As movie mogul David Geffen turns on Hillary Clinton, starting the first Obama-Clinton fight of the pre-primary season, National Review Online looks Right to try to make some sense of Hollywood and its politics. On Thursday afternoon David Zucker, creative genius behind Airplane!, among other comedy classics, took questions from NRO editor Kathryn Lopez and maybe made an endorsement.
Kathryn Jean Lopez: What is up with David Geffen?
David Zucker: Geffen is a very, very smart man. I don’t know that personally, I just heard Dennis Miller say it on O’Reilly.
Lopez: Is Barack Obama Hollywood’s new favorite politician?
Zucker: In Hollywood, they never have a favorite, they hedge their bets by writing checks to everyone. It’s like sleeping around, the actual Hollywood favorite.
Lopez: Do you see a Rudy Giuliani — or anyone else — taking away any significant Hollywood dollars from Democrats?
Zucker: Again, I agree with Dennis Miller, Rudy has indeed made significant inroads here by taking away Hollywood dollars from Dennis Miller and me.
Lopez: If you could script this 2008 election, how might it go?
Zucker: It’s a thriller: If Rudy doesn’t win, the country goes to hell.
Lopez: Who’s the funniest 2008 candidate?
Zucker: Hillary, of course, with her announcement of “Let’s chat, I want to have a dialog.” But that’s fine with me, as long as she saves the screaming fits for Ahmadinejad.
Lopez: There’s that new news parody show on Fox News now, making jokes at the expense of the Left, coming from a successful Hollywood guy. Is Hollywood getting any Righter?
Zucker: No, but how much more money does that friggin’ Joel Surnow have to make? I was his guest once at his studio and before I left he gave me a “gift” of the entire 2nd season DVD of 24. Ruined a whole week. I was staying up until 4 A.M. every night because I couldn’t turn that damn show off. He obviously used that week to cook up his comedy show, right under my nose. Chr**t, he’s as smart as Geffen!
Lopez: Any Oscar predictions? Do you recommend Red Americans watch Airplane! on DVD instead Sunday night?
Zucker: No. My TV deal on Airplane! had a clause requiring me to remain a Democrat “in perpetuity in all known universes.” I realize now how foolish I was to let Katzenberg talk me into that one, but he assured me at the time that surely, I had nothing to worry about! Cut to: 2007: the guy has by now likely used my TV money to send his kids to some of our nation’s finest Liberal colleges while sunning himself out in Malibu with Geffen! S**t, they’re both smart! I actually recommend viewers watch my own news parody show, The “24” Hour News Half Hour. This new show has Surnow seriously worried. Y’know, he doesn’t own the number “24”!