Da Doo Run Run

THE LEFT HAS DEFINITELY
LOST ITS CREATIVE EDGE

Back in the 1960s and ’70s it was often said that the Left had all the talent. This was especially so when it came to political satire in mainstream entertainment.

Consider George Carlin, the Smothers Brothers, or the first couple of seasons on “Saturday Night Live.” Even “That Was the Week that Was,” a largely forgotten but highly influential weekly comedic review of the news. (Premiered in England and recreated on American TV, it introduced David Frost to the U.S. audience.)

Things are different now. You have only to compare the ideological drivel perpetrated by current late-night hosts with the monologues and sketches of Johnny Carson, who reigned as King of Late Night for 30 years.

Carson’s barbs were gentle, and not every one hit its mark. But what he delivered was topical humor with a liberal slant. And it worked.

These days, TV personalities like Stephen Colbert and his legion of wannabe imitators have pretty much given up on comedy in favor of leftist sermonizing. The funniest liberal on TV these days is Bill Maher, who’s visibly in the process of becoming conservative.

I thought about all this recently when I came across a Facebook post attempting to satirize Florida Governor and would-be presidential candidate Ron DeSantis. It linked to a video that was apparently from the Disney organization.

All the world knows that DeSantis has been at war with Disney, with the aim of restricting the company’s control over the administrative fiefdom that contains the Disney World theme park and other corporate properties.

The video’s producers appropriated the classic doo-wop number, “Da Doo Run Run” written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector. A top-five hit for the girl group, The Crystals, in 1963, the song remains popular. It’s a natural for satirizing DeSantis — the line “Da Doo Run Run” converting readily into “Da Doo Ron Ron.”

Disney, of course, has the talent pool and production resources needed to put out this sort of lampoon. And indeed, it’s very slickly done. But the lyrical content raises serious questions about creative competence within the House of Mouse.

Whether by intention or under heavy corporate pressure, the lyric writers took the low road. And so we are treated to hearing how DeSantis is…

“scared of Trump, you nasty grump”

…and other puerile complaints. This is accented by endless repetitions of…

“You moron, Ron, Ron, you moron, Ron.”

A descriptive paragraph accompanying the video lays out the perspective behind this tacky approach…

“The DeSpicable, DeRanged and DeLuded Ron DeSatan wants to turn the rest of the country into… FLORIDA. As it turns out, vast majorities of humans really DON’T want their wombs, their love lives, their children, their reading material and/or their most-beloved corporations flattened under his trigger-happy thumb. Enjoy watching some of your favorite Disney characters telling this Eager MisLeader how they REALLY feel about his presidential run!”

The song parody reflects these infantile sentiments precisely. It scores 100 on lefty talking points, zero on wit. Watch it for yourself. You’ll see what I mean.

Now, it’s perfectly acceptable to satirize a major political figure. At least it is for the time being (that may change if the Soros cabal succeeds in pulling off another implausible Democrat election win). Likewise, it’s equally legitimate to defend such a political figure.

So, I set my hand to the task. Imagine the following words of my own sung to the tune of “Da Doo Run Run”…

They hate how we admire you
For the things you’ve done
They do, Ron, Ron, Ron
They do, Ron, Ron
How you’ve defended freedom
In the Florida sun
It’s true, Ron, Ron, Ron
It’s true, Ron, Ron
They hate the things you’ve done
Down in the Florida sun
And the support you’ve won
They do, Ron, Ron, Ron
They do, Ron, Ron

That was my first go-’round. It was all very gentle (in a Johnny Carson sorta way). But the more I thought about “You Moron, Ron, Ron,” the more annoyed I became. So I wrote…

The faction that’s been blasting you
Is out of touch
It’s true, Ron, Ron, Ron
It’s true, Ron, Ron
And really it’s America
They hate so much
They do, Ron, Ron, Ron
They do, Ron, Ron
They bitch an’ moan and such
Hating our land so much
They’re really out of touch
No clue, Ron, Ron, Ron
No clue, Ron, Ron

By now, my dander was up (maybe political satire isn’t the best thing for my blood pressure). I really got into it…

The anger of the people’s
What they dread the most
They do, Ron, Ron, Ron
They do, Ron, Ron
They fear they could be hanging
From the highest post
It’s true, Ron, Ron, Ron
It’s true, Ron, Ron
They dread the people most
Gath’ring around that post
And fear they’ll soon be toast
They do, Ron, Ron, Ron
They do, Ron, Ron

My annoyance had fairly well eased by then, and it occurred to me that — fair being fair — I really ought to turn a satirical eye on DeSantis himself. After all, he’s a politician, and his campaign maneuverings are not above criticism. Thus, I wrote…

This feud you’ve got with Donald
Is a tragedy
Boo-hoo, Ron, Ron, Ron
Boo-hoo, Ron, Ron
The only way to win’s
Through strength and unity
It’s true, Ron, Ron, Ron
It’s true, Ron, Ron
Plainly, you both agree
This anyone can see
Please show some unity
Please do, Ron, Ron, Ron
Please do, Ron, Ron

And then, to drive my point home I came up with…

We understand that Donald
Can be hard to take
We do, Ron, Ron, Ron
We do, Ron, Ron
But going up against him
Is a big mistake
It’s true, Ron, Ron, Ron
It’s true, Ron, Ron
Don’t make a big mistake
Though he is hard to take
So, for the country’s sake
Come through, Ron, Ron, Ron
Come through, Ron, Ron

My own presidential preferences are beside the point of all this. And my attempt at satire certainly isn’t flawless.

But this exercise does highlight the deterioration of comedy in our current debased cultural atmosphere. I think you’ll agree that I’ve at least come up with something wittier than, “You moron, Ron, Ron” (try it yourself; maybe your version will be more clever).

Yet, that anti-DeSantis video typifies the sort of ideological malarkey we get from the Left these days. Low-road approaches tend to dominate.

I had occasion to watch a Disney film the other night. It was “Christopher Robin,” an adaptation of A.A. Milne’s famous “Winnie the Pooh” characters and scenario so charmingly Disneyfied years ago.

The plot owes much to “Mary Poppins.” A harried, distracted businessman rediscovers what’s really important in life: his family. But then, such borrowing is common in the movies.

The businessman in this film is a grownup Christopher Robin who reconnects magically with Pooh and his other fantasy childhood friends from the Hundred Acre Wood. In contrast to Disney’s recent string of ideological flops, this a delightful movie, well written and visually appealing, with both real and imaginary characters interwoven flawlessly.

Disney at its best.

Interestingly enough, it was produced as recently as 2018. Which offers a flicker of hope that some (nonpolitical) creative renewal may yet be possible within the House of Mouse.

Meanwhile, we’ll comfort ourselves with the realization that the Left no longer has all the talent. That’s at least somewhat consoling, with 2024 on the horizon.

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The Left displays its lack of real creativity all the time online. Here’s a meme I’m sure somebody thought was positively brilliant…

 

And if they thought that was good, this little swipe at Republicans must have been considered absolutely inspired…

 

Of course, religion is always a favorite target of the Left. Here’s a two-for-one shot at the Catholic Church. It covers both abortion and the abuse scandal…

 

Speaking of hating the country, this meme breaks some kind of record. Count the number of false premises it offers while glorifying what may be the world’s most Orwellian nation…

 

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Here’s the anti-DeSantis parody of “Da Doo Run Run”…