The National Federation of the Blind and N.Y. Governor David Paterson say that Saturday Night Live crossed the line this weekend with its sketch featuring Fred Armisen playing the blind governor in a segment for Weekend Update with Seth Meyers (clip below). "The governor is sure that Saturday Night Live,with all of its talent, can find a way to be funny without beingoffensive," Paterson spokesman Errol Cockfield said in a statementSunday. The National Federation of the Blindspokesman Chris Danielsen said the skit portrayed the governor asbefuddled and disoriented and is "absolutelywrong." At this point, I think we actually count on SNL to ruffle feathers — but it has GOT to be funny as well. The Armisen bit relied on dumb blind-joke cliches, like Armisen’s Paterson unknowingly holding up a chart upside down. What’s more, do people outside of New York’s tristate area know enough about Paterson as a public servant to take away anything beyond the show’s attempt to find comedy in the befuddled, disoriented portrayal the Federation of the Blind mentions? I don’t mind an offensive joke, but without the actual joke part, it’s just plain offensive.
If you haven’t already seen it, watch the clip and let us know what you think in the poll and comments section below.
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“Governor Paterson” getting in the way of Amy Poehler’s goodbye was funny. I wasn’t personally offended, but then I don’t know any blind people who saw it.
I knew in the first few seconds that the skit was in trouble. Like you said, the jokes are tired and not anything like the governor is like. I think they are trying to make up for not doing anything when his sex scandal came out, but that was because they had no (and still have no) black actors and black writers to give a fresh perspective.
What was more offensive was kanye singing! Sorry. I applaud him for singing without his voice distortion machine, knowing he would sound bad. At least i knew it was him.
Hello. This is what the show is about. Were they protesting when the show made fun of one legged people, hillbillies, Britney, etc? It’s comedy. If you don’t find it funny, don’t watch.
As I watched Amy Poehler say goodbye on Saturday Night I was welling up with tears. Then they had Fre Armeson walk in front of the TV again. I went from tears to laughter, just like Amy. I thought it was a great send off.
I am not offended easily, but I did find this offensive to blind people. It’s all well and good to make fun of people’s personalities, exploits and misdeeds, but I think it crosses the line to make fun of a disability that is not the fault of the disabled. Would we tip FDR out of his wheelchair, would we “punk” Helen Keller” is epilepsy fair game? This show has not been funny since Ferrell left (with the Fey as Palin exception- big deal, four funny skits in the last four years), and this is a sign of scraping the bottom of the barrel. I am not blind, black or governor, but to see a person’s handicap used as a punchline TWICE is bad comedy writing.
It was both funny and offensive – the end while he was wandering into the shot was great, the other part was kind of uncomfortable. However, I am not from NY, so I wasn’t sure if this is something they do there. In Michigan we like to call out our governor for her lovely mole. It’s not nice, but you grab onto something, anything you can make fun of.
They could have left out the handicap and still had a lot to make fun of. Like this guy never passed the bar. He had to go into politics because he couldn’t practice law. He has had affairs (known). Stop whining. They were gentle.
I did find this offensive, and I have a pretty high tolerance for off-color humor. Would we dare to make fun of someone in a wheelchair, or someone missing a limb? Making fun of a person’s disability for something that they had no control over is just mean-spirited. This is a show that save for the few Fey/Palin sketches over the last few months has not been funny since Ferrel left. What is the last iconic SNL character to grab people’s attention. I don’t think I’ve heard a good catchphrase or character from the show in years. This is scraping the bottom of the comedy barrel if yo uhave to resort to mockery of a disability rather than focus on character and personality issues.
You want to know the most offensive thing about this sketch? Aside from the “what do you have against New Jersey” line, the bit just wasn’t funny. Maybe they should’ve asked Tina Fey to lampoon Gov. Paterson.
So afain, you can make fun of folks cause they are dumb, one legged, foreign, sick, etc but blind is off limits? The fact that the guy has a great job and is in the public eye shows he suceeds in spite of the blindness. Let us not pity him. LAugh at our “moles” Mich got it right.
@Bentle, was the blind joke intentional? if so, genius!
People with disabilities are here for our entertainment. Like midgets. They’re funny.
To Ray:Really, you haven’t heard a catch phrase or seen anything funny? Really. And you want SNL to make fun of peoples character flaws, really. How many cheating politicians can you make fun of. Then you would complain that’s all we do. really? And we make fun of handicapped folks. One legged ho!! Really. Ray, really. Please watch another show!
I live in NYC and I thought it was funny but I was also shocked they would so blatantly make fun of blind people. I might have laughed harder if I wasn’t thinking in the back of my mind, “isn’t this offensive?” I also wondered if ANYONE outside of the NY/NJ/CT Tri-State area has even HEARD of this guy??
Andy, yes it was intentional. Thanks for noticing that I’m a genius.
Clearly you don’t watch this show often. Your guy Ferrel used to play a guy on a scooter who was handicapped. What do you watch this show for? Humanitarian reasons???
I thought it was funny, not offensive. From everything I’ve seen with Gov. Patterson, I thought Fred Armisen had the impression pretty right on. He wasn’t making fun of him just for being blind. He was making fun of him just for being how he is.
And as for people outside New York getting it, yes – we got it! And laughed at it because it was funny.
Keep it up, I was laughing my you know what off. Especially when he wandered in front of Amy Poehler’s farewell. Hopefully she is saying “goodbye” but more “see you later.”
I have been to a few other sites and have been amazed at the stupidty of people who are calling out armisen for ruining Amy’s goodbye. This is why folks should have to take an IQ test before being allowed to view shows such as SNL and 30 rock.
I think it was for more offensive to cocaine addicts and philanderers. Get over it! It shouldn’t count since he couldn’t keep one eye closed the whole time. Laughter through groans is fine. Lighten up!
New Yorker here, and a big fan of Paterson’s conduct so far as suddenly-governor of the Empire. Thought the sketch was hilarious, and only went too far w the “comically unprepared” line. Paterson might be a blind, ex-cokehead womanizer, but he’s shown impressive poise in extremely tough times and deserves more credit for it.
This was by far the funniest part of the show. Lamps? Come on. And they couldn’t manage to put together a House spoof? But Weekend Update had me on the floor.
Oh yeah, “New Jersey stinks like garbage.”
Sorry, but the skit was hilarious. I’ve watched this show for the past 25 years, people should know by now that nothing is off limits as far as parody goes, even people with disabilities.
Lamps, Worse skit ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Loved Kanye’s songs, but maybe he should lip synch. Paterson was hilarious. Loved how Amy and Mya cracked up Hugh Laurie. Hearing Hugh in his “native tongue” makes me appreciate his House even more.
I’m really really sorry to all the blind people, but the sketch was HILARIOUS!!! I understand that some people want to be PC but funny is funny. You can’t censor or get offeneded by lighthearted jokes. It’s parody. We all know blind people are high-functioning people. It’s just a joke. Suck it up and laugh.
Cripes people, lighten up.
What about the wedding crasher with the oxygen tank?
Boy howdy, this was really cutting edge stuff, folks! Get it–He’s blind!!! This is just about as funny as all of SNL’s many jokes that answer the burning question–in the screamingly laugh-a-rific affirmative–”Wouldn’t it be HILARIOUS if someone were gay?!”
There is absolutely nothing New York about SNL anymore, unless sophomoric, lazy humor is the new avant-garde (ooh, the irony!).