Talk:"Weird Al" Yankovic

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[edit] "Weird Al" WikiProject!

This article is within the scope of the "Weird Al" Wikiproject, an effort to improve Wikipedia's coverage of "Weird Al" Yankovic. If you would like to participate, you can visit the project page, where you can join the project and see a list of open tasks.

Daniel.M (talk) 22:35, 31 December 2007 (UTC)

Hi: Re: Dr D Superstar: The main article says it was Never used on the Dr Demento show. This is Incorrect. It was broadcast Twice in March & April 1976. If you look at the unreleased songs page on Jeff Morris's Demento Website, It states that the song was broadcast once on his Local KMET 4 Hour show, and Once on his Syndicated Show. Two days ago Dr Demento had a online chat, and I requested that he either replay the song, or to make the Original KMET show available for streaming listening via his DOC Online club. I also gave a list of about 6 other songs that have not been played since the late 70's on his Local KMET show, that never made it to his Syndicated show.

>Dr. D Superstar - parody of "Superstar" from Jesus Christ Superstar; excerpt first aired on KMET March 14, 1976; excerpt first aired nationally April 18, 1976 < - Michael

—Preceding unsigned comment added by Lestatkatt (talk • contribs) 19:12, 3 June 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Recent Concert Update

I was at Al's live performance Saturday June 9, 2007 in Lubbock, TX. The sequence of clothing removed for You're Pitiful was as follows:

  • 1)Solid Colored Jacket (brown or black)
  • 2)Gold or Silver sparkly shirt
  • 3)Black T-shirt White Text, "I'm With Stupid" with a white arrow downward
  • 4)White Shirt, Graphic of a Red Accordion
  • 5)Yellow Spongbob Squarepants T-shirt
  • 6)Pants removed to display PINK TUTU with white boxers/red hearts.

The encore began with the "cell phone song" from the AL TV ep with Michael Stipe of REM, during which Al asked the crowd to get out their cell phones. Of course the crowd obliged and backlit cell phones were swayed as cigarette lighters would have been in the past. After the cell phones song, Weird Al did in fact perform the entire Albuquerque track complete with extra doughnuts and pet names, as well as added comedy such as a moment when he asked the security officer at front center stage "what did I just say? You weren't paying attention were you! You've been sitting here all night and you haven't been paying me any attention!".

A small portion of the audience, myself included, were allowed to stand at the stage and sing alternate lines of Albuquerque with Al. I cannot name the song as I have never heard it before, but Al performed a decidedly more political song related to the current state of our country and the world.

"Al Money" was shot out of confetti canons during the song "I'll sue ya", "Al Money" (my term) are "monopoly money" style one hundred dollar bills bearing the S.O.L. images of Al front and back. I just have to say, I have been to over 35 major concerts of all sorts of rock and pop groups, and Weird Al Yankovic is the absolute best. My wife and I considered really hard if it was possible to abandon our current lives and follow Al's tour(s) for the rest of our lives. Wynn3th 06:19, 11 June 2007 (UTC)

According to this topic on the World of "Weird Al" Yankovic forums, that song you'd never heard was probably "Radio Radio" by Elvis Costello and was performed because of an unsalvageable mishap that happened during "Fat" and was unique to your show. Lucky devil! I guess it might be a reference to the Costello SNL incident? ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 07:02, 11 June 2007 (UTC)
You are absolutely correct Gromreaper, it was a mishap, and yes it is a reference to the SNL incident. I also edited my list of shirts because I had left off the first actual shirt. Wynn3th 03:07, 12 June 2007 (UTC)

Just to add here, according to the same WoWAY topic Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz responds that it was his "fault" that somehow the track for Amish Paradise and Fat were started at the same time and it was Al's decision to go to Radio Radio. Wynn3th 03:32, 13 June 2007 (UTC)

I'd like to add that at the August 5th concert that I attended in Raleigh NC, during the performance of "You're Pitiful", Al went through his sequence of shirts but instead of the "I'm With Stupid" shirt it was a pale yellow shirt that said "Atlantic Record Sucks" on it. The main page says he wore this shirt only in Australia but I can confirm that he's also using it in his American performances. Also during a performance of "Canadian Idiot", during the part of the song where you hear the "pre-emptive strike" bomb go off, red and white streamers shot off the stage and into the crowd. Yoduh99 16:09, 6 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Reference To Al In Doom 3

I did not see this coming, but it's a very pleasant suprise. I was wondering if we should add this to the article. It's a reference to a section of Albuquerque in one of the PDAs in Doom 3, specifically the "Torso Boy" part. I've included the text within the email on the PDA and some details about it.

Message 2 of Jack Smith's email inbox Title: Buddy system?! Sender: Ari Braden Date: 11/13/2145 Message: Jack- Please tell me the UAC Corporate is kidding. How the Hell is a buddy system going to do anything with the accident claims except double them? Tell me how a buddy system would have prevented Joe "TorsoBoy" Moss from having his arms and legs hacked off by the Albuquerck Capacitor? Maybe his buddy would have heard the thing growl and engage without power or a CRF module? Maybe his buddy's hair would have burst into flames instead and saved us the trouble of needing to run and find water to put him out.

