What is the nadir of human popular culture?

Message Bookmarked
Bookmark Removed
This question came up at the weekend. The all-time record depth which pop culture has sunk to.

Our nomination was "Grease".

Tom, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I figured it was Mariah Carey's Heartbreaker video, either version. The first features TWO Mariahs (wrestling!), popcorn, a megaplex movie theatre, and Jerry O'Donnell. The second has Mariah in hot pants, washing Snoop Dogg's car for no reason. Either way, it's obviously the worst thing popular culture has ever produced.

I mean, at least Grease has songs like Greased Lightning, which has dirty lyrics.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Oh, I don't think you can define a nadir, because, well, pop culture just keeps sinking, doesn't it? I mean, every time I think that it's gone as far down as it possibly can, someone invents something like Popstars and it just sinks further into the muck.

Besides- Xanadu. Much worse than Grease.

masonic boom, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

"baby on board" signs. reminded of them because some people STILL HAVE THEM. the other day, i was behind a mini-van (of course) that had two, one in the two upper corners. the one on the left was faded, but the one on the right looked brand new (which begs the question...). was the new one a "replacement?" could they not "bear" to take the other one down? did they have another "child"? or what?

hey tom, are we supposed to pelt you with rocks for posting? or does that only apply to ilm? ;)

fred solinger, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I'm taking back my answer. The real nadir of human culture is Fred Solinger, for not knowing that Tom already answered that question, like, yesterday, stating that that rule somehow only applies to ILM. English bastard, making up slippy rules so that no one can pelt him with rocks.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

What were you excluding — or which regular posters were you gently discouraging — when you qualified the phrase "popular culture" with the word "human", Tom?

mark s, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Grease is great, Xanadu is pretty good too. Survivor, the Real World, Turbonegro, nu-metal - there's always something appealing to be found in the nadir of human popular culture. Unless you're talking about Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?.

Otis Wheeler, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I'd say Scary Movie...you can call it Pomo or whatever, but it's just purile, and why oh why have they made a sequeal?? Oh...and sing along sound of music...

james e l, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

We Got It Maid, Small Wonder, and She's The Sheriff.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Who Wants to Be a Millionare? is fantastic.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

'Starlight Express' or James Cameron's 'Titanic'.

Andrew L, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

footloose...the musical.

fred solinger, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Saturday Night Fever, the musical.

Musicals in general, really.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

A Knight's Tale too, because it has Heath frickin' Ledger AND Robbie Williams/Queen collaborations AND an endorsement of Thatcherism. A fatal combination.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Grease?? yr having a laff, it's FANTASTIC, shurely, from a far far more innocent time (ie the late 70s). What about candle in the wind 97??? or just the death of diana as a whole, that was far more scary than a few beegee songs and ONJ in leather and spandex, wouldn't you say?

carsmilesteve, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

There was that one game show for teens called "Peer Pressure", where they gave these poor kids hypothetical "do you?/don't you?" situations and you were penalized for not choosing to do what the majority of the audience chose. The real nadir was the disclaimer that came before each show: "Peer Pressure" satisfies the FCC's requirements for "educational programming". Otherwise I vote for Tom Hanks, well, after "The Money Pit" and "The Burbs" anyway.

Kris, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Have you seen You've Got Mail? It's totally all filmed in my neighborhood, I'm ashamed to say. The store that Meg Ryan owns is in actuality an antiques store called something like "Cheese and Antiques", which makes so little sense as to be disturbing. It's right around the corner from L'Occitane. And the grocery store they shop in is Fairway, even though they give it a different name in the movie.

I was so horrified when I saw it - I was like, hell no, get out of my neighborhood, Tom Hanks. Tom Hanks, pff.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

No I have not fucking seen "You've Got Mail".

Kris, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

kris is like that guy in the truck commercial. "have you seen you've got mail? well, this guy hasn't."

fred solinger, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Human Popular Culture: was going to be "human culture" but I figured there might be worse things in all human culture than "Grease". Possibly not though.

Actually anything sold in a 'head shop' with a picture of an alien 'grey' on it is possibly worse than Grease.

