That was on "Fox News Sunday" today. The moderator, Chris Wallace, tried to push the venerable pundit back a bit: "The hope, it is not naughtiness, it's toughness." But Will, whose gravitas is not so great that his loathing of Trump doesn't shine through, says:
That's what I'm saying, is that - is now it's taken to be kind of synonymous, that they are effectively the same thing.Yes, he did say that. People are so scared they're taking "naughtiness" as strength. Naughtiness! The contempt is so plain. Will thinks Trump is a child and the people who like him are children. Man, I just frittered away so much time researching the word "naughty." I was in the Oxford English Dictionary, where I got distracted by the phrase "naughty but nice," which I learned — for the first time — originated in a song from 1871. I found the full set of lyrics:
Of love at first sight you have heard —I tried to find some video of that song, but got distracted by the wrong "Naughty But Nice" song, sung by Vera-Ellen in "The Belle of New York" (1952):
Well, I am a luckless cove,
And love a lass, upon my word,
Who lives in Spy Pond Grove;
At the charming game of croquet, I
Have been her partner twice;
I love her — ain't it naughty?
Well, it's naughty, but it's nice.
This is the height of frivolity. Meade, watching from across the room, insists that it's Doris Day. No, it's Vera-Ellen. I've never heard of her. Wikipedia says she was "celebrated for her lithe figure" but, in fact, "suffered from anorexia before much was known about the disease." I wonder what George Will thinks of her.
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I don't like Trump or George Will. Both cheated on their wives.
Didn't you ever see "White Christmas"? Starring: Bing Crosby, Danny, Kaye, Rosemary Clooney & Vera Ellen
Very beautiful and talented. Singing, dancing, acting, the whole package.
Is "croquet, I" supposed to rhyme with "naughty". I'm having trouble making that happen.
How did George Will and Donald Trump avoid serving in the military when there was a draft?
While my Dad and his friends fulfilled their duty, these cowards, like Bernie Sanders, Dick Cheney, Bill Clinton and others ran from it. W and Quayle and Gore used their connections to avoid combat. John Kerry and Jim Webb fought in combat. And John McCain was a fighter pilot and POW. HW Bush and JFK had exemplary military service.
Now we have weasels like Trump and Hillary and Obama and Cruz, etc.
What have any of these people done to show any sort of sacrifice and sense of duty to the country?
I can hardly be appalled by Trump's behavior just because he is a more successful and entertaining narcissist than these others.
The failure of leadership since the early 1990s has made possible such narcissists. Trump is just the crown prince of them.
We cannot attract good leaders. No doubt there are enough people in the US who would be good presidents. But none are going to come forward and play this stupid game that our national politics has become.
One more ISIS attack and one more pile of mumblewoof from Barry and company and Trump becomes a serious candidate.
Gosh! @Althouse, you've never heard of Vera Ellen? How young you must be! That clip pretty well demonstrates why she matters.
Shorter version: the dolts like George Will who make up our media contribute greatly to the fools that Coke coward to lead. Trump is a buffoon who would not be possible without jagoffs like Will helping set the public debate
"No, it's Vera-Ellen. I've never heard of her."
Have you never seen "White Christmas?"
"The contempt is so plain." True, but the naughtiness bit is the least of it. If the Wills of the world keep it up, I might just be naughty enough to vote for the Donald. Of course, that would be, umm, counterproductive, so I decline to be baited, but at this point the Wills may prefer Hillary! over an unapproved naughty GOP victory.
Ann! Vera-Ellen was Rosemary Clooney's sister in White Christmas! Please tell me you know "White Christmas." Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen?!?
You never heard of Vera-Ellen???
You never saw On The Town or White Christmas or The Belle of New York?
She didn't have a long career, but she had lead roles with some of Hollywood's biggest stars.
Your education has been scandalously neglected.
"Vera-Ellen. I've never heard of her"
Never saw White Christmas?
"female appetite diseases?"
She didn't suffer from anorexia.. She enjoyed anorexia. She married a Rothschild. The marriage didn't work out, but there's more bliss in divorcing a Rothschild than in all but the happiest of marriages. Chunky girls don't marry Rothschilds. More girls should be encouraged to cultivate anorexia. For every Karen Carpenter, there are a hundred Walmart shoppers whose ass cheeks hang over their scooters.......Anorexia is kind of a disparaging term. It should be called cute girl syndrome.
Good grief!
You have never watched "White Christmas"?
Vera-Ellen: the princess in "Call Me Madam." Terrific dancer; watch the dance scenes with Donald O'Conner, who was also a pretty good hoofer.
And I think James Taranto has Trump pegged when he says Trump challenges the official lies, so people cheer him on, though they well know that what Trump says isn't quite so either.
Vera-Ellen's pretty well known with the annual showings of White Christmas (okay so maybe Rosemary Clooney outshines her, but still, it's a popular enough movie).
Trump has never been a nice man. Will, who works for the 100% Australian owned Fox Network and therefore must swoon over Karl Rove's JEB Bush, can never forgive American voters for overlooking Trump's impolite talk. So he calls Trump naughty for being a winner and the voters naughty for seeking a strong leader.
