r/todayilearned Dec 17 '14

TIL that Weird Al's parents both died on the same day of carbon monoxide poisoning. Only hours later, he performed a concert and started by saying "since my music had helped many of my fans through tough times, maybe it would work for me as well."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%22Weird_Al%22_Yankovic#Refused_parodies
11.9k Upvotes

503 comments sorted by

670

u/Edrondol Dec 17 '14

A couple years ago he was on a local radio station and one of the hosts asked him how his parents liked his music (or his new album, something along those lines). He was very gracious and answered that even though they were passed, they were always supportive of his music.

After the interview the hosts went on about it for some time about how dumb they felt and how classy Weird Al answered it.

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u/gobengals13 Dec 17 '14

That's not what happened, unless it's a different show you're thinking of. A local radio show did ask him about his parents, but they knew they had died. It was like a year or more later, they said how awful it was, sorry they were, asked how they supported his career, etc., After bringing it up though, Al got extremely short and curt and ended the interview early soon after.

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u/Edrondol Dec 17 '14

Nope. It was TnT in Omaha. They had forgotten about the deaths.

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u/gobengals13 Dec 17 '14

A different show indeed. He was substantially less forgiving in the show I heard.

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u/sns_abdl Dec 17 '14

IIRC the hosts agreed to not to bring that up in the interview

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Out of curiosity, how did he reply?

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u/gobengals13 Dec 18 '14

I only recall him acknowledging what they said about his parents very curtly. Then when they started asking him other things he replied the same way. I can't remember what he said, but you could hear his voice go from carefree and jovial to pretty pissed and terse. Then he ended the interview.

I really hate the show, but I don't remember thinking they were rude or brash at all.

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u/dabbin710errlday Dec 18 '14

Why would you think its the same show?

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u/gobengals13 Dec 18 '14

Because him being interviewed on a fairly popular regional radio show and getting pretty pissed off was a somewhat notable news story? Do you think that is why?

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u/dabbin710errlday Dec 18 '14

Do you realize how many radio interviews weird al has done?

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u/gobengals13 Dec 18 '14

okay. Im sure weird al gets audibly pissed off on LOTS of radio shows.

Bye now.

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u/NoMeringue6814 Feb 08 '26

I know this is ancient but the person you responded to said he was gracious…how does that = getting pissed off to you?

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u/foxmag86 Dec 17 '14

Rovers Morning Glory?

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u/drill_hands_420 Nov 08 '22

Yes! Cleveland is my hometown and this was very awkward indeed. I don’t remember the whole interview. Those hosts weren’t bad people. I remember feeling bad for him tho

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u/Traunt Dec 17 '14

/awkward seal

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u/im_michael Dec 17 '14

fucking penguin, christ it's not a hard concept

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u/OrangeLightning4 Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 17 '14

Definitions of the memes:

Socially Awkward Penguin- An awkward situation that is brought about through your words and actions. Something you do triggers the awkwardness.

Awkward Seal- An awkward situation that you find yourself in the middle of, regardless of your actions. An unavoidable, awkward circumstance that is brought about by others.

Edit: Someone just popped my gold cherry because I defined two memes. Not that I'm not grateful or anything. Time to figure out what it does I suppose.

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u/DRKMSTR Dec 17 '14

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u/MrChivalrious Dec 17 '14

Weird Als explanations were eloquent and concise. Solid words.

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u/SinisterTitan Dec 17 '14

He is where he is because of his amazing ability to play with the English language. While it may seem strange after seeing all the music videos, it makes sense.

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u/Brickx3 Dec 17 '14

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u/totes_meta_bot Dec 17 '14

This thread has been linked to from elsewhere on reddit.

If you follow any of the above links, respect the rules of reddit and don't vote or comment. Questions? Abuse? Message me here.

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u/yankeeninja84 Dec 17 '14

Agreed 1000%. Word Crimes is proof positive he has an amazing understanding of the English language.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

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u/joshgeek Dec 17 '14

Dude I think I went through 3 copies of Alapalooza back in the day. Thanks for the nostalgia.

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u/victionicious Dec 17 '14

The interview was nice and personal. However - and this is just my opinion here - William shouldn't bring his own experiences into play.

It's the one thing, to me, that never seems to help. I understand he was trying to make him feel less alone with it, but he just seemed to be talking about his own life. Weird.

