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Four Horsemen of the Apopcalypse – Pop Culture References in The Colbert Report: December 13-16, 2010

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!)

Mele Kalikimaka Zoners! I apologize for the delay, but some things are worth waiting for, and this week’s Apopcolypse is no exception. The memories the shows generated this past week were enough to warm the cockles of my heart with visions of Christmas past, when all I wanted was a 3600 baud modem and a BBS account. It also left me singing everything from the amended version of “Send in the Clowns” to pretty much every song from Sweeney Todd and selected hits of Paul Simon, so indeed, it *was* the greatest gift! What were some of the gifts you received from the past week’s shows?

Monday: The Word: Swift Payment

I even found some great preperation tips from a guy named Jon Swift. I think he was a famous cook back in England.

Jonathan Swift wrote A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People In Ireland from Being a Burden to Their Parents or Country, and for Making Them Beneficial to the Public or A Modest Proposal for short. The essay, written and published anonymously by Jonathan Swift in 1729, suggested that the poor might ease their economic burden by selling their children as food for the rich. It was intended to mock the attitutdes the rich Brits had towards the Irish poor at the time. You can find it in it’s entirety here.

Patti Smith

You can buy it at the Barnes and Noble where CBGB used to be.

CBGB Facade, Manhattan, NY

CBGB & OMFUG (Country, Blue Grass and Blues and Other Music For Uplifting Gormandizers) was a music club in Manhattan in New York City, New York. Although intended for a variety of musical genres, it became a forum for the American punk movement of the 70s and 80s. It closed after a rental dispute arose and the property owner decided not to renew the club’s leaseafter 33 years of business. Patti Smith actually played the final concert at CBGB on October 15th, 2006.

Tuesday: Prop 8 Challenge – David Boies

And this time, the Gayvolution was televised

This is a reference to “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,” a poem and song written by Gil Scott-Heron. It is noted for having extensive political, popular culture and advertising references, and the song was recently listed as one of the Top 20 Political songs by New Statesman. There is also documentary that shares the same name filmed during 2002, when Hugo Chavez was removed and quickly returned to power in Venezuela.

Stephen Sondheim

You have, perhaps an ancestor, a movie actress, named Claudette Colbert –
- I have not talked to Aunt Claudette in years.

Claudette Colbert was born Emilie Claudette Chauchoin in Saint-Mande, France. Her family came to New York City when she was just 3 years old. She began her acting career on Broadway in 1923, and adopted Claudette Colbert as her stage name. She went on to become a successful actress and comedienne, and in 1935, she was awarded an Academy Award for her role in It Happened One Night. Although she is not related to Stephen, they seem to share similar comic sensibilities. Perhaps there’s something to the name! Just take a look.

Wednesday: World War 3.0 – Omar Wasow

I hear “denial of service” and I think of a black person at Dennys.

In 1993, a lawsuit was filed against Denny’s for racial bias after thousands of blacks and African Americans reported experiencing poor service or denial of service by its employees. In one highly publicized instance, six secret service agents assigned to President Clinton’s detail were refused service during their lunch hour in an Annapolis, Maryland location. Denny’s later agreed to pay $54 million to settle the suits.

For some reason my Prodigy account isn’t opening

9600 BPS!

For those of us who remember having 1200 bps modems, Prodigy was one of the few online options in the late 1980s and early 1990s. By then, it was second only to CompuServe in number of subscribers. In 1994, first of the early-generation dialup services to offer full access to the World Wide Web, as well was user made web pages. In 2000, Southwestern Bell Communications (SBC) acquired Prodigy Internet/Broadband, and later rebranded themselves as AT&T after buying them out in 2006. If you try to log on to Prodigy today, it redirects you to the AT&T home page.

Thursday Jesus is a Liberal Democrat

We only have to love those who deserve it

The Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37), explains that people should love everyone and not only those who deserve love or those that “should be loved”.

Amy Sedaris

You stuff it right in here and…you use a drum stick. I believe this was originally used by Rush

Rush is a Canadian progressive rock band formed in Ontario in 1969, by Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and John Rutsey. Rutsey was later replaced by Neil Peart to form the current trio. Since its debut album in 1974, the band experimented with complex and eclectic compositions and musical stylings, and addressed social, humanitarian and environmental issues in their songs. Rush earned a group of loyal loathers and lovers throughout the years. There’s also a rumor going around that girls don’t like Rush, but I’m here to dispel that! If you get a chance, check out the documentary Rush:Beyond The Lighted Stage.