Happy Days for Obama

Long-time readers of this blog will remember that, during the writer’s strike I wound up chatting with Ron Howard for about an hour while walking the picket line (even gave him a newly minted galley copy of “Tigerheart.”) We didn’t discuss politics all that much, although he did make “Frost/Nixon” sound interesting (and the trailer I just saw the other day made it a must-see if it wasn’t already). Recently he put up an ad for Obama featuring him, Andy Griffith and a convention friend of the David family, Henry Winkler, that I thought was an absolute must-see. So see it.

PAD

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

74 comments on “Happy Days for Obama

  1. Gee, Roger, I would have thought that you would love the comedy stylings of Joe McCain. It seems like something that a comedy group would see gold in him. He’s maybe the best candidate’s brother since Billy for making fun of.

  2. It was amusing, but I actually found it more thought-provoking, as to the calm and intelligent discourse from these people who have seen and done so much over their careers. Very interesting stuff.

  3. Posted by Peter David

    Story shmory: The likelihood that she carved the B in her face herself was made evident by the fact that it was backwards, indicating that she was looking in a mirror when she did it

    The latest version of the story i’ve seen is that she admits it was a false report, but that she was driving her car and saw herself in the mirror with the “B” on her cheek and realised she must have done it without realising so she made up the story to cover up…

    Personally, looking at the pic of her with an apparent black eye as well as the “B”, i wonder if perhaps she was trying to cover up an assault by a boyfriend or something…

    Posted by Jerry Chandler

    Oh, and I would just like to say that as a former police dispatcher, a trainer of just about a generation of dispatchers in my department and someone who still has to help out in both of those capacities from time to time now; John McCain’s brother is really holding a special place in my heart right now.

    Yeah – read that. Kate works in the Hall County IMS Department, and her office is at the 911 center; i’ll ask her to see if the 911 people theree have any rthoughts on the matter … that are fit to publish, anyway.

    I forget where i found it, but at least one story included links to .wav files of the actual calls. If you haven’t heard ’em but would like to, let me know; i downloded them, but i haven’t listened to them, myself, yet.

    I likewise forget where i hit it – random link-following around the ‘net will do that to you – but Sarah Plin has made remarks that some People Of Ill Will have interpreted as saying that bombing abortion clinics might be illegal and should be discouraged, but that she really wouldn’t call it “terrorism”…

    (Speaking of “random link-clicking”, today’s “C’est la vie” strip has something to say about that, and this old “xkcd” panel is great, too…)

  4. Posted by Peter David

    Story shmory: The likelihood that she carved the B in her face herself was made evident by the fact that it was backwards, indicating that she was looking in a mirror when she did it

    The latest version of the story i’ve seen is that she admits it was a false report, but that she was driving her car and saw herself in the mirror with the “B” on her cheek and realised she must have done it without realising so she made up the story to cover up…

    Personally, looking at the pic of her with an apparent black eye as well as the “B”, i wonder if perhaps she was trying to cover up an assault by a boyfriend or something…

    Posted by Jerry Chandler

    Oh, and I would just like to say that as a former police dispatcher, a trainer of just about a generation of dispatchers in my department and someone who still has to help out in both of those capacities from time to time now; John McCain’s brother is really holding a special place in my heart right now.

    Yeah – read that. Kate works in the Hall County IMS Department, and her office is at the 911 center; i’ll ask her to see if the 911 people theree have any rthoughts on the matter … that are fit to publish, anyway.

    I forget where i found it, but at least one story included links to .wav files of the actual calls. If you haven’t heard ’em but would like to, let me know; i downloded them, but i haven’t listened to them, myself, yet.

    I likewise forget where i hit it – random link-following around the ‘net will do that to you – but Sarah Plin has made remarks that some People Of Ill Will have interpreted as saying that bombing abortion clinics might be illegal and should be discouraged, but that she really wouldn’t call it “terrorism”…

    (Speaking of “random link-clicking”, today’s “C’est la vie” strip has something to say about that, and this old “xkcd” panel is great, too…)

  5. Heard ’em. Even heard the call where they called him back to let him know that abuse of the system was a crime, got his voicemail, left the message and then dumb@$$ called them back to read them the riot act.

    The DNC mailed Joe McCain his paycheck this morning.

    Say… What the hëll is it about guys named “Joe” in this election anyhow???

  6. Heard ’em. Even heard the call where they called him back to let him know that abuse of the system was a crime, got his voicemail, left the message and then dumb@$$ called them back to read them the riot act.

    The DNC mailed Joe McCain his paycheck this morning.

    Say… What the hëll is it about guys named “Joe” in this election anyhow???

  7. Does the Joe McCain 911 call remind anyone else of the episode of THE SIMPSONS where Homer mused, “Distracted…does anyone ever get ‘tracted?’ Let me call the suicide hotline and ask”?

  8. Does the Joe McCain 911 call remind anyone else of the episode of THE SIMPSONS where Homer mused, “Distracted…does anyone ever get ‘tracted?’ Let me call the suicide hotline and ask”?

  9. The Joe McCain 911 call mainly makes me want to follow Joe around with a microphone. He’s made enough blunders that I’m beginning to think he’s hilarious all the time.

  10. The Joe McCain 911 call mainly makes me want to follow Joe around with a microphone. He’s made enough blunders that I’m beginning to think he’s hilarious all the time.

  11. yes the Howard clip was slightly amusing. Too bad they really don’t know what they’re voting for, and that they didn’t really give the public any information other than we need change. Duh! McCain isn’t any better when it comes right down to it. So what are our choices this year? DUMB AND DUMBER. The only question is Which is Which??