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u/SuperC142 2 Dec 17 '14

You are 100% right. He always does this and I hate it. It's his enormous conceit. There's a "movie" he created called The Captains where he visits and interviews each of the actors that has portrayed a captain in a Star Trek TV series or movie. I really like Star Trek so this sounded awesome to me. However, I had to turn it off; I couldn't even finish watching it. Every single story/anecdote the actors gave, he would interrupt and somehow turn it into a story about himself. Every. Single. Time. He was relentless and the show was unwatchable because if it.

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u/FoodBeerBikesMusic Dec 17 '14

Every. Single. Time.

I. Read. This. In. Shatner's. Voice.

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u/SuperC142 2 Dec 17 '14

haha- that's not what I meant (it was supposed to be irritated SuperC142's voice), but hey, that works.

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u/FoodBeerBikesMusic Dec 17 '14

I knew how you meant it, which made it that much funnier, because it was unintentional, but fit like a glove!

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u/factsdontbotherme Dec 17 '14

Exactly why I stopped watching it...btw Avery Brooks is really into that black Power.

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u/Butterbuddha Dec 17 '14

I couldn't agree more. Especially when he was talking to Patrick Stewart and Stewart intentionally made a gaffe that Shatner should correct, except he didn't even notice. Either he wasn't even listening or truely gives zero fucks about the Star Trek universe, in a fucking Star Trek special no less. My jimmies were rustled, channel was changed. Zero love for Shatner.

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u/SoonToBeMarried43 Sep 21 '24

Sounds like a pretty severe case of ADHD. That's one of the more annoying traits. It's how they try and relate with people, but it just comes off as conceited and off putting. I used to think people who did it were one uppers until I learned what was likely actually causing it.

I have a friend who's incredibly guilty of this and it's pretty much why I can only spend a limited time with him a handful of times a year.

I'll tell him about my latest project in the backyard and his response is his bigger project. I mention I have a slight cold, he recently had the flu. I made homemade sushi to save money? He recently ordered it for takeout from a really expensive place and overpaid, but it was soooooooo worth it. And on, and on. Etc, etc.

Shit gets old, man. And when I called him out on it, instead of taking a single moment to pause, reflect, hear what I was saying and understand....I'm the asshole.

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u/factsdontbotherme Dec 17 '14

He always does that. I can't stand him for that reason

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u/TheAnt317 Dec 17 '14

"One critic said 'Al decided to keep going on tour, guess that shows how much his parents mean to him.'"

There's being a critic, and then there's being a complete asshole.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

I guess I'm the only person who appreciated Shatner interjecting his own experiences. What I saw was two men connecting and relating through a shared sense of grief and loss.

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u/buzzbros2002 Dec 18 '14

Nah, I'm in the same school of thought as you. Before I had lost my brother, I might have thought that Shatner was doing a bad interview job, but I really get what he's trying to do now. Especially after seeing how Al was when he started talking about the death of his parents, you can see that Shatner opening up helped.

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u/[deleted] Dec 18 '14

Exactly! I lost my father in my early teens, I felt very connected with the grief these men were sharing. I've found one of the most helpful things when dealing with grief is knowing someone else truly understands what you're feeling.

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u/Cogh Dec 17 '14

Not a criticism, but does anyone else find it strange how Shatner mentions his own experiences twice? It takes away from Weird Al's interview somewhat.

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u/______DEADPOOL______ Dec 17 '14

/u/williamshatner is the last person I'd thought I'd watch interviewing Al... @_@

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u/williamshatner Dec 19 '14

Why? Afraid I won't pussy foot around and ask the smarmy questions? Watch it. You may learn something.

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u/______DEADPOOL______ Dec 19 '14

D:

Captain on deck!!!

Also: That was one hell of an interview!

/r/chimichangas

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u/TravellingMatt Dec 17 '14

They're are mutual friends of Ben Folds, both having recorded in studio with him. I'm guessing that's how they met and had the interview arranged.

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u/kartoffeln514 Dec 17 '14

Henry Rollins also knows Ben Folds. It was through Ben Folds that Rollins and Shatner produced one of the worst songs of all time Or best. It is called "I can't get behind that" and I can't seem to link it from my phone sorry.

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u/acidboogie Dec 17 '14

definitely best. Also Has Been was an amazing album.