-Tediz Slayer, 6:38AM PST, June 18th, 2007

That probably is a reference, but we would need a reputable source that says so too before adding it. Otherwise we'd have no bar for what is or isn't a notable reference or even a reference at all. --Maxamegalon2000 15:24, 18 June 2007 (UTC)
We seem to have a paradox here, since you can't always prove a negative... but I do have a two-fold question which might shed some light on the subject: 1) Have you ever heard the phrase "torso boy" before Al released "Albuquerque"? 2) Have you heard the phrase anywhere since "Albuquerque" in a context not referencing the song, directly or indirectly? I submit that the apparant non-existence of this phrase outside the Weird Al universe is, for the time being, sufficient enough evidence to suggest that the reference is intentional. And even if that alone weren't enough, the weapon name "Albuquerck Capacitor" pretty much clinches the deal. - Ugliness Man 18:30, 18 June 2007 (UTC)
Right, but if you have to submit that it's sufficient evidence, then you're performing original research. --Maxamegalon2000 18:59, 18 June 2007 (UTC)
The best we could say is which one came first. If they're related, we'll need an outside source confirming it. --Temporarily Insane (talk) 21:25, 19 June 2007 (UTC)
simple google search- "doom 3 torsoboy" and you get plenty of easter egg links connecting the reference to weird al. now which one you guys would take as "official" i dont know, but how could it not be obvious to anybody who reads that ingame e-mail as not being a reference to weird al's Albuquerque song. Yoduh99 16:17, 6 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Al's Songs Getting Tamers As Fame Grows

Should this be broguht up? On Al's First Albums, he sang songs about Eating Snot (Gotta Boogie), A man dying of Cancer in an Iron Lung,(Mr. Frump in the Iron Lung) A boy celebrating is birthday while his mom is eating dog food and his day is dying in the gutter as the world is ending (Happy Birthday), Christmas during a nuclear holocast (Christmas at Ground Zero), a movie where murderous attacks and decapatations happen to innocent underage girls(Nature Trail To Hell) now, it seems each album gets tamer and tamer. He sings about the Flintstones (Bedrock Anthem), watching too much tv (Can't Watch This, Isle Thing, Couch Potato, Cable Tv)and (numerous times) about being a nerd (White & Nerdy, Gee I'm A Nerd, All About The Pentiums,). We should put something in.--71.35.187.128 01:36, 1 July 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, only we shouldn't. Let's see now...He's got a quite un-subtle sexual song with "Wanna B Ur Lovr" and the graphic puns of "Party at the Leper Colony" on Poodle Hat, the violent "Weasel Stomping Day" and the obsessed stalker "Do I Creep You Out?" on Straight Outta Lynwood, violent "Albuquerque" and the cross-dressing trucker in "Truck Drivin' Song" on Running With Scissors. Al isn't getting more or less tame as he gets older. Oh, by the way, "Nature Trail to Hell" was about a "homicidal maniac who finds a cub scout group", not underage girls. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 02:05, 1 July 2007 (UTC)
don't forget "Jerry Springer" off of Running with Scissors. tame? i think not Yoduh99 16:25, 6 August 2007 (UTC)

I feel he has become more risque, if not just for the risque content of the rap songs he now parodies. Look at Wanna B Ur Lovr. That's enough evidence right there. Muldernscully 19:11, 7 August 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, I actually would group Wanna B and Close But No Cigar in the same category. LN3000 20:12, 7 August 2007 (UTC)
Agreed. One only has to see footage of Al performing "Wanna B Ur Lovr" in concert to dispel the idea of him getting "tamer". -- Pennyforth 06:30, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Pronunciation

Techo 10:32, 28 July 2007 (UTC) i know im right but my my friend thinks it his name can be called Weird al yankovicH, it is'nt, even he(al) has said weird al yankovic, you cant use a 'ch' sound at the end, cant you?

No, you can't. The official pronunciation is in the article. By the way, please read the notice at the top of this page. Only talk about the article.--Michael Greiner 13:13, 28 July 2007 (UTC)

Sorry, im new. Techo 14:05, 28 July 2007 (UTC)

Actually, your friend is right. You can use a 'ch' sound at the end, and in this case, you do. --[[User:#1Yanker]] 06:03, 31 July 2007 (UTC)
No, you can't. Weird Al and his parents and Nick's parents before him changed the pronunciation to /vɪk/ sound, instead of /vɪtʃ/ in order to make the name "sound more American". When talking about "Weird Al" Yankovic or his parents, the "ch" ending is wrong. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 02:07, 1 August 2007 (UTC)
The information which Gromreaper and Greiner have provided is correct, but sometimes people just don't get it, so I'll elaborate in an attempt to prevent further debate on the subject. For many names (given names and surnames), there are various pronounciations and spellings. My real last name is Clow. It rhymes with "flow", but there are some Clow families who pronounce it to rhyme with "plow". By the same token, there are some families whose surname is pronounced like mine, but spelled Cloe, Clowe or Clough. By the same token, there are some families with the surname Yankovic who use the pronounciation ending with the 'ch' sound. Weird Al's family, however, is not one of them. So while the 'ch' pronounciation is one valid pronounciation of the surname Yankovic, it is not a valid pronouniation when specifically referring to Weird Al. - Ugliness Man 02:23, 1 August 2007 (UTC)
To clarify even further(!), it is likely that Al's ancestors' surname back in Yugoslavia was spelled as Jankovic (or more correctly Janković, pronounced "YANK-o-vitch"). The spelling would have been changed to Yankovic at some point, maybe when the family moved to America, and the pronunication "Americanised". So even though the original Yugoslavian surname would be pronounced "Yankovitch", the correct pronunciation for this particular family is the way they say it, i.e. "Yankovik". 143.252.80.100 11:49, 3 September 2007 (UTC)
I have no problem with any mister Smith pronouncing his own name as "ThasdFV#*&!#48abcd" or even "Jesus Christ". Mister Smith in fact can pronounce every word the way he wishes. Nevertheless, I find the idea that one can define a proper pronounciation that everyone should use extremely funny. The name is obviously of Slavic (i.e. Serbian) origin. In any Slavic language, nevermind whether it is Serbian, Polish, Ukraininan, Russian, whatever, the case with any name similar to Xxxxvic is simple: pronouncing it as Xxxxvik is obviously Americanism, obviously 100% wrong, obviously hilarious, and according to some researchers, your IQ drops at least 5 points per every use.
So I will just go on, and ignore any and all Weird Al's directions for the "proper" pronounciation. --89.76.125.151 (talk) 22:38, 15 January 2008 (UTC)
Blame the International Phonetic Association. --Michael Greiner 02:26, 16 January 2008 (UTC)
It's HIS name. The way HE says it's pronounced IS the way it's pronounced. Names have different rules than words. Just like the names of cities. Just try going to Birmingham, Alabama and telling everyone who lives there that they pronounce the name of the city wrong! - Shubopshadangalang (talk) 02:40, 16 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] youtube

