Comments on: Stephen Colbert Olympic Poster

Stephen Colbert Olympic Poster

hippybear — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:42:19 -0800

Stephen Colbert and Shepard Fairey create a Vancouver 2010 Olympic Poster. [pdf link]. And Stephen suggests to the Colbert Nation that they download, print, and post it all over for the games. (see sidebar.)

By: KokuRyu

KokuRyu — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:45:32 -0800

I am a Canadian and live near Vancouver and I love Stephen Colbert.

By: ymgve

ymgve — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:49:37 -0800

What, no Pedobear?

By: Lutoslawski

Lutoslawski — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:50:55 -0800

That's awesome. I love Colbert.

By: heeeraldo

heeeraldo — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:03:48 -0800

He's doing a couple tapings near Science World next week; I can post specifics if someone wants.

By: null terminated

null terminated — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:06:38 -0800

So Fairey secured the rights this time?

By: maudlin

maudlin — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:11:07 -0800

The eagle needs big red mittens on its wings.

By: Dr. Send

Dr. Send — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:46:50 -0800

Yeah, VANOC would love that.

By: Mikey-San

Mikey-San — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:48:50 -0800

So Fairey secured the rights this time? That's the Word I'm hearing. ho ho ho

By: mannequito

mannequito — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:57:10 -0800

Man, the Olympics are weird. They stuff the hype down your throat for 7 years, and then when it eventually arrives, you don't realize except for the helicopters buzzing over your house at 3am, or when you go on Metafilter and there's a post about Stephen Colbert throwing a party in the park just down the street.

By: mannequito

mannequito — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:58:36 -0800

heeeraldo, is it open to the public or just ticket holders? I'd wake up before 9am for Stephen.

By: MadamM

MadamM — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 23:13:45 -0800

How dare he bridle that eagle. How. Dare. He.

By: Balisong

Balisong — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 23:16:04 -0800

It's cause he's secretly a libertarian. With authoritarian tendencies.

By: gum

gum — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 23:46:57 -0800

Thank you. Is there anything else I can do tonight to endorse megapolitical TV instead of being politically active myself?

By: oneswellfoop

oneswellfoop — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:10:09 -0800

I remember the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles only because the City Council passed a law intended to discourage gridlock, expecting serious traffic problems. Traffic turned out a lot easier than anybody expected, but when I, not paying attention, got stuck in an intersection a block from a freeway on-ramp (where that happened for years before the Olympics came to town), I got a ticket. The reason I wasn't paying attention was a very interesting NPR news report about an emerging politician on the national scene named Bill Clinton. My thoughts a moment before the cop car signaled me to pull over - after I get moving - were "that Clinton sounds like a crook who's going to turn the Democratic Party into the Republican Party; he'll probably end up President." It was one of the most astute political observations I ever made, and cost me $110 traffic fine.

By: Joakim Ziegler

Joakim Ziegler — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:57:48 -0800

Totally ignoring the joke and the olympics and everything: That torch is pretty badly placed into his hand. Meaning "I'm going to copy and paste this torch behind a clenched fist to make it half-assedly look like he's holding it" bad. Farley usually puts at least a bit more work into his stuff.

By: heeeraldo

heeeraldo — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 01:11:16 -0800

mannequito: Wednesday and Thursday at 10 a.m. at Creekside Park, next to Science World. I imagine you'd want to show up ~9 to get tickets.

By: Davenhill

Davenhill — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 01:32:48 -0800

As much as I like Colbert, I was anticipating not liking yet another one of his self-promoting shticks. But I like the poster. "Defeat the world"? Hilarious. The slogan sounds like both a parody of conservative foreign policy and, well, let's face it, a fairly accurate -- if not somewhat cynical -- description of the attitude underlying the Olympics.

By: telstar

telstar — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 01:37:14 -0800

Good move coloring commie Canada red.

By: infini

infini — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 02:35:21 -0800

winter olympics when you're in Helsinki are the biggest thing there is... (btw, LOVE colbert)

By: plinth

plinth — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 03:15:08 -0800

See, I read this as 'Porter' and initially thought they were going to post the recipe. Mmmm...beer - but, oh I guess, no so much.

