| The art of parody is at least as old as Aristophanes, and probably much older. It is not to be confused with its sisters caricature, burlesque, or travesty. Great parodists who worked in the English language include Max Beerbohm, Wolcott Gibbs, Carolyn Wells, and Sean Kelly. Song parodists of distinction include Tony Scheuren, Philip Pope, and Christopher Guest. What parody is: Parody is an original composition in the style of an author, or a school, or a composer, or an artist--you name it--that exaggerates his or her (or its) distinctive characteristics in a satiric manner. (I can probably do better than this but this is the idea.) What parody is not: Parody is not new words set to an old tune, or an adaptation of an existing poem or short story to make fun of some current event. (These are burlesques.) Nor is it the Nutcracker in ragtime, Hamlet as a minstrel show, or the Iliad in doggerel (these are travesties.) A few of my favorite parodies: The Feast (Max Beerbohm's parody of Joseph Conrad) On the Sidewalk (John Updike's parody of Jack Kerouac) Death in the Rumble-Seat (Wolcott Gibbs' parody of Ernest Hemingway) Rupert the Resembler (Bret Harte's parody of Anthony Hope) Cui Bono? (James and Horace Smith's parody of Lord Byron) Good Times Roll (The Rutles' parody of The Beatles) Meaningless Songs (The HeeBee GeeBees' parody of the BeeGees) Southern California Brings Me Down (Tony Scheuren's parody of Neil Young) Death to a Salesman (Mel Brooks' parody of Arthur Miller) |
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