Reasons for "Grease". i. it is awful. ii. it won't die. It's always on, live, somewhere in the world, it has spawned countless 'megamixes', it blights all weddings, and almost every time people on a sitcom are involved in a musical it's bloody Grease.

Tom, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I nominate Ray Winstone's new Holsten Pils ads. They do make me laugh like a camel, but not in the way they're supposed to.

Jack Seale, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Grease doesn't bother me much, except for the fact it was set in a high school and everyone involved was well into their 30's.

Tom, you've obviously never seen Small Wonder.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Surely anything with ANDROIDS in it is better than Grease?!?

Josh, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Josh, surely you can't be serious --- I mean, do you remember the theme song???? Oh, the humanity...

And no, I'm sorry, there is no good reason to bring an android on a show if it's an annoying little girl that doesn't get killed or deprogrammed.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Guy Ritchie. Unless he's really an android, of course.

Richard Tunnicliffe, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

On Saturday night (in the UK) BBC1 had almost a whole evening 'dedicated' to, and based around "the phenomenon of" Text Messaging on mobile (cell) phones. Fucking... WHY? Mercifully I only saw the final segment called 'The Joy of Text - X- Text' which was embarrassingly, agonisingly unfunny and jaw- droppingly banal. BBC1. Prime time. My TV license reminder came through today, I feel tempted to write 'FUCK OFF - YOU HAVE TO BE JOKING' on it and sending it back. Below-lowest common denominator, barrell scraping wankers.

DavidM, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Calm down, Kris, I'm not trying to offend you, I only saw You Got Mail myself because Stephanie wanted to watch it. TWICE IN A ROW. It's awful - surely it'll go down as ultimate proof that Tom Hanks is the most evil human being alive.

Though that might actually make him cool. I mean pure evil is awesome.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Big Brother.

Robin Carmody, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Also, I forgot another one (I'll be posting to this thread all day at this rate):

A soft porn movie on hbo a couple of years back that starred Neil Hannon, or at least his twin. How was it plausible that he would get so many women? Plus, who wants to see him get it on? Not me, thanks.

Talk about absolutely wretch inducing...

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

After reading that Bill Laswell thread in the other place, I am forced to offer up 'Rock School' for consideration. Fretless bass playing frenzies on BBC2 in the late 80s. It was horrible.

Richard Tunnicliffe, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Big Brother? I say thee nay! Big Brother = ace. WHERE IS THE BIG BROTHER THREAD DG?

Incidentally I am very pleased that Survivor with its stupidly complex rules and ridiculous D&D style 'tribal names' and nastily healthy of-the-fittest undertones has been a massive flop here whereas Big Brother which is people sitting on their arses has once again been a huge hit.

Tom, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Just remembered something even worse: Baxendale.

Richard Tunnicliffe, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

That really says something about England, really. I hate both shows, for the record, and it gets my goat that that obnoxious Colleen girl from Survivor is now like some sort of a celebrity. She's wretched.

I wish the french version of Big Brother would get shown here. It's called Loft Story and it's just people having sex. The decency leages in France (!?!??!?!!?!?!??!?!) picket the headquarters because it's so disgusting, apparently.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I cant believe no-one's mentioned 'Gerry Springer' yet. The new season is pretty harrowing as they film the couple arguing in their own house before they film the show. Maybe I shouldnt be giving out about it though as it might be completely fake.

Michael, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Yup, Big Brother >> Survivor. Even if I do want to destroy the Big Brother contestants for being either really annoying or really dull, I can at least watch it for half an hour without wanting to throttle the person responsible for bringing it to our screens.

Richard Tunnicliffe, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Oh, Jerry is so totally staged, especially those candid "on the scene" videos --- at least the bits of it that end up on Talk Soup.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Ally -- which fashion magazine has Colleen on the cover this month? She looked really odd - they must have really airbrushed or photoshopped her face cause she looked like an alien.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I saw Loft Story when I was in France and it was exactly like Big Brother (i.e. sexless) EXCEPT for one vital thing. It had proper French Intellectuals coming on afterwards to RANT about the dreadful things the show was doing to French culture. "C'est un bordello! Ils sont prostitue par le media!" (nb: pardon my awful French but you get the gist). This contest of pomp was way more entertaining than "Jean- Edouard" dressing up as "un lapin" to complete le task.