can any1 add his user in youtube ([ http://www.youtube.com/user/alyankovic here ])?. it has free (leagel) clips. --85.250.81.198 20:22, 29 July 2007 (UTC)

but this perticular case is leage (it's his music)
Do we have any proof that the account does in fact belong to Yankovic? I don't see any links to it at his website. --Maxamegalon2000 21:29, 29 July 2007 (UTC)
I think it is his real account, since Al himself has said "I uploaded the first take of the White & Nerdy video on YouTube" in some interviews, and his MySpace has a link to that "Take #1" video. I can't find a source for that at the moment, though. Here's one saying he uploaded the actual W&N video, though. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 03:11, 30 July 2007 (UTC)
I really see no reason to add it to the article, that's why I brought up the External link policy. It doesn't add anything to the article. Michael Greiner 03:11, 30 July 2007 (UTC)
I agree, frankly. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 03:38, 30 July 2007 (UTC)
We should, without a doubt, add this link. It violates none of the Wiki-laws, and adds alot to the article--#1Yanker 06:11, 31 July 2007 (UTC)
Sorry, but consensus is that adding the link would prove pointless. Having "Yankovic's YouTube Account" in the external links would add nothing informative or encyclopedia-worthy to the article. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 02:09, 1 August 2007 (UTC)

I sent an email to the weirdal.com webmaster (who, by the way, is also Al's drummer), and this is part of his response:

As for You Tube, Al has posted some videos, but I don't know his specific account name. Again, that's more of a medium for the public to post videos, rather than as an official place for Al to post videos (his label already provides a place for higher-quality videos anyway, and we DO link to that site.)

Obviously, me claiming to have recieved communication from Al's drummer is heresay, and not a verifiable citation, but in my mind, this settles the question. Yes, Al has posted videos, and yes it's likely that the "alyankovic" account is his, but this is not done on any "official" capacity, and therefore the article should not provide a link to it identifying it as official. - Ugliness Man 01:36, 8 August 2007 (UTC)

Well, through logic, we HAVE proved that Al DOES control that youtube account (and he has used it for official stuff). But as we also said, really it is not needed in the article. LN3000 01:48, 8 August 2007 (UTC)

Sorry, to bring this up again, but I thought the consensus here was not have the youtube account linked. This is in contrast to LN3000's recent addition of the profile. --Michael Greiner 03:07, 25 October 2007 (UTC)

I noticed that Yankovic linked to the profile on his blog. It also appears that 22 more videos have been added since this discussion, which I would say makes the link significantly more contributive than it was a month ago. --Maxamegalon2000 07:18, 25 October 2007 (UTC)
Yes, it was talked about above, (How is 2 people a consensus?!?) but things have changed in a month and a half. Al has added more of his videos to his account, (It now says 27.. go figure), and has posted the link in his blog, which gives it verifiability. I added it to the article, because I believe it is a worthy addition now. As mentioned on the wiki-policy page Mr. Greiner provided, there is no blanket ban on a youtube link, as long as it fits in with the guidelines for external links.. and from what I read, it seems that it is a no-brainer to include this now-official link. LN3000 10:40, 25 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Dead link

During several automated bot runs the following external link was found to be unavailable. Please check if the link is in fact down and fix or remove it in that case!

--EchoBot (Owner) 21:12, 4 August 2007 (UTC)

I just fixed these (and others) by adding a space in the referencing template. Instead of http://www.weirdal.com/catalog.htm|title="Weird Al" Yankovic: Catalog, I changed all the references to the http://www.weirdal.com/catalog.htm |title="Weird Al" Yankovic: Catalog format. I double-checked, and the links work either way, but after this bot found those supposedly broken links, I decided for simplicity's sake, addding the space works better in the long run. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 06:26, 5 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Bias

This may be a tad paranoid, but it seems to me that the section concerning the Atlantic Records dispute and the Wikipedia article has too much information about Wikipedia in it. Does it really matter that Wikipedia had to semi-protect the article? That does not seem very relavant to this article, talking about what wikipedia did. You may now proceed to disagree with me, as usual.