By: twoleftfeet

twoleftfeet — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 04:15:19 -0800

Stephen Colbert is rapidly becoming more influential than Rush Limbaugh and will definitely beat him at speed skating.

By: psylosyren

psylosyren — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:14:05 -0800

His alter-ego is Alpha Squad member Tek Jansen, and I have a place where he can place that hot Oni-Press action, and it is pink, lovely, and warm. Pink like Victoria, Pink like hot Neo Pinup girl videos, pink like Henry Wallace's 1948 Progressive party that established a September 11th resolution to end the Peace time draft. ...Stephen. Together we can defeat the world. Just call me. Just let me know.

By: dunkadunc

dunkadunc — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:27:38 -0800

Nice graphic, but as far as being political goes i'm going to file this one with the wacky pillowfight flash mobs. There's so much that could be said and it's all reduced to a dumb, safe joke.

By: ph00dz

ph00dz — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:32:40 -0800

Love it.

By: Atreides

Atreides — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 06:15:01 -0800

Appropriate.

By: briank

briank — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 07:23:10 -0800

Hey guys, 2008 called and they want their memes back.

By: Liquidwolf

Liquidwolf — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 07:37:56 -0800

Fairey is really phoning it in these days. He can do better, ...I think.

By: Durn Bronzefist

Durn Bronzefist — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:07:36 -0800

Yeah, this is a spot-on, sharp criticism of an Olympics that existed, maybe, never, in which the primary criticism is misplaced patriotism. The Olympics I know has a dozen things wrong with it before you ever get there. Cute, though, as always.

By: Nelson

Nelson — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:25:07 -0800

Odd choice of font. Looks like a British propaganda font, but also looks more contemporary, like it was made in the last few years. I think Fairey has become his own brand now. Too bad.

By: fourcheesemac

fourcheesemac — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:43:58 -0800

Colbert's comedy is not mere distraction and entertainment. The man is a brilliant social critic. He empowers his viewers to see the world clearly for its pathetic absurdities. I think he's the greatest comic mind of our time, Lenny Bruce level good. Colbert's humor feels like a wind at my back when I do engage in substantive political action. He is a voice for rationality in an irrational age, and he makes his case pretending to be irrational. Jonathan Swift could have learned a thing or two.

By: jeffmik

jeffmik — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:45:20 -0800

Its funny but some tool is going to take it literally and glue up a couple hundred of them.

By: nooneyouknow

nooneyouknow — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:48:31 -0800

For more context on the poster's design, see this segment of yesterday's Colbert Report where he discusses the history of Olympic art with David Ross.

By: hippybear

hippybear — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:55:36 -0800

some tool is going to take it literally and glue up a couple hundred of them. Don't you know it. And that's going to be the funniest part of it all. Colbert's minions are many and willing, and this is right up their alley. The only thing really saving Vancouver is that he hasn't decided to bring them in by the busload to do the work.

By: misterpatrick

misterpatrick — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:58:59 -0800

The Olympic Torch is a funny thing. One of those fun recent olympic traditions given to us by the Germans. I worked with BMW one year when they were a big sponsor for the Atlanta games. I had always thought that the torch was reserved for athletes of people who'd accomplished something important, but discovered that all the execs on the ad campaign got to carry the torch for awhile. Even the freakin' admin who was too lazy to make photo copies ("Please fax it five times") got to carry it. Complete joke.

By: humboldt32

humboldt32 — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:03:24 -0800

You forgot the "flamingdildo" tag.

By: quin

quin — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:14:34 -0800

Hey guys, 2008 called... 2008? I'm thinking 1981. I was anticipating not liking yet another one of his self-promoting shticks. Thus far, I've been loving his entire approach to the Olympics this year. He's taken a sport that, as far as I know, very few Americans paid attention to, and made it a focus of public attention. And his segments of trying out for the different teams were beautifully done.

By: hippybear

hippybear — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:29:25 -0800

He's taken a sport that, as far as I know, very few Americans paid attention to, and made it a focus of public attention. Not just that, but when a sponsoring company pulled out from giving money to the Speed Skating team at the last minute (curse you, new economy!!!), Colbert stepped in and called upon his fans to donate, and they pulled together the required $300,000 in under a month. It felt like a stunt at the time, but his involvement and his ability to mobilize his fans (and their wallets) truly made the difference for an entire sport's worth of American athletes.