Will is right, all dressed up in his cute little bow tie and JFK haircut.
"Didn't you ever see "White Christmas"? Starring: Bing Crosby, Danny, Kaye, Rosemary Clooney & Vera Ellen."
No.
"John Kerry and Jim Webb fought in combat. "
Good grief !
You sound like lefty chicken hawk ! Kerry fight ???? He shot himself in the ass and filled out his own request for the pulp heart.
I'm not defending guys who had student deferment but I would not lump Cheney with Clinton who lied to his army reserve officer commander about deferment.
Why does Will say and think the "American People" are sacred? It seems to me that "American people" are angry not scared. I'll bet Will isn't scared and this allows him to feel superior to the "American People." And what does he mean when he refers to us as the "American People"? Why not just "Americans"? It's as if he's making some sort of unconscious connection with the phrase "German Volk." Like we are some sort of lumpen-proletariat mass, hopelessly stupid, easily swayed by demagogues like Trump, and very scared. The "American People" and the "German Volk": jawohl, vee ist da people vee haff been vaiting for, and vee is sooooo scared, please enlighten us, Herr Will!
Wow, you people are cranked up about "White Christmas"!
"Ann Althouse said...
"Didn't you ever see "White Christmas"? Starring: Bing Crosby, Danny, Kaye, Rosemary Clooney & Vera Ellen. No"
Maybe if it had been Called "White Holiday."
Very-Ellen and Rosemary Clooney singing "Sisters" in White Christmas--you haven't lived (fully) until you seen them do that bit. Or seen Crosby and Kaye sing the same song while dressed in drag.
"Will is right, all dressed up in his cute little bow tie and JFK haircut."
Usually it's lefty WaPO commenters who scorn Will. I like him although he was against the Iraq War. That alone should give him some props among lefties.
Is everyone here 80?
When the video was playing, Meade was saying this is the kind of thing your father would have loved.
My wife loves "White Christmas" and watches it multiple times every Christmas season. She's 59.
In high school I was on the stage crew for our local YMCA's production of "Call Me Madam," starring my classmate Mimi Chesterton, soon to be known as Claudia Jennings. I'm 65.
Here is Trump's Naughty & Nice list.
http://www.people.com/article/donald-trump-naughty-nice-list-saturday-night-live?xid=socialflow_facebook_peoplemag
"When the video was playing, Meade was saying this is the kind of thing your father would have loved."
Let's all get up and dance to a song
That was a hit before your mother was born
Though she was born a long, long time ago
Your mother should know (Your mother should...)
Your mother should know (...know)
Something like that.
I am Laslo.
"Is everyone here 80?"
Hmm..you're quoting from 19th century song lyrics
Does that make Alhouse 120 ?
I happen to like parts of 'White Christmas', although its slow at times, and Danny Kaye is well... Danny Kaye. The "Sisters" song isn't really sung by Vera, Rosemary Clooney actually sings both parts.
Really how can you be culturally literate without knowing "White Christmas"?
Hardly any of the conservative commentariat is happy about Trump; Will has plenty of company. But after the cowardice of Romney in the face of Candy Crowley, and McCain's sucking up to his enemies in the press, and Speaker Bonehead's "deals" that gave the store away to Obama, the GOP base has had it Washington establishment. They sure as hell do not care what George Will thinks of them.
"In high school I was on the stage crew for our local YMCA's production of "Call Me Madam," starring my classmate Mimi Chesterton, soon to be known as Claudia Jennings. I'm 65."
Claudia's Filmography:
Jud (a.k.a. Savage Soldier) (1971) .... Sunny
The Love Machine (1971) .... Darlene
The Stepmother (1972) .... Rita
Unholy Rollers (1972) .... Karen Walker
Group Marriage (1972) .... Elaine
40 Carats (1973) .... Gabriella
The Single Girls (1973) .... Allison
Truck Stop Women (1974) .... Rose
'Gator Bait (1974) .... Desiree Thibodeau
The Man Who Fell to Earth (1975) .... Peter's Wife (uncredited)
Sisters of Death (1976) .... Judy
Moonshine County Express (1977) .... Betty Hammer
The Great Texas Dynamite Chase (1977) .... Candy Morgan
Deathsport (1978) .... Deneer
Fast Company (1979) .... Sammy
"The Great Texas Dynamite Chase (1977)" is what I remember best about her.
Our pre-HBO Cable played it repeatedly, along with "The Omen," "The Longest Yard" and "Blazing Saddles" -- they were conducting tests in our neighborhood. They all repeated on a cycle, with no filler between them, meaning the movies all started at unpredictable times.
I seem to recall that Jennings was ill during the filming, but can't rack it down on a cursory Google.
Thanks, Roughcoat.
I am Laslo.
No, I'm not 80. I will be 65 in February, which makes me just a couple of months older than you. But I have seen Vera-Ellen. You mean your family never watched "White Christmas" on TV when you were growing up?
Blogger Ann Althouse said...
Is everyone here 80?
I'm younger than you at a spry 43 and I remember White Christmas.
