You're Welcome America. A Final Night with George W. Bush | |
---|---|
Written by | Will Ferrell |
Characters | George W. Bush |
Date premiered | February 5, 2009 |
Place premiered | Cort Theatre New York City |
Original language | English |
Genre | Comedy |
You're Welcome America. A Final Night with George W. Bush is a comedic Broadway play written by and starring American comedian Will Ferrell as George W. Bush, which ran from February 5 to March 15, 2009. [1] The play is directed by Ferrell's long-time comedy partner, Adam McKay, who previously worked with him on his comedy films Anchorman and Talladega Nights . According to a review at The Improper.com, "Combined with lewd humor and an uncanny cast of characters to help him drive home his alter ego's West Texas mannerisms, Ferrell’s showpiece is a true delight." [2]
The play is based on Ferrell's George W. Bush impression, which originated from the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL). The first appearance of Ferrell's character appeared in the show's 26th season, which took place during the controversial 2000 United States presidential election. [3] The play carries over some qualities of Ferrell's character that replicates the same comedic element as seen on the popular late night show.
The play broke the house record at the Cort Theater, taking in $846,507.05 for the week that ended on February 15, 2009. [4] The show was broadcast live on the HBO cable channel, [2] as well as in Canada, on March 14, 2009, at 9:00 p.m. EST. [5] [6] It was released to DVD on November 3, 2009. [7]
The play starts with President Bush (Ferrell) telling the audience that this is his final farewell to the country. He then makes jokes about his life, such as his college years at Yale, his nickname “Gin and Tonic,” being born in Connecticut, his business that went bankrupt, and the Texas legislation which he as Governor signed into law that designated a day as "Jesus Day." Some of Bush's stories are humorous but false, such as having a sexual relationship with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and being AWOL from the Air National Guard. Bush's Secret Service agent Jerry dances onstage (sometimes with Bush's pilot) while Ferrell is offstage changing costume. Bush confronts a heckler in the third row, who is part of the cast. The play also acknowledges the hard decisions Bush faced during his term, such as deciding to send troops to the Middle East.
The play, which took place less than a month after Bush left office, [8] was meant as a final farewell not only to the former president himself but also to Ferrell's impression of the former president.
Husband and wife performers Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates are visible in the audience. Also visible in the audience are Edward Norton, Adam Levine, Common, and Serena Williams.
Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
---|---|---|---|
Gold Derby Awards | Best Variety Special | You're Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush | Nominated |
Online Film & Television Association | Best Variety, Musical or Comedy Special | Nominated | |
Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special | Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Jessica Elbaum, Marty Callner and Randall Gladstein | Nominated |
Outstanding Directing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Special | Marty Callner | Nominated | |
Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Special | Will Ferrell | Nominated | |
Tony Awards | Best Special Theatrical Event | You're Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush | Nominated |
Dana Thomas Carvey is an American stand-up comedian, actor, podcaster, screenwriter and producer.
John William Ferrell is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is known for his leading man roles in comedy films and for his work as a television producer. Ferrell has earned six Emmy Awards and in 2011 was honored with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. In 2015, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and was named the best comedian in British GQ.
Darrell Clayton Hammond is an American actor, comedian, impressionist, and announcer. He was a regular cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 1995 to 2009, and has been its announcer since 2014.
Jonathan Michael Lovitz is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his tenure as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 1985 to 1990 for which he was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards.
Christopher Lee Kattan is an American actor and comedian. First breaking through as a performer with the Los Angeles comedy troupe The Groundlings, Kattan found wider success during his tenure as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 1996 to 2003. He also played Doug Butabi in A Night at the Roxbury, Bob on the first five seasons of The Middle, and Bunnicula in Bunnicula. He's also known for playing the main antagonist Mr. Feather in Undercover Brother (2002).
The word "strategery" was used in a Saturday Night Live sketch, written by James Downey, airing October 7, 2000, which satirized the performances of George W. Bush and Al Gore, two candidates for President of the United States, during the first presidential debate for election year 2000. Bush, played by Comedian Will Ferrell, when asked by a mock debate moderator to "sum up, in a single word, the best argument for his candidacy", replied "strategery", satirizing Bush's reputation for mispronouncing words. SNL later released the episode as part of a video tape titled Presidential Bash 2000.