By: GuyZero

GuyZero — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:30:26 -0800

That is one HUGE joint he is holding up.

By: straight

straight — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 10:09:41 -0800

I love Colbert and this poster, and I think that it's all part of the fun whenever an American doesn't get that it's satire. But it makes me sad to think of some random Nigerian, Bolivian, or Turkish athlete (with no reason to know who Colbert is) seeing this poster in Vancouver and just thinking it's one more example of Americans being dicks.

By: hippybear

hippybear — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 10:13:08 -0800

some random Nigerian, Bolivian, or Turkish athlete (with no reason to know who Colbert is) When my partner was in Bolivia a couple of years ago presenting at a conference, he reported back to me that apparently Bolivian satellite service carries channels which include The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Whether the locals watch them or not, I have no idea.

By: Copronymus

Copronymus — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 10:59:25 -0800

some random Nigerian, Bolivian, or Turkish athlete (with no reason to know who Colbert is) My recollection from spending a lot of time looking at the 2006 Winter Olympics website is that many, if not most, of the athletes from smaller countries were living in the US or Western Europe either as students or because that's where the best training facilities are. Of the ones who stayed in their home country, the majority went to a university there. Overall, Olympic athletes are young, relatively wealthy, educated, and thus probably pretty aware of American pop culture.

By: dw

dw — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 11:01:26 -0800

some random Nigerian, Bolivian, or Turkish athlete There are Nigerian and Bolivian winter sports athletes at this Olympics? As for the Turks, there are only two. So "random" is going to be a little hard to do.

By: GuyZero

GuyZero — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 11:11:19 -0800

A lot of winter Olympics athletes who compete for not-very-wintery countries are really residents of some otehr country with nominal citizenship. For example, in Turin the Italians got an automatic slot in the men's hockey competition but there simply aren't enough Olympic-class hockey players in Italy, but there are a lot of triple-A-class/AHL hockey players in Canada who have Italian parents and qualify for an Italian passport, so part of the Italian men's Olympic hockey team was scouted and recruited from Canada. So any Nigerians who show up at the winter Olympics probably have spent a lot of time outside of Nigeria and may well get that the poster is a gag, even if they're not Colbert Platinum™ members.

By: Splunge

Splunge — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 11:15:06 -0800

So... I'm the only one who is getting a bit tired of Colbert? Okay, I'll go now. Sorry.

By: longdaysjourney

longdaysjourney — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 11:29:16 -0800

I'm the only one who is getting a bit tired of Colbert? I actually liked his bits on the Daily Show better (I still remember his "Two Stevens/Stephens" debate with Steve Carrell, back when the latter was on the show), but that's mostly because I don't like the character he plays on the Colbert Report. But at satire, the raison d'être of his show, Colbert really has no equal on TV today. I hope he and Jon never quit.

By: XQUZYPHYR

XQUZYPHYR — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 11:41:34 -0800

Hey guys, 2008 called and they want their memes back. Hey guys, Shepard Fairey called and he's been producing art like this for over twenty years. It's not a "meme" just because you personally only gave a shit for a few minutes.

By: dunkadunc

dunkadunc — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 12:54:08 -0800

OK, despite my original scorn the poster's grown on me enough that I just had it printed out in 2'x3' glossy format. I'm kind of stoked.

By: rigby51

rigby51 — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 13:10:42 -0800

Background looks familiar.

By: june made him a gemini

june made him a gemini — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:34:28 -0800

Fairey is such a hack. I'm seriously at such a loss as to the crap that this poster is, you can tell how much he truly relies on AP stolen imagery to achieve his work.

By: katerschluck

katerschluck — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:59:06 -0800

you can tell how much he truly relies on AP stolen imagery to achieve his work I can't tell that at all. What imagery is stolen in this? And does it even matter? Don't artists lift stuff all the time anyways, like in music sampling?

By: Decimask

Decimask — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:12:09 -0800

> Background looks familiar. And rigby51 gets the Aweome Post of the Day award.

By: rigby51

rigby51 — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:39:54 -0800

Awe, o, me?

By: stormpooper

stormpooper — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 11:10:35 -0800

What is he holding? A big, flamming shoe horn?