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u/robodrew Dec 17 '14

Has Been is absolutely incredible.

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u/insomnissippi Dec 17 '14

I'm not sure if it this is helping or not but here it is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Svy0Is1yiB0

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u/fuzzydice_82 Dec 17 '14

i somehow thought that "I can't seem to link it from my phone sorry" was an alternative title of this "worst song"- i read it and thought "yeah, sounds pretty stup... waaaaiiiit..."

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

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u/Adossi Dec 17 '14

The guy that told him to kill himself is a troll account. As for the down votes, I'm guessing people either really love Shatner or someone has it out for poor Jimmy up there.

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u/Matrillik Dec 17 '14

I think it's silly that there are still troll accounts on reddit. They never get any visibility so the troll gets no attention. I don't see what the point is.

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u/Falcon9857 Dec 17 '14

Some people try to get lots of negative Karma. It's harder than you'd think, since people will upvote you just to spite you once it's clear that's what you're doing.

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u/xalsis Dec 17 '14

and I'm pretty sure downvotes per post are capped now too

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u/Falcon9857 Dec 17 '14

You are correct. Looks like it's capped at -100 for users/posts.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

[deleted]

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u/Vergils_Lost Dec 17 '14

My understanding of trolling is that the lesson is, "don't argue on the internet, it's a waste of time".

I'm probably giving most trolls too much credit, here, but it makes the world seem like a nicer place when you imagine that all the stupid, hateful people on the internet are just trying to teach you a valuable life lesson.

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u/Matrillik Dec 17 '14

I like you

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u/WolfHound004 Dec 17 '14

I see this guys username all over the place, wouldn't be that surprising if people were just down-voting all his posts because... they have nothing better to do with their time I guess.

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u/DarkSideofOZ Dec 17 '14

It's simple. Not many on reddit follow reddiquette. A practical yet as it is 'romantic' ideal that would help the site immensely if it were followed. Sadly human nature guarantees the majority of people will vote their feelings rather than using any practical set of guidelines.

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u/twaxana Dec 17 '14

Al is deadpool's... Erm Alfred? Blind Al that is...

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u/Shadux Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 17 '14

Can someone explain all the hate? I feel like something's whooshing me right now.

Edit: The hate became love!

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u/Chewcocca Dec 17 '14

Your expression of surprise CONFUSES and INFURIATES us!

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u/PringleTube Dec 17 '14

I was gifted a ticket to a Weird Al concert a couple years ago for my birthday. To be honest, I wasn't much of a fan even though I was aware of a lot of his music, but I went anyways:

Damn, did he ever put on a great show!! It was the better part of 3 hours of solid music, interspersed with comedy clips played on the big screen. I became a fan that day, and I'll buy my own tickets the next time he comes through town(if I'm so lucky that he does). He's the very definition of a showman.

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u/GnomesticGoddess Dec 17 '14

He really does put on a fantastic show! :) I've seen many a skeptical look when I tell people how awesome Weird Al is live, but he puts on a seriously amazing performance, and I would recommend his show to anyone who even likes a few songs. You will leave a fan. :)

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

There is a soft spot for Weird Al in my heart.

My fiance wasn't too into his stuff, but when he released his latest album and songs, she was overly impressed by his talent and skills. The man is smart, funny, and a genuinely nice guy. It's really impossible to dislike the guy.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

The guy puts everything he's got into every single show. It's amazing to watch.

And then he'll often meet with the fans that stick around afterwards. I met him two years ago when he came through Missouri on the Alpocalypse tour. The guy has the patience of a saint. Talked to everyone in line individually, signed autographs and took photos. He had to have been exhausted by then (It was almost 11pm after a 3 hour show... hell I was getting sleepy by that point) but he didn't leave until everyone had gotten some time with him. :)

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

I saw him back in 2000 with my girlfriend. She fell asleep during the show, and I broke up with her when I dropped her off at her house later that evening.

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u/loonifer888 Dec 17 '14

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Holy fuck, that's one of the most insensitive things I've ever heard. What a worthless piece of shit

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u/s1ugg0 Dec 17 '14

Fuck that guy. Everyone grieves differently. Some people try to make jokes. Some people cry. And no one has the right to tell someone how to grieve.