Sincerely, Magicallydajesus 03:31, 8 August 2007 (UTC)

I'm torn on that part of the article. While I think it's notable because the amount of "YOU SUCK"s on the page was massive and the fact it's still protected 11 months later, that part of the article might have put too much emphasis on the meta while also not skipping on the relevant details such as Al's uploading it to MySpace, and the "Atlantic Records sucks" shirt. Before I do my usual cut'n'slash approach to editing, I'd like to see what other contributers think. Because I'm that great a guy. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 12:19, 8 August 2007 (UTC)
I think we're OK. It's not original research or anything because it was discussed in the interview. I seem to recall the whole incident getting a lot of coverage, so if anything we could try to expand the rest of the section, I guess. --Maxamegalon2000 14:15, 8 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Diet for a New America

The official website has two different versions of the person who gave Al the book. The FAQ says that "a fan" gave him the book, while the Ask Al Archives say that it was "an old girlfriend". Which should we go with, in cases of conflicting information coming from an official source? As it stands now, the Ask Al reference conflicts the article, where it uses the "fan" version.

I'm leaning more towards the "old girlfriend", since that answer came from Al himself 3 years after the incident, while the FAQ answer (I believe) came from a few years after that. What do others think? ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 07:15, 10 August 2007 (UTC)

Since we only have one instance of each version, I would recommend we poke around various sites which have published interviews with him, and see if one or the other has been mentioned. For example, if he's said "an old girlfriend" 3 or 4 times, but "a fan" is only mentioned in the FAQ, then we have our answer. In the meantime, however, I'd tend to think that the version straight from him (old girlfriend) should take precident over the FAQ, since we don't know who wrote it (although it was likely written by Bermuda, who's responsible for about 90% of the content on the site). - Ugliness Man 08:26, 10 August 2007 (UTC)
The old girlfriend could be a fan. Maybe? --Michael Greiner 14:12, 10 August 2007 (UTC)
In an interview posted at Al-oholics Anonymous, Al states that she "started out as a fan and became a close friend". In that light, it may be correct to state that "a fan" gave him the book. BullWikiWinkle 15:15, 10 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Dead links

During several automated bot runs the following external link was found to be unavailable. Please check if the link is in fact down and fix or remove it in that case!

--HermesBot 23:09, 12 August 2007 (UTC)

During several automated bot runs the following external link was found to be unavailable. Please check if the link is in fact down and fix or remove it in that case!


The web page has been saved by the Internet Archive. Please consider linking to an appropriate archived version: [1]. --HermesBot 23:09, 12 August 2007 (UTC)

Fixed. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 04:35, 14 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Soundtrack Word

Should their be a section in the article for the extensive work Al has done scoring and/or contributing songs to movies like;

  • Transformers: the Movie
  • Johnny Dangerously
  • Uncle Buck
  • Spaceballs
  • UHF
  • Revenge of the Nerds (Opening Song)
  • Run, Ronnie, Run
  • The Spotted Owl of Westwood Junction II: Long-Necks Revenge
  • Poekemon: The Movie

According to IMDB there are like thirteen more, I won't list them here for obvious reasons, but should we but this in? --REELECTBUSH2008 —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 66.243.137.162 (talk) 15:47:58, August 19, 2007 (UTC)

I crossed out all the movies to which Al has NOT contributed. Additionally, the Pokemon movie that has "Polkamon" is Pokemon: The Movie 2000, not the first movie. IMDB lists High School High, Spy Hard, a Donald Duck TV special and a porn movie "Forbidden Fruit" in addition to the ones listed above, but I don't know how verifiable/notable those facts are. There's already a section talking about his songs used in movies and TV in the "Music" section. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 02:39, 20 August 2007 (UTC)
Actually, he does have a song in Run, Ronnie, Run called "I loathe L.A. If anyone is interested in adding some other films/movies he has had songs appear in, I've listed them below;
  • Canadian Bacon
  • Longfellow's Fine Dining
  • Safety Patrol
  • Square One T.V.
  • Tapeheads
  • The Drew Carey Show
  • Bikini Summer II
  • Up the Academy

He was also in a battle of the network stars type show, where he did a highwire balancing act. His image also appears on a mock-magazine cover called "Novelty Music Scene" --Braniac's Daughter 06:24 August 27, 2007 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.35.190.223 (talk) 01:26, August 28, 2007 (UTC)

List your sources. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 05:44, 28 August 2007 (UTC)
It wasn't a "battle", nor was it a highwire act, but he did do a swaypole routine on a show called Circus of the Stars [2] - Ugliness Man 09:26, 28 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Serbian- and Italian-American

By placing Weird Al in these categories, it's implying he was born in Serbia/Italy, or he is second generation. However, this is wrong as his grandparents are from Serbia and Italy, not his parents. His parents were American, as is he. If there were categories "Americans of Italian heritage" or "Americans of Serbian descent" then there'd be no problem placing Al in that category. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 06:34, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

So, by extension people like Rudy Giuliani and Gerard Way should not be in the Italian Americans category either, is that what you'r saying? We're not saying he is "Italian" or "Serbian". We're saying he's "Serbian-American" and "Italian-American". Oh and by extension just about all blacks should not be considered African-American, but rather Americans of African descent. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Gkmx (talk • contribs) 21:01, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

Removed personal attack. --Michael Greiner 21:21, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] A&E Bio

A&E will premiere the Weird Al Biography Special on Oct. 11th. StrongBad27 03:35, 3 September 2007 (UTC)