Tom, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Nah, Jerry Springer's talk show is not the worst thing he's done. I mean, watching strange Americans shout at each other can be pretty entertaining if the only alternative is The Weakest Link. No, his real crime is presenting that awful Millionaire rip-off Greed. It manages to combine the possibility of winning vast sums with a complete lack of any tension owing to its weird team format. And it goes on forever.

Richard Tunnicliffe, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Nicole: That's Mademoiselle. I have it sitting on my table, which is why Colleen popped into my head. She's dreadful. Have you seen the new issue of Elle with Mariah on the cover? Talk about looking TORN UP...she could've used some Photoshopping.

Tom: You've completely ruined my illusion of French tv, you know.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I saw Elle yesterday and I wondered why the editor hasn't been fired - - how could they go to press with a cover that bad? The makeup and hair are so so terrible.

Re: Greed. It's been cancelled in the States, so perhaps your version soon will be as well.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

She just looks so....awful and horrible and harsh and beaten.

I recommend now that Mariah is the nadir of pop culture.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Good call, esp. when her movie comes out.

Nicole, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

And can I use this opportunity to say that I used to know a chap called Nadir? I'm not making this up, I always felt awful for him, like, gee, guess your parents musta wanted you real bad.

Ally, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

OK, right, on the news (UK only? maybe?), when they're interviewing some semi- nobody, they set up the clip by first showing him/her walking PAST the camera in the most EXTREMELY STUPID WAY. It's like
(a) staged after the interview ie faked so an affront to the whole ethos of news haha
(b) staged BADLY, since semi-nobody is not an actor/professional, so looks like a cretinous wooden robot trying to hard to be "ordinary and not on/aware of camera"
(c) completely silly, since if NOT staged, semi-nobody would of course walk TOWARDS the camera, not past it. Even Noddy Shots get not my goat as badly as this wack convention.

mark s, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

You're ACTUALLY bitching about Grease? Oh, there are SO many bigger fish to fry.

Larry King. Out of This World (a syndicated sitcom that makes Small Wonder look like Alan Moore's Watchmen - starring Joe Alasky!!). Pat Boone's heavy metal album. Crocodile Dundee III (whatever the hell the sub-title was). The Macarena (speaking of wedding blights). Dennis Rodman. John Carpenter's Vampires. Barney. Jesse "The Body" Ventura as a US Governor AND commentator for the XFL. Milli Vanilli. Geri Halliwell's version of "It's Raining Men". Michael Stipe "announcing" that he's gay. Vanilla Ice as a nu-metal kingpin. Courtney Love, whenever she opens her mouth outside of a movie set. Marlon Brando talking about those gosh-darn pesky Jews. Carl Lewis "singing" the national anthem. Music journalists going on MTV to declare what makes a "rock star" and a "player" and a "baller" and a "playa hater". Hell - music journalists on television in toto.

Ooooo! MTV making TV shows about itself!

I'm sorry - what was the question?

PS - Here's an entry from X-Entertainment.com - the Corey Haim Video Diary. Funny stuff.

David Raposa, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

What about Grease 2?

BrianR, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

The nadir of pop music was Fat Les. The nadir of popular culture are ALL THOSE FUCKING GARDENING AND DIY SHOWS THAT ARE ON ALL THE FUCKING TIME AND WON'T GO AWAY! AAAAAARGH!

DG, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Everyone's missing the obvious here: "College Girls Gone Wild!"

Not because it's sexist and demeaning towards women, but because the entire concept of selling these videos is predicated on the assumption that people are desperate to buy a videotape that contains nothing but an hour of WOMEN PULLING UP THEIR SHIRTS! How SCANDALOUS! Like you can't see that on Cinemax (aka Skin- emax) or Showtime (aka Ho-time) after 11 PM every night. Or hell, get even raunchier stuff on pay-per-view. Or from the video store.