Saturday Night Live (SNL) is an American late-night live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The show's premiere was hosted by George Carlin on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title NBC's Saturday Night. The show's comedy sketches, which often parody contemporary American culture and politics, are performed by a large and varying cast of repertory and newer cast members. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity guest, who usually delivers the opening monologue and performs in sketches with the cast, with featured performances by a musical guest. An episode normally begins with a cold open sketch that is usually based on political events and ends with someone breaking character and proclaiming, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!", properly beginning the show.
Ana Gasteyer is an American actress, comedian and singer. She is most notable for her tenure as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 1996 to 2002. She has since starred in such sitcoms as ABC's Suburgatory, TBS's People of Earth, NBC's American Auto, and the film Mean Girls.
Emily Litella is a fictional character created and performed by comedian Gilda Radner in a series of appearances on Saturday Night Live. Based on a person in her early life, Emily Litella was a popular character in Radner's comedy repertoire.
Adam McKay is an American screenwriter, producer, and director. McKay began his career as a head writer for the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL) from 1995 to 2001. After leaving SNL, McKay co-wrote with comedian Will Ferrell on his comedy films Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006), and The Other Guys (2010). Ferrell and McKay later co-wrote and co-produced many television series and films, with McKay himself co-producing their website Funny or Die through their company, Gary Sanchez Productions.
Orville Willis Forte IV is an American actor and comedian. He was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live for eight seasons from 2002 to 2010. During his time on the show, he played a recurring character that led to a feature film adaptation, MacGruber (2010), and a streaming television limited series in 2021. Forte also created and starred in the sitcom The Last Man on Earth (2015–2018). For the series, he received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations: two for acting and one for writing.
Celebrity Jeopardy! is a series of sketches that aired regularly on the television comedy/variety show Saturday Night Live between 1996 and 2002, the years when Will Ferrell was a cast member. It parodies the same-named special event on the television quiz show Jeopardy! that features competition between notable individuals with all winnings going towards charitable organizations, and significant reductions to the game's level of difficulty. Fifteen sketches aired between December 1996 and February 2015: two sketches per season from 1996 to 2002, and one each in 2005 and 2009, when Ferrell returned to the show as host. The sketch was revived for the Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special on February 15, 2015.
James Woodward Downey is an American comedy writer, producer and actor. Downey wrote for over 30 seasons of Saturday Night Live, making him the longest tenured writer in the show's history. SNL creator Lorne Michaels called Downey the "best political humorist alive".
Fictionalized portrayals of George W. Bush, the 43rd President of the United States, have become common since his inauguration on January 20, 2001. Many popular TV shows, magazines, books, and comics have portrayed or satirized him.
The twenty-sixth season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between October 7, 2000, and May 19, 2001.
The twenty-first season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between September 30, 1995, and May 18, 1996.
The sketch comedy television show Saturday Night Live aired several critically acclaimed sketches parodying then Alaskan Governor and vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin in the lead-up to the 2008 United States presidential election. The sketches featured former cast member Tina Fey, who returned as a guest star to portray Palin. Fey won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her impersonation of Palin.
"Lee Marvin vs. Derek Jeter" is the seventeenth episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 75th overall episode of the series. It was written by co-producer Kay Cannon and series creator Tina Fey. The episode was directed by series producer Don Scardino. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on April 22, 2010. Guest stars in this episode include Elizabeth Banks, Will Ferrell, Steve Hely, Julianne Moore, and Ariel Shafir.
Presidential Reunion is an American comedy Web short directed by Ron Howard and Jake Szymanski and starring Saturday Night Live cast members who parodied Presidents Ford to Obama. The skit was released onto the Funny or Die website on March 3, 2010, and received negative reviews.
The following is a list of recurring Saturday Night Live characters and sketches introduced between September 25, 1999, and May 20, 2000, the twenty-fifth season of SNL.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) 2