The Biography Channel will premiere the special. It should follow up on A&E sometime after that. User:Minnick27 13:52, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

It is premiering on the Biography Channel. weirdal.com: "A Biography special on Weird Al premieres Oct. 11 at 10 PM Eastern on The Biography Channel!" Socby19 04:17, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

I just watched that. I was surprised that Al's father was a war hero, although given his age, it's not ENTIRELY surprising (Silver Star, battle of the Bulge, WWII)...but interestingly, the article on FRANKIE Yankovic states that HE was in the same battle. Either someone got the Yankovic's confused, or we have one of the strangest coincidences in war. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.106.127.190 (talk) 07:19, 12 October 2007 (UTC)
Over a quarter of a million people fought in the Battle of the Bulge. --Michael Greiner 19:12, 12 October 2007 (UTC)
Very true....however, how many of them had the same name, and either were musical successes on the accordian or produced someone who was?? it's not so much about the names, it's the mutual connection with Al. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.106.127.190 (talk) 14:34, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Copyedit

This is a great article, but it most definitely needs a copyedit. - Ta bu shi da yu 05:49, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] FALSE ALLEGATION

(Section heading changed and section blanked per WP:BLP to prevent it showing up in search engines. Consult page history for details if needed.) Newyorkbrad 18:12, 25 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Good photo!

I approve of the new infobox photo highly. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 01:27, 29 September 2007 (UTC)

I changed because there were already 'live performance' pictures in the artilce, and this is the only 'full face/new look' photo on the page. Socby19 04:19, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Missing Songs

The following songs are not found anywhere in this, or any other article relating to Al

  • Ol' Smokie & Me
  • Faster Than Air
  • Don't Touch That (Can't Touch This Parody)
  • Kill The Krazy Frog
  • Gore, Gore, Gore (More, More, More Parody)
  • The Simpsons Sold Out
  • Where in The World is Lisa Loeb?
  • Ham On Rye (Live and Let Die Parody)
  • Rockin' The Ghetto (Rockin' The Suburbs parody)
  • Can't Look Down at My Feet (Lookin' Out My Backdoor Parody)
  • Jar-Jar At The Mall

User: Stevo666 10:40 29, September 2007 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.35.179.34 (talk) 05:41, 29 September 2007 (UTC)

You are, of course, correct. If you're trying to argue that they should be mentioned somewhere, have you first considered the possibility that these songs are not written or performed by Weird Al? --Maxamegalon2000 05:49, 29 September 2007 (UTC)
I don't think these are Al's songs. I doubt he would do a disco parody like, 10 years after the fact.
And he would not make fun of the simpsons... he was on that show. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Fernwood (talk • contribs) 18:28, 29 September 2007 (UTC)
None of these are Weird Al's. The real "Can't Touch This" parody is "I Can't Watch This" from Off the Deep End, and he has performed in the past a short parody of "Live and Let Die" called "Chicken Pot Pie". It's doubtful that he'd make multiple parodies for a particular song. --Temporarily Insane (talk) 22:58, 4 October 2007 (UTC)
These songs are all by Al, except "Kill The Krazy Frog" which is preformed by an artist named Steve Woodenboy Williams, and can be found on "WACKY WONDERS 4" on the LazerLight label, and "Where in the World is Lisa Loeb, which was preformed by her then husband, Dwezzil Zappa. This can be found on his download only album, "More Shampooz!!" USER: MopedArmy 06:00 4 October 2007 (UTC)
Um, no they aren't. See the Misattribution and imitators section of the article for more information on this type of thing. --Michael Greiner 02:21, 6 October 2007 (UTC)
Trust me, Michael. These are Al's except the ones I've listed. User: MopedArmy 9:11 October 2007 (UTC)
Trust us, Moped. These aren't Al's. However, if you can prove us wrong by finding them on Weird Al.com's Catalog page or Setlists page, I will believe you. Honestly. Just remember that P2P programs or your friend's burned CD-R are not reliable sources, people. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 05:08, 6 October 2007 (UTC)
Um... not to put you you down Moped, but my wife keeps a diary of every song Weird Al Yankovic has done for the last 30 years, and onl a few of these are in it. I don't know how to xerox a page to the interweb, but if someone can send me a textmail and show me how to up-print it to this screen page, I'll do it! By they way, I thik he did do Don't touch that, as it's on page 37 of her 1990's journal. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Fernwood (talk • contribs) 03:09, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
I really don't know how many times we have to say this, but your wife is not a reliable source. --Michael Greiner 03:54, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
It's as simple as this; most of these are not songs by Weird Al. They do not appear on his albums, or singles. The exceptions to this are the following songs, which are songs that Al has preformed on the Dr. Demento show, or have appeared on the good doctor's Basment Tapes;
  • Ham on Rye
  • Rockin' The Gheteto
  • Can't Touch That
If you have any questions about this, or about Al, ask me. I am very close to the artist, and have worked with him for the last seven years. User:Kincad@AL 03:04, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
Strange, you just edited from the same IP address as "Fernwood". If you're so close to the artist, why don't you talk to him about a photo instead of offering to sell us your wife's drawings? --Maxamegalon2000 22:24, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
pwn3d. Also, no edits were made with your 'signed' username. And, 'User' never shows up in a signature.Socby19 23:29, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
Just go away. The Demented Music Database's page for unreleased Al songs lists none of these. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 04:33, 8 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Article Cleanup