  12. yes the Howard clip was slightly amusing. Too bad they really don’t know what they’re voting for, and that they didn’t really give the public any information other than we need change. Duh! McCain isn’t any better when it comes right down to it. So what are our choices this year? DUMB AND DUMBER. The only question is Which is Which??

  13. Gee, Roger, I would have thought that you would love the comedy stylings of Joe McCain. It seems like something that a comedy group would see gold in him.

    Well, there are some things that are too ridiculous for even comedy audiences to accept…

    (I mean, the Bush Administration gave us oodles of material, but these guys make Cheney et al the height of sobriety and gravity…)

  14. @C.Schwehr:

    I guess you haven’t been paying much attention to what both candidates have actually been saying. In between attacking Obama, McCain has been repeating (to a lesser degree) the same plans that Obama has been saying all along, except with any details on how he will accomplish it. Only recently has McCain been saying “We need to go in a new direction” and bashing the Bush Administration’s performance, while Obama has been touting “Change” since the beginning and criticizing those responsible for our current situation. McCain played follow the leader with Bush’s policies, and touted unregulated legislation that has had a direct effect on Wallstreet and their mess. McCain has been oblivious for too long and is out of touch with reality, let alone the needs of the voters…

    Don’t be a TOOL! WAKE UP! PAY ATTENTION! Dig a bit deeper for the TRUTH, and vote for the candidate that you decide will be able to lead with a clear head instead of just reacting.

    O’Bama indeed! 😉

  15. @C.Schwehr:

    I guess you haven’t been paying much attention to what both candidates have actually been saying. In between attacking Obama, McCain has been repeating (to a lesser degree) the same plans that Obama has been saying all along, except with any details on how he will accomplish it. Only recently has McCain been saying “We need to go in a new direction” and bashing the Bush Administration’s performance, while Obama has been touting “Change” since the beginning and criticizing those responsible for our current situation. McCain played follow the leader with Bush’s policies, and touted unregulated legislation that has had a direct effect on Wallstreet and their mess. McCain has been oblivious for too long and is out of touch with reality, let alone the needs of the voters…

    Don’t be a TOOL! WAKE UP! PAY ATTENTION! Dig a bit deeper for the TRUTH, and vote for the candidate that you decide will be able to lead with a clear head instead of just reacting.

    O’Bama indeed! 😉

  16. Steve: “Just another example of the naiveté of people, not only thinking that a fictional character is real but taking their advice.”

    I have yet to hear anyone fail to make the distinction between Ron Howard and the fictional characters he plays. Are you sure the problem isn’t simply that you’re full of yourself? Just checking.

    Jerry and Bill Mulligan: Normally, I am a strong proponent of punishing people harshly for falsely reporting a crime. In the case of the McCain volunteer, however, I believe this would be of little use. She seems emotionally disturbed to say the very least, and punishment has yet to prove any sort of deterrent to mental illness. Lock her up and ignore her problems, and I guarantee you we’ll see a repeat performance at the very least. I hope she is dealt with appropriately so as to minimize the danger to both herself and others; that could mean prison, hospitalization, or something else entirely.

    Also, I wish this story could be put to bed. I want Obama to win, but this girl’s madness is in no way a reflection on John McCain. The way it’s being reported, and the way some people are talking about it, however, you’d think McCain himself was pulling her strings.

    Joe McCain is an entirely different matter. He’s been campaigning for his brother, so he’s fair game.

    Jerry, in the interests of our friendship I have a confession to make. I’m the guy who used to call you incessantly when you were a dispatcher and ask if you had Prince Albert in a Can. I hope you can forgive me. It isn’t my fault. Society is to blame. I’ve suffered enough.

  17. Bill Myers, I agree with you on almost all points.

    There is one thing worth reporting on in this girl’s case, however. Not anything she did, but the McCain office in the area fed leading information to local news stations before the police even made a statement. They then denied doing so after the fact. They’re not as close to John McCain as Joe McCain is, but they are in full possession of their faculties and they deserve some flak.

  18. Bill Myers, I agree with you on almost all points.

    There is one thing worth reporting on in this girl’s case, however. Not anything she did, but the McCain office in the area fed leading information to local news stations before the police even made a statement. They then denied doing so after the fact. They’re not as close to John McCain as Joe McCain is, but they are in full possession of their faculties and they deserve some flak.

  19. Jason really covered my only point of response, Bill. As I said above, a lot of the most damaging quotes given to the press about the “assault” using some very race button pushing imagery apparently came from someone in the Pennsylvania campaign office. Now, to be as clear as glass here, that does not mean that John McCain was behind it by any means. Like I said, he can’t be too happy with them right now and he must be thrilled that she got outed before anyone on his staff made mention of her at a big stump stop. But the story should be looked at with the goal of getting the @$$e$ of everyone involved with this jammed up in some way, shape or form.

    But don’t blame McCain or base a vote on it by any means.

  20. Jason really covered my only point of response, Bill. As I said above, a lot of the most damaging quotes given to the press about the “assault” using some very race button pushing imagery apparently came from someone in the Pennsylvania campaign office. Now, to be as clear as glass here, that does not mean that John McCain was behind it by any means. Like I said, he can’t be too happy with them right now and he must be thrilled that she got outed before anyone on his staff made mention of her at a big stump stop. But the story should be looked at with the goal of getting the @$$e$ of everyone involved with this jammed up in some way, shape or form.

    But don’t blame McCain or base a vote on it by any means.

  21. >The possibility of an Obama presidency is really scaring these people.

    As cary as the idea of another four years of Shrub was to many people the last time around?

  22. >The possibility of an Obama presidency is really scaring these people.

    As cary as the idea of another four years of Shrub was to many people the last time around?

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