It's completely asinine, although not as asinine as the extreme wrestling/topless women with awful implants videos they hawk REALLY late at night...

Dan Perry, Monday, 11 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Let's see - Indecent Proposal was pretty bad; the Olympic Game sucks so bad; JOhn gray's "literary" success bites my balls in places I didn't even know I had balls, and Marlboro pulling Marlboro 16 mgs from Australian shelves, and trying to persuade me that 12mg were standard reds now - fuck, the anger.

Geoff, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I'm amazed that no-one's actually mentioned "Titanic" yet. NOTHING is worse than titanic. NOTHING, right? x0x0

Norman Fay, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

True, even Roman 'sporting' events and the Nuremberg Rally were outdone by the Titanic. And Grease. Sort of.

ms, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Hey Maryann, maybe they meant ancient Grease!

duane z., Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

"[Such and such] bites my balls in places I didn't even know I had balls" has got to be the best line ever.

Ally, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

SOme of you are on the right track but some of you are confusing useless programming with trash-beauty. (Grease 2)

-- Mike Hanley, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

"Mystery weekends"

tarden, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

My roommate ordered College Girls Gone Wild. So I guess you could say that 69 4th Ave. has contributed materially to the fall of western civilization. We watched it the other night and yes - it's nothing but girls pulling up their shirts in New Orleans. It's kind of the whole history of entertainment exploitation encapsulated into the crudest form imaginable. CGGW trivia bit: when you order the tape, they apparently ask you if you'd like *2* volumes for just $10 more - Lydia said yes - so the package comes, it's 1 videotape, but on the side it says "2 volume set"....

Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Dude, the words "2 Volume Set" are clearly worth $10, hello.

I always wanted to be in that video to embarass my family, but I'm not a college coed so I'm being unfairly discriminated against.

Ally, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

"I.M. Me."

thank you all for playing.

maura, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

ANOTHER Brittany? Oh, shit. (If you squint, she sorta looks like Charlotte Church. Don't know if that's a good thing.)

As far as "Girls Gone Wild" - I saw this newspiece on the BurlyBear site that exposed the TRUTH behind this series. When the more level-headed female spring- breakees decline such an enticing offer, the filmmakers just bring in some adult-film stars to do the deeds. Of course, it seems that drunk women are often just as willing to shake their non-wire-bound money makers.

So, yeah, Ally - you CAN be in these videos, without having to pay any tuition or fees! Oh, glorious day! (I'm gonna get me some of those chicken cutlets / bra inserts & run down to Daytona Beach RIGHT NOW! Penis be damned. Woo!)

Side-bar: Would the nadir of canine popular culture be the Dogs Playing Poker portrait, or that gawd-awful interpretation of Jingle Bells?

David Raposa, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Okay, Maura wins. Cloyingly awful teen pop stars are worse than being charged to see something you can see for free at any decent party.

Dan Perry, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I like Grease, don't have a problem with that. From my POV there are many, many awful pop culture things. Ones which seem to impinge on me a lot right now:

1. rubbish 'Reality TV' (?) - it seems to be on every night. I'd be ashamed to watch that.

2. The British tabloid press - always awful (in my lifetimes, at least) and awful still; among the worst public influences on British politics and culture.

3. All those crappy records that people on ILM - some of whom I consider delightful people - are always going on about.

the pinefox, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Brittney's is just a novelty record, no more evil than 'Hello, this is Joni'. The real cultural criminal is hidden further down the piece: "David Silver, director of the Resource Center for Cyberculture Studies at the University of Washington, likens abbreviated instant messaging talk to slang derived from hip-hop music."

mark s, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Is it the same David Silver from 90210? That's what I want to know.

Nicole, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

The resource centre for Cyberculture Studies? That su - OH NO! POS!

Tom, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

(Tom's incoherent cry left many of them completely pinefoxed.)

mark s, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Pinefox is spot on with the first two.