Although I am more of a lurker then an editor, I do feel that this article is not quite as good as it once wa, when it was chosen as an article of the day, and could definitely use some clean up. In particular, I think specific references to the current concert tour need to be trimmed or omitted completely as their long term significance is questionable at best. For example, the section mentioning Al being denied permission to record "You're Pitiful" is entirely too wordy in my opinion. Is it really that important to mention the situation being referenced in the "White and Nerdy" Video, or the thing with him wearing the different shirts at the concert? Also, is the Star Fund really worthy of it's own section? I'm not aware whether or not if the movement gained any sort of recognition outside of the Weird Al fans that supported it, but if the movement never really progressed beyond that realm, I think it too can be consolidated or deleted. Otherwise the article is still amongst the best on this site, but I really do feel it's getting too long. Since the current tour is getting close to wrapping up, I definitely think cutting out references to it that aren't of utmost significance is a good start. Does anyone else agree? Spman 06:39, 29 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Too much parody?

Hi,

I notice from the discussion main page that this article is considered a good example of how a Wikipedia entry should be. I Have no quarrel with the factual claims made in it, or the style of writing. But isn't it a bit er, long?!

My guess is that this entry is longer and more detailed than entries for some of the megastars parodied by Weird Al! That can't be right, so my query is about balance: if we get this much on Weird Al, what are going to get on those he targets? Or looking further afield, people who have made a bigger impact on comedy/entertainment than he has?

212.42.171.73 14:59, 3 October 2007 (UTC)

I don't think you could say that article length can be equated with significance necessarily. Anyway, Al has had a long and varied career, so there's a lot of information to cover, hence the article length. And, actually, Al's career has outlasted quite a few of the careers of the artists he has parodied, since you mentioned the comparison! And he's done a LOT more than just parody other artists anyway. :) --Shubopshadangalang 16:11, 3 October 2007 (UTC)

Plus, it probably helps that Weird Al's fans are in fact more White & Nerdy and "edit Wikipedia" more often than fans of his parody targets. Michael Jackson's article is longer than Al's, and RHCP's is rather close to it too. Since Al's so involved with the internet, it's really easy to find many reliable sources and facts about him, so of course the article's going to be massive with little effort. You do make a good point, though, and in the peer review there's talk of culling the "Touring", "Weird Al Star Fund" and "Misattribution" sections down a bit. And remember, quality over quantity! Sure, Greg Kihn may not have had as long a career as Al, but to get that to Featured Article status will require more effort but less writing, for example. Am I making any sense? It's 2:30am here and I've been working on an assignment all night so I may be coming off a little stupid and nonsensical. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 16:30, 3 October 2007 (UTC)
There are many longer articles. New Jersey and New York Yankees for instance. --Michael Greiner 19:47, 3 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Infobox photo

If I'm the only one then never mind, but I think the picture I uploaded is a significant improvement over the previous photo, with improved lighting, setting, and posture. I felt strongly enough about it to boldly replace the previous photo, but I wouldn't want to get in an edit war over it unless others agree. --Maxamegalon2000 04:23, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

I like the concert pic much more than the "Al in a hat" pic. The only element I dislike about the concert one is the microphone covering up half of his face. The rest of it is great and I prefer it over the older one. --Mtjaws 06:37, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

The concert photo is better. I see the point about it being a concert photo where there are other already. But the current photo is just awful in so many ways. Anyway, if you had to choose one to be up top, then it should be one that represents something about what he does; is he a "live stage performer" or a slouchy guy who stands on street corners half-heartedly posing for photos" ? --Shubopshadangalang 20:39, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