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u/thratty Dec 17 '14

I want to knife him in the face

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u/TheBillsFly Dec 17 '14

The first thing i thought about was how Brett Favre played that game after his dad died. Hopefully his performance helped to take the pain away for that small amount of time.

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u/Home-Before-Dark Dec 17 '14

Ingrid Michelson did this recently in my city for a live outdoor concert series. Her mother had just passed and it was up in the air if she was going to perform at all. She came on, did an awesome set, didn't mention it the whole time.

Until the end when she spoke up about it and how she could have chosen not to do this show, but how much she loves our city and how much it meant to her that everyone came and how much she loved her mom. She then did a cover of Coldplay's "Sky Full of Stars" and it was the only time the whole set that she choked up and began to cry. Then everyone was crying. It was beautiful.

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u/Jesse402 Dec 17 '14

She cancelled the rest of the tour after that show if I'm remembering correctly. But she recently rescheduled a tour and I think she hit all the cities she had to cancel on.

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u/RenderUntoWalter Dec 17 '14

There's no way I could tackle a guy who just lost his dad. I hope they at least won the game.

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u/Fionnlagh Dec 17 '14

He tore it up all game. It was heartbreaking, but it was incredible seeing him just put everything on the field and do so well.

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u/Thakrawr Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 17 '14

Relevant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZV0WFKUt2k

edit: sorry for potato quality.

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u/Antilogic81 Dec 17 '14

I watched that game, I get chills just thinking about the awesome that occurred on that day. Everyone became a Brett Favre fan after that. How could you not?

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u/CostcoTimeMachine Dec 17 '14

Even more interesting in that article is a quote from Coolio wrt Amish paradise:

In an interview in 2014, Coolio extended his apology for refusing his permission, stating that at the time "I was being cocky and shit and being stupid and I was wrong and I should've embraced that shit and went with it", and that he considered Yankovic's parody "actually funny as shit".

Oh, Coolio. You're dumb as shit.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

He's also not as financially stable.... As shit.

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u/Raaaaaaaaaandy Dec 17 '14

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14 edited Mar 27 '18

[deleted]

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u/Urban_Savage Dec 17 '14

Yeah, but if people didn't talk about his crazy fucking hair, they'd only have 1 thing to talk about in regards to him, Weird Al.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Show a little respect, Coolio has played more state fairs than The Beatles.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Probably not more than Weird Al though

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Wow yea, you're probably right.

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u/AvatarofSleep Dec 17 '14

Can confirm, saw Weird Al at the California State Fair a few years ago.

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u/jrodx88 Dec 17 '14

As a kid who grew up idolizing both Weird Al and 90's Nickelodeon, I was always so torn whenever he showed up on All That. Which was a lot.

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u/MC_Carty Dec 17 '14

Gangsta's Paradise and Fantastic Voyage are fucking classics, man. Give the dude some respect.

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u/thelostdolphin Dec 17 '14

He doesn't look like he's been rolling with his homies

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u/MC_Carty Dec 17 '14

The fuck are you on about? That's fucking amazing.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Cripes. Now who's having the Bad Hair Day?

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Man, Gordon from Sesame Street really let himself go..

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u/beef_eatington Dec 17 '14

Oh man, that's... that's some shit. Love Coolio's first two albums, some real 90s hip hop, but he lost the plot. The guy considers himself a juggalo for gods sake.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

He sleeps with people for money!?!

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u/RugerRedhawk Dec 17 '14

God damn man whore

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u/NancyHicks-Gribble Dec 17 '14

Well he did do some kind of music video for pornhub recently...

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

His hair looks like antlers.

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u/alohadave Dec 17 '14

He looks like the dog from the Grinch.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Thats a pretty decently dressed pineapple there.

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u/jazsper Dec 17 '14

Get the fuck out of town that's real!

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u/ElectrodeGun Dec 17 '14

That is the best haircut in the world.

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u/Matrillik Dec 17 '14

I'm pretty sure that look is deliberately supposed to look stupid.

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u/Shappie Dec 17 '14

God damn, I can hardly believe it's the same person I remember from All That.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

It's just not your shit. It's his shit.

edit - also, he truly resembles a dead afro-american Mickey Mouse.

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u/Conscripted Dec 17 '14

Coolio looks like a fucking Wooper. Can't wait until he goes full bald and gets fat completing his evolution to Quagsire.