Then again, growing up in Southern California, every Saturday we had a TV show called the "Family Film Festival" and it was usually Bing Crosby or Bob Hope or Jerry Lewis or Danny Kaye, etc. And so, in the 80's, I grew up with those films, including White Christmas.
I'm flabbergasted that you've never seen it. So many great memories with all those old shows on Saturday afternoons.
Laslo,
Mimi/Claudia was a sort-of friend. Our social circles overlapped. I was a jock, she was a theater person, and jocks and theater people liked to hang out with each other. We had mutual friends, went to the same parties, hung out in the same basements drinking beer, etc. She was a pretty girl, slender with long legs and long red hair--looked a lot like Nicole Kidman. A year after graduating she shows in the Playboy centerfold, the first unshaved full-frontal Playmate in the magazine's history. Yikes.
There is something slightly un-American about speaking dismissively of "White Christmas."
As for things I am afraid of, a Department of Justice that offers Wall Street miscreants half off on their fines if they donate the money to Democrat get-out-the-vote organizations like ACORN, etc., is high on the list.
"White Christmas" is actually a sequel to a film called "Holiday Inn," that also starred Bing Crosby and was made in 1942.
"No, I'm not 80. I will be 65 in February, which makes me just a couple of months older than you. But I have seen Vera-Ellen. You mean your family never watched "White Christmas" on TV when you were growing up?"
No. And I watched a lot of TV. But my parents didn't watch much TV. I don't remember them watching any movies with us. Funny, isn't it. They sat together in the living room at night and just had a conversation.
I wonder what George Will thinks of her.
LOL!
Wow. Althouse ambushed by the White Christmas clan. My wife is a big fan. I think that she and her sister pantomimed "Sisters" when they were kids. So I have to watch it with her every year.
If you have not seen the movie, it's probably the worst book of any major film musical, but there are a lot of musical/dance numbers that are highlight-reel worthy. Keep the wine flowing and let Shirl wallow in nostalgia.
Vera Ellen was a very accomplished dancer. No chore to watch her highlight reel.
Donald Trump, George Will, and Vera-Ellen -- and who do we want to talk about?
Thanks, Althouse, for the Vera-Ellen clip and for fomenting a good discussion about American culture. But don't see the movie, "White Christmas". It's good, it's part of our culture. But if you see it thinking it's another "Citizen Kane" or "Gone With The Wind" or "Some Like It Hot" you'll just be disappointed. It's just a good, entertaining 1950's Hollywood musical that millions of us have been enjoying for more than 60 Christmases. Sorry you've missed that.
As has been pointed out, White Christmas was a sequel to Holiday Inn, the movie that introduced the song 'White Christmas'. What has not been said is that it was a crummy movie. It used the tired trope, even then, of "Hey kids, let's put on a show to raise money for a good cause!" The good cause in the movie was to pay the bills run up by a beloved retired WW II general to revive the Inn. I guess you had to be there.
Shorter George Will, "I can't believe the people whom for years the Republican Party has treated like children are acting like children."
That Will and the rest of the DC "conservatives" don't like Trump is a feature, not a bug. I agree with Will on some things but he is still a member of the political class. People in DC are a lot like college professors. They don't seem to get out much.
I haven't heard of white christmas either. Is it a movie or a TV show or something? Either way sounds boring. Culture isn't my thing. If you want to talk about Dragon Ball Z I can participate.
I remember seeing "White Christmas" almost yearly as a child. One of the networks, -- NBC, I think -- had dibs on it and broadcast it on Yuletide Sunday. Being a tyke whose Christmas was mostly a matter of rampant avarice, the show mostly bored me, though the leggy dancer with the impossible figure excited me in unfamiliar ways.
Off the subject of Vera-Ellen and back onto naughty, while an undergrad I audited a graduate-level history course focused on the English Civil War and Stuart dynasty generally. In that class the students were required to do their research using primary sources (mostly reproduced on microfiche). I remember encountering naughty quite often, mostly in Puritan tracts (a few written by John Milton) aimed at Charles I, his courtiers, and especially his queen. One tract in particular demanded the impeachment of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Stafford on grounds of "naughtiness." Since the earl was duly impeached from the the House of Lords and executed on 12 May 1641, I concluded that naughty was a much, much stronger word of condemnation in 17th century English than in any extant American source. To the Jacobean mind to be naughty was to be supremely wicked and perverse. Naughty is the adjective form of the noun naught, a common Elizabethan word meaning "nothing" or "zero" (some may recall Jethro Bodine and his fantasy life as a "double-naught" spy) From this etymology I surmise that naughty also contains a meaning akin to our modern notion of nihilism. I'm not sure, but I think some of the indictments from the Salem witch trials use the word. Today naughty isn't even a mild rebuke; we use it ironically to lampoon conventions we find outmoded or ridiculous, as in "Eating your dessert before the main course? How naughty of you!" George Will really ought to get with 21st century usage. At some point perpetual geekiness becomes simply tiresome.
Vera Ellen could dance incredibly well and act well enough to get by but she couldn't sing to save her life. Her vocal parts were always dubbed. In "naughty but nice" the vocals are by Anita Ellis.
Are you sure George didn't mean 'knotty' not 'naughty'?
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