I changed because there were already 'live performance' pictures in the article, and this is the only 'full face/new look' photo on the page (i.e. the microphones are in the way for the rest of the 'new look'). As for Shubopshadangalang's comment about a 'slouchy guy ... street corners...', couldn't you say the same thing about the infobox for Bruce Willis, Tom Cruise, and Denzel Washington. They're just in a photo that has nothing to do with their career. I'm not so sure as lighting goes, as it's heavily concentrated with yellow on the right, but no lighting (black) on the right. Setting, sure, posture, eh maybe. If someone can find a picture of where the microphone is elsewhere, and the lighting/background color is consistent throughout, I'm all for it. Socby19 21:23, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
I have an idea that might seem kind of radical, but tell me what you think. I have a collection of drawings my wife has done, some charcoal on white, and some crayon. I think if we had a drawing or two on the page, it would be nice. The crayon drawing is available for $15.00, or the charcoal for $20.00. She says she well sell for the best offer, but I think those prices are fair. Also, this would solve the copyright problem. --User: Fernwood 03:11, 7 october 2007 (UTC)
No thanks. And we don't have a copyright problem right now. --Maxamegalon2000 22:21, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
Definitely not. --Michael Greiner 22:26, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
Photos are more clearer than drawings. Also, your signature is messed up. 1. October is lowercase, 2. The timestamp differs from the editing records. 3.'User' never shows up in the signature. Again, pwn3d. Socby19 23:27, 7 October 2007 (UTC)
@Socby19 - how about offering a tip for an obvious wikipedia newcomer instead of trying to "pwn" him with your obviously superior language skills. This would be a "more clearer" course of action. @Fernwood - using drawings by a fan in place of photos would be inapporpriate, and selling an original drawing to another individual wouldn't solve anything as far as copyright concerns... --Shubopshadangalang 00:20, 8 October 2007 (UTC)
Read the archives of this page before bashing other users, Fernwood has his various socks have been annoying this page for months.--Michael Greiner 00:29, 8 October 2007 (UTC)
I'm not bashing anybody. According to his user page, Fernwood is new to editing here, so I took that to be true, as I took Socby's l33tspeak to be inappropriate in that case. Michael, are you saying that Fernwood is, instead, some kind of Wikipedia con artist who edits under fake usernames (though he doesn't format them right)? __Shubopshadangalang 21:14, 8 October 2007 (UTC)
Without question. Fernwood makes outlandish claims on a variety of talk pages, including this one multiple times , Talk:Futurama, Talk:List of songs by "Weird Al" Yankovic, and Talk:The Legend of Zelda (series). While not logged in, he has edited Talk:Seinfeld (TV series), Talk:They Might Be Giants, Talk:Gravy, Talk:GG Allin, and Talk:Bob Dylan. He usually makes an absurd or obscure claim, with his ill wife's memory as the only source, ending his assertions by asking if we should add his claims to the article. Yesterday, an IP address that has made similar edits to Talk:Richie "LaBamba" Rosenberg, Talk:The Beatles, and this page on numerous occasions, made two edits in an eight-minute span claiming to be close to Yankovic and offering to sell us his wife's drawings of Yankovic. He has attempted six different user signatures besides those of the IP address he uses at the time. --Maxamegalon2000 21:42, 8 October 2007 (UTC)
Wow. That's hilarious. It sounds like this guy is getting his kicks out of all these "My wife told me" stories... he must enjoy making people argue with him and waste their time and effort in doing so. Obviously he's succeeding, and especially with your Complete Fernwood Reference Manual there he is succeeding with flying colors (and probably rolling on the floor). If that's not true, then it's just sad. --Shubopshadangalang 02:49, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
Surely we should report him? ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 04:19, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
Probably should, might result in a ban that would end up with us not arguing really dumb things. The request would be made at WP:CHECK. --Michael Greiner 20:30, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
I approve of the concert photo. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 04:19, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
While the lighting is not great on the image with the hat, that microphone covering his face in the concert photo is a pretty good reason for me to prefer the other one. --Temporarily Insane (talk) 21:50, 9 October 2007 (UTC)
Infobox photos should have a full face. Microphone in the way with 'new look' photos can be found elsewhere in the article.Socby19 04:01, 10 October 2007 (UTC)
I agree that the microphone kills the chance of using that picture as the main picture. Also, I think that Fernwood's IP needs to be blocked. LN3000 08:48, 23 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Pop?

I know Al has paroidied many pop songs, but he's parodied rock ones too. Why not add Rock to the info box? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.107.225.143 (talk) 23:00, 16 October 2007 (UTC)

Done. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 01:41, 17 October 2007 (UTC)

Also added polka, reggae, blues, doo-wop, jazz, rap, ska, classical -- and that's just his originals. We could add hip hop, R&B, soul, folk, and country if we want to include all the parodies. BullWikiWinkle 03:36, 17 October 2007 (UTC)
I don't think all those should be added. Just because you do a song or two in a certain genre, doesn't make you part of that genre. LN3000 07:02, 24 October 2007 (UTC)
I agree, the generic Rock/Pop seems suitable in this case, unless there's some genre name in general use on Wikipedia that basically means "ecclectic", then that could be added as well. - Ugliness Man 08:25, 24 October 2007 (UTC)


[edit] New main image?

Image:Weirdalwithbubblesatconcert.jpg

I would like to "vote" to use this image to replace the current one. I think this is perfect as it shows al performing and his new look. I know its big but ill optimize it if we use it Blumonkeyboy (talk) 05:19, 17 November 2007 (UTC)

First and formost, if you took the picture yourself, put a license on it. (read through the upload file page again) Featured articles can not have images with out licenses in them. Secondly, look up two sections at the previous discussion on the infobox photo. Personally, I find the yellow light distracting. (BTW, I moved the image and made it into a thumbnail to make the discussion fit with the image. --Michael Greiner 05:28, 17 November 2007 (UTC)

I didnt take it myself, i found it on a weird al fan site. However, it was in the public domain, and the photographer said it was ok to use pic. Not specificly to me, but on the board. As for the light, i think its better than the current one lol Blumonkeyboy (talk) 05:36, 17 November 2007 (UTC)

Also, i wasplaying around, and it looks really nice in B&W Blumonkeyboy (talk) 05:39, 17 November 2007 (UTC) Or how about we just use Al's publicituy pic, with the white suit, and fedora

My problem with this picture is the yellow light as well as the microphone in the way. --LN3000 (talk) 09:01, 17 November 2007 (UTC)


[edit] Article Length

Just as a follow up, I'm not going to start excising any part of this entry until we are all in agreement, but I definitely think there are still a lot of fat we can trim to shorten this article a bit. Specific details in regard to the most recent tour are definitely no longer encyclopedia worthy information. Is there anything else anyone can think of that we can remove to shorten this article up a bit? Spman (talk) 18:57, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

I've removed some SOL tour info, such as what songs and clips are being played. ~~ Gromreaper(Talk)/(Cont) 02:31, 15 January 2008 (UTC)
I think the part on the White and Nerdy video causing people to vandalize the Atlantic Records page is notable enough to remain on the page as it was covered by outside sources and is still happening today. --Michael Greiner 18:19, 26 January 2008 (UTC)
AGREED - The Atlantic vandalism is noteworthy enough to keep. -- BullWikiWinkle 19:38, 26 January 2008 (UTC)

