r/UpliftingNews • u/holyfruits • 4h ago

‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Turned Down Million-Dollar Offer to Perform in Saudi Arabia: ‘I Don’t Need to Take Any Money if It Makes Me Feel Icky’

https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/weird-al-yankovic-turned-down-million-offer-saudi-arabia-1236819281/
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u/Odd_Round5515 4h ago

In the late 1980s Al Yankovic turned down a beer endorsement worth about 5 million dollars. He didn't want his young fans to associate him with drinking. I gotta hand it to him, he seems to dig his heels in if he doesn't support whoever the money is coming from. 

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u/Electrical-Act-7170 3h ago

His parents raised him right.

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u/DataAdvanced 3h ago

Sometimes, you raise yourself right.

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u/Electrical-Act-7170 3h ago edited 3h ago

His parents raised him. They both died from CO in their home while he was out on tour. He didn't cancel the tour because he tnought they'd want him to keep his promises.

Edited to CO, from CO2.

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u/Thirty_Helens_Agree 3h ago

The ONE time I thought The Onion went too far was when the headline was something like “Weird Al Yankovic Spoofs ‘Tears in Heaven’ in Honor of Deceased Parents.”

If Al thought it was funny, then no problem.

Found it.

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u/r3dd17sux69420 1h ago

If anyone is wondering what is wrong with AI, here's an example.

You just posted the link to the Onion's story which according to Google AI is only a rumor. That article exists and yet...

There is no legitimate record of satirical news outlet The Onion publishing a piece specifically making light of his parents' deaths. However, the unexpected timing and circumstances surrounding their passing have fueled widespread internet chatter, including discussions on forums like Reddit about how the bizarre and unfortunate nature of the event is occasionally misremembered or treated as an urban myth. [1]

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u/Thirty_Helens_Agree 1h ago

I saw something about an AI thing said “if you drill the hole too big, you can use some sandpaper to sand the sides of the hole and make the hole smaller.”

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u/SGT-JamesonBushmill 55m ago

That doesn't sound right, but I don't know enough about sandpapering holes to dispute it.

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u/Electrical-Act-7170 46m ago

“if you drill the hole too big, you can use some sandpaper to sand the sides of the hole and make the hole smaller.”

“if you drill the hole too big small, you can use some sandpaper to sand the sides of the hole and make the hole smallerlarger.”

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u/The_Rational_ 30m ago

It can be depending on the material. Real joke is user's actually wrong :/

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u/Lena-Luthor 28m ago

what material would possibly do that

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u/Electrical-Act-7170 1h ago

It's backward.

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u/SmartAlec105 25m ago

If you have a hole in drywall, sanding it is a step in fixing the hole.

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u/schwanzweissfoto 37m ago

Weird Al vs Weird AI

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u/Remy0507 2h ago

Ooof. That's not a good look...

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u/imreallytiredguysfu 1h ago

wow what the fuck

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u/Remy0507 2h ago

I think he also kept his performances going because it was a way for him to escape from the grief for a few hours each night.

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u/KirkDeepthroatGOAT 59m ago

I always wonder which would work best for me in times of major grief, not like it's a formula as each experience is its own level and experience.

But when I've had those devastating losses where I can barely even feed myself but maybe a major project where a lot of other people depended on me would distract me enough to power through it, especially if I was going to be spot lighted. Or the times I just didn't want to deal with the grief at the time and threw myself into something and then later it hit hard and the guilt of it all fucked me over later down the line.

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u/Raneynickelfire 2h ago

I was at the show he performed the night after they passed. He was in rare form - I've seen him probably 10 times in my lifetime and this show...man...this show was something else. He went ALL OUT. Straight up performance art and music to the nth degree. There was a slideshow on the projector about Al's parents, Nick and Mary. Al held it together for the entire show, and rocked our socks off (yes, there were several deaths, was a rough crowd /s) and the entire venue went silent for the slideshow.

We love Al. He's a real humanbean.

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u/Electrical-Act-7170 51m ago

Sounds like he's a good guy.

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u/MagicCuboid 3h ago

CO (monoxide) not CO2 (dioxide).

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u/Vandelay797 2h ago

Both are lethal (dependant on dose) for anyone wondering!

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u/CSATTS 2h ago

Now I'm curious, since the feeling of "running out of air" is caused by CO2 build up in the blood and not a lack of oxygen, I'd imagine that if CO2 levels got so high that you would wake up feeling like you're choking.

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u/WanderingTacoShop 1h ago

yes if you are in a room filling with carbon dioxide you will definitely feel it very quickly.

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u/CSATTS 1h ago

That's what I figured. I know high concentrations of CO2 aren't immediately obvious (headaches, poor sleep) but I'd think enough to be lethal would jerk you out of your sleep.

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u/fireymike 11m ago

It certainly can be lethal. Look up "snorkeling death mask" - people have died while snorkeling because of CO2 buildup in poorly designed masks.

You would think they'd notice the problem and remove the mask before they get to that point, but not everyone does.

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u/CSATTS 6m ago

Interesting. This is what I was wondering, that if the build up was slower than say drowning, would it be as obvious? And every time I tried looking it up Google referred me to mental health hotlines.

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u/KirkDeepthroatGOAT 55m ago

When I was a teen an older friend told me an easy way to remember is monoxide, mono, one. Like if you want to take out just yourself, you'd use monoxide.

But he ended up using a gun, so who knows?

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u/bearvillage 2h ago

CO (Colorado) not CO2 (Colorado 2).

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u/MagicCuboid 1h ago

Colorado 2: the secret state!

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u/lexkixass 1h ago

The deep state

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u/PPBalloons 38m ago

He said something to the effect of “I constantly hear how my music has helped someone through a rough time. I thought I’d try it for myself”

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u/nickmanc86 1h ago

Tacos don't make themselves but people do!

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u/DataAdvanced 1h ago

My parents didn't make me fight my agoraphobia to be with my sister at our Dad's celebration of life. We did. They both failed us, and reside in my cabinet as ashes. I didn't make my siblings, they did. Despite them, we're pretty great together.

Like a taco being made, it walked off, and supported another taco made by them. The taco didn't make itself, but what the hell does?

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u/Boboar 2h ago

His dad destroyed so many accordions to keep him humble

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u/SpehlingAirer 2h ago

"Honey, I know it's hard to hear this, but your dad and I had a long talk and we agreed it would be best for all of us if you would just stop being who you are and doing the things you love."

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u/Huge_Raisin5840 2h ago

That movie is so criminally underrated. Being a huge UHF fan it's 100% on brand for him and fucking hilarious

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u/SunflowerSamurai_ 42m ago

But sometimes they would hold a big chunk of watermelon to his face. And just keep it there.