Sunday, July 28, 2013

Abou Ben Adhem



This was in the lineup to the tribute for Mel Smith but it is so funny to me I must single it out and I insist you regard it as funny too. The funniest thing you have ever seen, and I'll hound you until you agree.

The genius is that it is treated respectfully. They must have practiced so much together that it is just not funny to them anymore even when others are laughing.

Abou Ben Adhem by Leigh Hunt, Southgate London, his American parents moved there, Royalists during American War of Independence.

The poem is a childhood favorite for a lot of people. It speaks to them directly reaching to their innermost heart, or perhaps another similar internal organ near to the heart, but it gets them. It is an introductory poem, I think, a grade school thing like Kilmer's Trees.

Enis dimon an tediggle fromlip sumptums dundle flipstop tinlglesissising alog mu sandropid tinflapitots. Allegreis allendrum aninas flillanqueiry. Tef. Anigog algimeim antiququatex formanyde os otossustrelell.

6 comments:

edutcher said...

First Form we had that one.

Do they still teach poetry?

I mean the kind that doesn't start, "There was a girl from Nantucket"...

Evi L. Bloggerlady said...

That was very very funny.

deborah said...

Atkinson is a great comedian.

deborah said...

For some reason Atkinson reminded me of Tim Conway here, and I thought of this Mama's Family clip, though Conway isn't in it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZQxTtbNOzE

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I agree.

Sharc said...

Funny bit. The live audience laughter totally tramples Atkinson's lines, though.