Tom Lehrer: George Murphy (concert live) (1965)

[@Sammie1053]

The Ronald Reagan part is gold given that this was long before he came anywhere near the Oval Office

[@TheHutchy01]

Sammie1053 Especially considering Reagan as a concept seemed to amuse the audience the most

[@jpdemer5]

He was running for CA governor at the time. People thought that was a joke, at the time. Sadly, a large fraction of the voters can't tell a celebrity from the character he plays on screen.

[@rogerschwartz9961]

I listened to him while serving in the radioactive reserve.

[@z.m.stewart1996]

"to...Ronald Reagan?" Buddy, you have no idea.

[@thomasoconnor]

Ronald Reagan was once rejected from the role of president for not having the look of a president

[@AshdenMurphy]

I wonder what he thought when Reagan won

[@Dan4CW]

It is funny when this song was written in 1965 no-one then visualized that Reagan would go on to become governor of California and then President.

[@TH-nf1eo]

Betcha didn’t know: Helen Gahagan was grandmother to actor Illeana Douglas.

[@richardcleveland8549]

I didn't . . . but Ms. Douglas probably didn't like George Murphy either!

[@TheHutchy01]

Gahagan, Murphy, and Reagan may have seemed absurd but there is another celebrity turned politician who is so ridiculous I don't think even Mr. Lehrer could satirise him.

[@jmwoods190]

@TheHutchy01 We know(and I'm sure Mr. Lehrer knows it too well, he's still alive in his 90s), and you're probably right. That said, I hope Mr. Lehrer(or somebody at his caliber) comes up with something that targets the cronies of that celebrity-turned politician for claiming that they are doing good for the people. I know Mr. Lehrer once said that real evil can't be satirized, as with the aforementioned politician, but the absurd ways he and his cronies justify their atrocities may become a source for ridicule and satire? Perhaps the prophets(I mean the televangelists) can be a a good place to start, since they appear to be(at least to gullible people) thinking that they are doing good with their quackery. Just my 2 cents here, or as they know it in the UK 1-&-11/20-pence, as of today's exchange rate(get the reference?)

[@brunhilda180]

There's no reason to satirize today's politicians, they're all jokes.

[@CA-ee1et]

Wow, what an original comment.

[@Ellipsis115]

0:21 When I was a kid I didn't understand what a senator was. Now I do understand but I still don't get the joke?

[@flicky1991]

It's explained in the description of the video. Bobby Kennedy was from Massachusetts but became a senator in New York, just because there weren't any seats available in his home state.

[@etanaedelman9011]

Christ it just occurred to me that Tom Lehrer has lived through both the Reagan and Trump administrations. No wonder he just kind of packed it in and decided reality was satirical enough.

[@michaelmackay5540]

He said that he retired from show business after Henry Kissinger won the Nobel Peace Prize, because that made him realize irony was dead.

[@jayveerisdabest7500]

He was born during the Coolidge administration

[@653j521]

What is the reference to three Senators?

[@pcno2832]

I think it was about RFK getting elected from NY, even though he was from MA.

[@marymelarl6641]

@@pcno2832 you are correct

[@libertariantranslator1929]

Brilliant. Mathematics would never have gotten popular without him. ☮

[@jmwoods190]

Who’s ready to write the parody lyrics in dedication of Caitlin Jenner & Kanye West? I know I am, and I hope Mr. Lehrer, even though rotting well at the age of 93, would do so too! 😝

[@richardcleveland8549]

Mmmmmmmmmm . . . SOME things (which includes people) are soooooooo far beyond satirizing that it's the equivalent of gilding the lily . . . Jenner and West lead the list (along with the REST of the karTRASHians).

[@Languslangus]

☑

[@johntheobald5242]

the 3 Senators is a Kennedy reference and btw, the imported item is "brass arrows" not whatever the made up word above is...

[@Pathicuss]

Thanks for explaining the 3 Senators joke. Bracero is a real word however. As per google's definition: Bracero, noun "a Mexican labourer allowed into the United States for a limited time as a seasonal agricultural worker."

[@suzannelopez8822]

Braceros. Noun. Spanish. A Mexican seasonal agricultural worker admitted to the U.S. for a limited time. “Even the Pharaohs, had to import Hebrew braceros.” Brass arrows. Geez....

[@robertbishop9267]

I see I've been beaten to the correction. OK. First, thank you very much for supplying this absolute Gem. Trivia facts: Bracero, derives from "brazo" meaning arm. The literal translation would be a word we don't have in English: Armer. Not Armor. The transliteral understanding being they are hired for what they can do with their arms. Another example of this sort of root word turning into a function is Sombra. It means shade, like under a tree, from the sun. Sombrero means shader, a thing that casts shade. Of course, in English that is a hat. That one is more directly on the nose. In Spanish if a word ends in "ero" (masculine) or "era" (feminine) it is, with great frequency, a noun, with such a derivative root. How does "La Sombra" (feminine) turn into "El sombrero" (masculine)? How the hell should I know. It's a mystery.

[@NoNameAtAll2]

I don't get the "Kennedy reference"

[@thiagodeandrade7081]

No. Braceros. Mexican laborers.

[@boris2421]

President trump version?

[@thrupert]

MEME

[@roys8870]

Tom Lehrer would never have imagined at that time that America would eventually have for President someone who can really sing and dance, Barrack Hussein Obama.

[@the_judge9771]

He was an Obama supporter.

[@roys8870]

I'm not sure if Tom Lehrer is sore that Donald Trump actually topped his previous attempts to prolong adolescence beyond previous limits. Donald Trump is one President that teenagers can actually relate to. He is fun! If a new batch of voters come of age in 2020 and actually votes, any current Democrat bet for 2020 will be in serious trouble.

[@mckavitt]

Roy S would, not will. From a well-meaning teacher.

[@roys8870]

Thanks.

[@Abril766tf]

@@roys8870 so how's trump 2020 going