I consider the issue of the (then still Daily) Mirror for Monday 24th June 1996, which attempted to turn the England-Germany Euro 96 semi- final into a replay of the Second World War, to be the nadir of England per se, the lowest point in its stupid tendency to draw bridges, define itself by what it is not, fight battles that finished decades ago, etc., etc. Everyone involved should be (and indeed many, I think, now are) ashamed of themselves.

Also the time last year when the Sunday Mirror attacked England followers for holding a warlike, combative mentality while in the same paper referring to the England team as "Our Boys" and Germany as "the old enemy". Indeed, they got noted right-wing hack Quentin Letts to rant on about England "thugs" thinking in terms of "The Great Escape" while alluding to that very film in the headline of their report of the match. Hold me back.

Robin Carmody, Tuesday, 12 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

http://au.music.yahoo.com/music/20010613/undercovernews/992409530- 1678729228.html Now this is worrying; as is my lack of html.

Geoff, Wednesday, 13 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Jimmy Buffett.

Michael Daddino, Thursday, 14 June 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

three weeks pass...
This new American show, 'Temptation Island' I think it's called. I've never seen it, but the concept alone is enough to make me throw up. Couples are carted off to some island, separated and encouraged to be unfaithful to their partners for the nation's entertainment. How wonderful.

Ally C, Saturday, 7 July 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

This week's hi-point - 2 (TWO) (in a row) "hot" new shows 1st time ever on NZ TV last night - "Something for the Weekend" & "Yanky Panky". I won't bother describing them 'cause most of yez here are British & will already be familiar w/ them from wayback but...holy smokin' CRAP. They were both grossly GROSS without even ever being funny or interesting or ANYTHING.

duane, Sunday, 8 July 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Dude, I thought that it's all been up since about mid-weimar or so.

Sterling Clover, Sunday, 8 July 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

My sister is totally addicted to Temptation Island. I daren't watch, as we are alike in obsessive bents, culture-wise. It is certainly better than Survivor (UK version). But it is no Big Brother (UK version). One couple was kicked off TE because it transpired they ha lied abt a. their age, b. being married, and c. having kids SITTING AT HOME WATCHING THEIR MUM AND DAD COP OFF WITH OTHER PRIME-TIME TANNING-PARLOUR SLUTZ. The producers sat them down and gave them a proper moral talking to. It was PRICELESS. As you can see, I already lied abt not watching it. My name is mark s and I am an Evil-TV-aholic.

mark s, Sunday, 8 July 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

No, it is Rosie O'Donnel being nominated for a Tony. Or a bad Mel Brooks film getting so much buzz they can sell 170 dollar tickets . Or Lea Thompson as Sally Bowles in Cabaret. Fuck:any broadway show . Suessical the Musical, Annie Get Your Gun with Reba MacIntyre. What happened , Broadway was supposed to be a shining beacon for all of us in the hinterlands . Now it just seems like cheap stunts .

anthony, Sunday, 8 July 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

thirteen years pass...

giving attn to cc article

thoughts you made second posts about (darraghmac), Monday, 27 April 2015 23:08 (eight years ago) link

cl pst fll unstd

NI, Tuesday, 28 April 2015 04:03 (eight years ago) link

nrdbl abbrvns & opq alusns

Giant Purple Wakerobin (Aimless), Tuesday, 28 April 2015 04:10 (eight years ago) link

kdsflljgk;dklm

Treeship, Tuesday, 28 April 2015 04:14 (eight years ago) link

it actually probably was Temptation Island

Bookmark No Bingus Permalink (Sufjan Grafton), Tuesday, 28 April 2015 04:40 (eight years ago) link

who hates grease?

but then again, who really cares? I don’t. (dog latin), Tuesday, 28 April 2015 09:05 (eight years ago) link

13 years ago was an innocent time.

the joke should be over once the kid is eaten. (chap), Tuesday, 28 April 2015 09:11 (eight years ago) link

I'm going to nominate You, Me and Dupree

but then again, who really cares? I don’t. (dog latin), Tuesday, 28 April 2015 09:41 (eight years ago) link


You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.