiences.
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* In the UK at least, novelty group The Wurzels' song about their brand new combine harvester is better-known than the original, "Brand New Key" by Melanie.
** If they see ''[[Boogie Nights]]'', they'll never forget the original.
* "I'm Looking Over My Dead Dog Rover", in [[Memetic Mutation|its various and sundry forms]] (almost all of which claim to be first), started out as a parody of "[http://popup.lala.com/popup/432627047858788390 I'm Looking Over a Four-Leaf-Clover]{{Dead link}}".
** "[[Bugs Bunny|I'm looking over a three-leaf clover]], [[Incredibly Lame Pun|that I overlooked be-threeeeee...]]"
** Not as much to residents to Philadelphia, who would recognize it as "the song that the Mummers use all the time."
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* When hearing Bill Haley and the Comets music to "Rock Around the Clock," do you expect to hear: "Sunday, Monday, [[Happy Days]]"?
* There was once a Russian musical piece called "Days of our life". They had to stop playing it because whenever they did, ''everyone was laughing at remembering the parody''. Today, the music is recognizable, and most people at least remember the first lines of the parody ("''A large crocodile lady was walking on the streets''").
* In Brazil, a certain child's song ("Criança feliz, feliz a cantar. Alegre a embalar seu sonho infantil."<ref>Happy child, happy and singing. Joyful in going through its juvenile dream.</ref>) is overshadowed by its parody version
* Even though he had a long solo career, wrote ''entire albums'' for Frank Sinatra and The 4 Seasons, and became a prolific ad jingle writer, Jake Holmes is mainly remembered now because [[Led Zeppelin]] (ahem) [[Plagiarism|"borrowed"]] his song "Dazed and Confused".
* Fans of [[The Dead Milkmen]] might think the joke of "Watching Scotty Die" is just the fact that it's [[Lyrical Dissonance|a peaceful-sounding]], country-esque ballad about a young boy dying from exposure to poisonous chemicals... In fact it's a parody of the significantly [[Tastes Like Diabetes|sappier]] "Watching Scotty Grow", a Bobby Goldsboro hit released more than 15 years earlier.
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== [[Professional Wrestling]] ==
* [[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWE]] fans in the 1990s probably thought that the "monster" wrestlers ([[Mick Foley|Mankind]], [[Kane (wrestling)|Kane]], and so forth) were highly original gimmicks. They might be disappointed to learn that Gorilla Monsoon had been wrestling under the same basic shtick more than a generation earlier.
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== [[Web Comics]] ==
* ''[[Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff]]'' was originally created by [[Andrew Hussie]] to parody [[Sturgeon's Law|utterly derivative]] concept art posted for an upcoming [[Two Gamers on a Couch]] comic called ''[http://forums.penny-arcade.com/showthread.php?t=85435 Higher Technology]''. Bro and Jeff's designs were taken straight from ''HT'', as were the giant eyes and "porkchop" mouths, and the [[Memetic Mutation|famous line]] "[[Rouge Angles of Satin|AHAHAHAHAHA just HOW high do you have to BE]] [[Stylistic Suck|just to DO something like that........]]" [https://web.archive.org/web/20110707181320/http://forums.penny-arcade.com/showthread.php?t=85435
* [http://www.lukesurl.com/archives/3141 This] strip of ''Luke Surl Comics'' says it all.
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*** To be fair, [[Tom and Jerry|at least one]] of the cartoons that they parodied is still very well known.
** ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' themselves started out as a parody/response to Disney's ''[[Silly Symphonies]]''. Nowadays, ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' are considered perhaps the most famous cartoon shorts of time.
** Few modern viewers would even know about ''[[The Scarlet Pimpernel]]'' were it not for the Daffy Duck short ''[[The Scarlet Pumpernickel]]''.
* ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]'', ''[[Futurama]]'', ''[[Family Guy]]'', ''[[American Dad]]'', ''[[South Park]]'', ''[[Robot Chicken]]'', [[DreamWorks]],... all suffer from this. All these series parody many aspects of pop culture like TV series, film, politics,... that are misinterpreted or not recognized by everyone, especially people who are younger than the creators of these shows.
* This is simultaneously Parodied and [[Lampshaded]] in ''[[Animaniacs]]'' when the Warners meet Rasputin. They toss him into a dentist's chair and announce that they need to give him some "Anastasia." A girl in a tiara and a poofy dress then hit Rasputin on the head with a hammer. Dot [[Breaking the Fourth Wall|turns to the camera]] and deadpans, "Obscure joke. Talk to your parents." This episode predates ''[[Anastasia|the Don Bluth movie]]'' by several years, so the joke may have lost its obscurity on some kids after the movie came out.
* The process is still going on—consider all of the increasingly dated early '90s references in ''[[Tiny Toon Adventures]]''.
* Likewise, ''Steamboat Willie'', well-remembered as the first talking [[Classic Disney Shorts|Mickey Mouse]] cartoon, is a loose parody of a contemporary Buster Keaton feature, ''[[Steamboat Bill, Jr.]]''
** Cartoons like ''Mickey's Gala Premiere,'' ''Mickey's Polo Team,'' and the [[Donald Duck]] cartoon ''The Autograph Hound'' were full to the brim with famous celebrities of the time.
** The black and white Mickey cartoon ''The Klondike Kid'' is a mash-up of ''The Shooting of Dan McGrew'' and ''[[Charlie Chaplin|The Gold Rush]]''.
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*** Another musical relation in ''The Simpsons'' shows Homer singing modified lyrics to [[Covered Up|Frank Sinatra's]] "It Was A Very Good Year" (when he was remembering the time he bought his first six-pack at a liquor store with an obviously fake ID -- [[Fridge Logic|It's best not to think about how he got away with it]]). Anyone thinking of the song nowadays is likely to think of Homer's rendition.
* [[Richard Nixon]] is nowadays better remembered by children as the head in a jar in Futurama than an actual US president from the 1960s-1970s.
* ''[[The Grim Adventures of Billy
** He's also drawn to look like an older version of Blacula, complete with early 70's sideburns and mustache.
** Its parody of the [[H.P. Lovecraft]] mythos, "The Crank Call of Cthulhu", must go over the heads of most young viewers as well.
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* The McIntosh apple [[Older Than They Think|dates back to 1811]]. No, not an [[Apple Macintosh]], a McIntosh apple. [[Department of Redundancy Department|Apple named the computer after a type of apple.]] They could have named it [[What Could Have Been|Golden Delicious, or Granny Smith]].
* Chucky, from [[Child's Play (film)|Childs Play]] was based on a real toy called "My Buddy", which was only slightly less creepy.
* The "Bazooka"
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Audience Reactions]]
[[Category:Parody Tropes]]
[[Category:"Weird Al" Effect]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weird Al Effect}}
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