ppemberton

With the election now less than a month away, my thoughts are consumed with one looming question:
How much is “Saturday Night Live” paying Tina Fey to play Sarah Palin?
As a writer, star and creator of “30 Rock,” Fey does have other things to do. So you figure they have to pay her pretty good coin to take on additional work. And, let’s face it -- no one’s watching “SNL” these days to see Will Forte.
Sorry, Bill. But Fey’s dead-on impression of McCain’s V-P candidate is the only reason to watch “SNL” these days. In fact, never before has a cast member’s impression been so popular, giving the show – and, more importantly, Fey – lots of clout.
Fey’s imitation is so good, there’s really no disputing that it’s the best political impression “SNL” has ever featured. So we here at the Grudge Match have decided to pair two other “SNL” greats: Dana Carvey's George H.W. Bush v. Will Ferrell’s George W. Bush.
My Grudge partner, Danny, thinks Ferrell wins. But I have to go with Carvey for the following reasons:

• Carvey was the first “SNL” cast member who actually looked and acted like the president he was imitating. Dan Akroyd wasn’t a convincing Nixon. And Chevy Chase didn’t even try to look like Gerald Ford. I can’t even remember who did Carter, and Phil Hartman was okay as Reagan, but he looked more like a corpse. Carvey had the look (thanks in part to the great “SNL” hairdressers), the mannerisms and the voice.
• The voice. Even today, most people who do a Bush 41 impression are actually doing an impression of Carvey’s impression. That’s why they’ll often repeat catch phrases made more famous by Carvey than Bush.
• Those catch phrases.  While Ferrell did a good job as Bush 43, I can’t remember anything he actually said. But 20 years after Carvey portrayed 41, I can think of several catch phrases, including: “Not gonna do it,” “Read my lips” and “Wouldn’t be prudent.”
• Even Bush 41 liked it! I’m pretty sure Bush 43 never invited Ferrell to the White House. But his dad invited Carvey to perform – as him – at the White House.

Danny

I too am having a great time watching Tina Fey ripping into Sarah Palin, and almost hope that she does get elected, just so we can see more from Fey.  Almost.

I’m not going to lie to you, I think Dana Carvey’s Bush Sr. impression is hilarious.  It’s just that Ferrell’s caricature of Dubyah is just that little bit funnier.  He just brings that level of idiocy that Bush has become known for (partly because of Ferrell’s impression, and partly because he is, well, an idiot), which adds more to the simple repetition of catchphrases that was Carvey’s Bush’s mainstay.

Carvey may have been the first to come up with a convincing impression of a president, but Ferrell perfected it by not only looking, acting and sounding like Bush, but magnifying his identifying character traits and pointing out his flaws for all to see.  Now, I have to give credit where it’s due, Bush Jr makes that a lot easier than most presidents, I mean there are entire websites dedicated to his “Bushisms”.  Still, we can’t take anything away from Ferrell’s impression just because his target was an easier one - that only made it funnier.

Pat suggests that Ferrell’s Bush didn’t have any recognizable catchphrases.  All I have to say to that is, “strategery”.

I could go on and on describing the differences between the two impressions, but instead I’m going to give you a more recent example of Ferrell’s impression.   Enjoy, but be warned, there may be some slightly colourful language.