I don't agree, it really isn't all that significant as far as an encyclopedia entry for Weird Al goes. Perhaps it can go on the White and Nerdy page, but I really think the brief passage about Atlantic Records denying the parody is sufficient for this article.Spman (talk) 05:24, 27 January 2008 (UTC)

I also think that the info about vandalism from the video should be on the White and Nerdy page. It's not just about noteworthy or not, it is about not making the article too long, and about splitting the info into different pages where they belong more. So being that this article is long enough, we need to be extra critical about what goes in here and what doesn't. Also this is a featured article, and I don't think we want to mess that up. Donny (talk) 14:59, 27 January 2008 (UTC)

If it's not too late, the Straight Outta Lynwood tour hasn't been confirmed to be over yet. There's the possibility that there may be a leg this year to wrap it up. So, as for trimming it, maybe in part, but definitely not completely. Socby19 (talk) 04:28, 7 February 2008 (UTC)

No, the Lynwood tour is almost certainly over. If anything, my best guess is that Al will be returning to the recording studio by the late summer / early fall to begin work on the next album Spman (talk) 06:56, 11 February 2008 (UTC)
Weird Al himself said the tour isn't over on his myspace. http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=90827837&blogID=351113249 is the link but it can't be directly linked due to the spam filter. --Michael Greiner 11:22, 11 February 2008 (UTC)
You can't ignore the fact that tours since 'Bad Hair' have had two legs, with Straight Outta Lynwood being his biggest album since. Socby19 (talk) 19:54, 13 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] edit conflict

"He also collaborated with Mike Nelson on Rifftrax as a guest commentator riffing Jurassic Park[6]." what? That shouldn't be in the header. RC-0722 communicator/kills 19:34, 8 February 2008 (UTC)

Found a confirmation. Socby19 (talk) 18:24, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Protection

I have requested that this article be protected due to the recent content disputes. RC-0722 communicator/kills 05:16, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

It's one person - this should files as a 3RR report (definitely more than 3 RR in 24hrs). --MASEM 05:19, 9 February 2008 (UTC)
I'm trying to do that; but the process is a little complicated. RC-0722 communicator/kills 05:21, 9 February 2008 (UTC)
I've gone ahead and done it. --Maxamegalon2000 06:16, 9 February 2008 (UTC)
Thanks. I wasn't sure if reporting the three revert rule would work because it's a IP. RC-0722 communicator/kills 13:45, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Necessary to state "musician" at the top?

Hey all, I'm not sure it's necessary to specifically state that Al is a musician, given that singer, songwriter and accordionist all imply as much. It just clutters up what is already a long list, in my opinion. Just throwing that out there. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 129.21.43.248 (talk) 03:02, 18 February 2008 (UTC)

Um, sort of. According WP policies, we are supposed to state that. Thanks for pointing that out, though... RC-0722 communicator/kills 03:04, 18 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] PUSA and Ben Folds

I think the following should be added to the Positive Reactions from Original Artists section, but I don't want to create an account and wait 4 days, and I'm not sure of the best way to word these anyway:

The Presidents of the United States of America were so pleased with Gump, Weird Al's parody of their song Lump, that on the live recording of Lump featured on the album Pure Frosting, they ended the song with Weird Al's last line instead of their own ("And that's all I have to say about that.")

Weird Al and Ben Folds are reportedly good friends. In addition to Al directing the video to Ben Fold's song Rockin' the Suburbs, Al and Ben have also had guest appearances on each others albums. Ben Folds played piano for Weird Al's song Why Does This Always Happen (a Ben Folds style parody), and Weird Al sang backing vocals on Ben Folds' song Time.

--75.121.13.78 (talk) 09:06, 18 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Gold & platinum singles

According to the RIAA, "White & Nerdy" has gone platinum for digital downloads, not standard. Should this be mentioned or is this a moot point? Is Al releasing "standard" singles anymore?

The RIAA also shows that "White & Nerdy" has gone gold for the "Mastertone" type, which I gather measures ringtone downloads.

-- BullWikiWinkle 16:53, 2 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] James at war

Should James at War be mentioned? He has parody's on YouTube and has 'called out' Weird Al asking him for a spoof off. James at War has said on a blog on his MySpace that Weird Al does know about the 'called out' video. Biggestsfgfan123ssl (talk) 09:55, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

At this point, I don't think so. If Yankovic picks up on the challenge, then it would be noteworthy for this article. -- BullWikiWinkle 17:12, 10 April 2008 (UTC)
Sorry I deleted the comment. I'm so sick of seeing this James at War spam, I clicked "undo" before I even realized what I was looking at. But, to answer the question, no. Some guy on Youtube challenging Weird Al to some kind of contest is not even close to noteworthy, whether he knows about it or not. Like BullWikiWinkle said, Al would have to at least DO something concerning the challenge to even warrant a mention. --Shubopshadangalang (talk) 21:58, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] WEIRD AL IS WEIRD BUT COOL!

Yeah, you got the point with the title... so yeah. Weird Al ROCKS!

--Bartholomew (talk) 21:43, 4 June 2008 (UTC)

While indubitably true, Wikipedia is not a forum. Please restrict your comments to improving the project, thanks. --Jaysweet (talk) 21:47, 4 June 2008 (UTC)