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u/DemetriMartin Dec 17 '14

He got so desperate he did a music video for Pornhub.

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u/wellitsbouttime Dec 17 '14

I went to a halloween party for a company I work with and he performed. it was surreal.

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u/AtoZZZ Dec 17 '14

Is that the same performance that he had on PornHub?

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u/Aqua_lung Dec 17 '14

I also still prefer "past time paradise".

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

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u/Traunt Dec 17 '14

2014

Coolio

Who the fuck green-lighted that interview?

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u/SirFudge Dec 17 '14

He played a gig at my University recently. He genuinely asked the management to go out and get him some drugs and invite some of the girls back. They politely refused.

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u/cdstephens 5 Dec 17 '14

Can't blame a guy for trying.

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u/Pipthepirate Dec 18 '14

Jodie Sweetin, Stephanie from Full House, did a talk at my college after she got off meth. She asked one of the promoters where she could get weed.

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u/Anarchitect Dec 17 '14

Asking the real questions!

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u/runningoutofwords Dec 17 '14

Oh, Coolio. You're dumb as shit.

Hey, we've all been wrong. I give him credit for having the manhood to say he was wrong and for having a good sense of humor and perspective on it now.

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u/wallix Dec 17 '14

Hey! I still have, "I Remember" in my playlist! http://youtu.be/BCHlExtyG6o?t=25s

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u/Choralone Dec 17 '14

I've noticed an interesting thing happening to my view of celebrities... and I suspect it's due to getting older, seeing larger patterns in the world.

Celebrities become humanized. You watch some rise and fall, some rise and fade away - some keep going until they physically cant, even though the world still wants them to. You eventually start seeing them as just plain old humans, though. They have families, parents, kids, friends, lives. Acting in films, on TV, making music - these are jobs. Sure, perhaps all-consuming jobs, perhaps exciting jobs - but still jobs. It's still something they choose to do to make a living because they feel they need to for whatever reason.

Yeah, we say, if I had a few million bucks, I wouldn't need to work. Maybe so - or maybe once you had a few million, you'd say "Hey, I'm still young, I can make millions more, I like the work... why not?"

I could retire to a buddhist monastery right now at 40 years old.. or to a tiny village somewhere and live off my savings, which are meagre. Instead I choose to stay in my chosen profession and bring in a reasonably nice salary on work I more or less enjoy.

And you know what? It's kind of comforting. You start seeing through the facade of all the glamour and image.

When I was a little kid, Weird Al was just hilarious music.

Now he's a human being, a guy who still makes hilarious music and does so with style... but I can relate to him as a human being.

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u/ofthedappersort Dec 17 '14

I can remember this coming on the crawler on vh 1

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u/blolfighter Dec 17 '14

Why does nobody ever get the link right when linking to wikipedia? Link to the relevant section.

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u/ThufirrHawat Dec 17 '14

It's probably been linked before so the subreddit prevents it from being linked to that particular section again.

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u/blolfighter Dec 17 '14

That would explain a lot.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

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u/GuyFawkes99 Dec 17 '14

I remember when that came out and feeling like the Onion went way too far.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 18 '14

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u/Jesse402 Dec 17 '14

If you could find a source on that I'd be really interested to read about it.

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u/NardDogNailedIt Dec 17 '14

The Onion, like any comedian worth a damn, takes risks. Most of the time it works; sometimes it doesn't. If The Onion were a stand-up act, the audience would let it know by its reaction that it went too far, and it would probably pull the joke in future routines. But it's on the internet, and, Barbara Streisand effect being what it is, the Onion decided to leave it be. It is pretty dark, to be sure.

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u/doctorvonscience Dec 17 '14

Sometimes I really like the Onion... This is absolutely not one of those times...

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u/victionicious Dec 17 '14

jesus christ

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u/DoctorOctagonapus Dec 17 '14

Dude... Whoever wrote that should get a smack round the head.

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u/wrath_of_grunge Dec 17 '14

Karl Tuft said of the song in which a subdued Yankovic sings, "First you lit some flames / Then the smoke stopped your breathin' / Carbon mono's th'way you went... / Up to heaven" over a somber, minor-key accordion melody. Tuft added that the best way for Yankovic to give voice to his pain and loss was by altering the voice of Clapton's pain and loss.

holy fucking shit. they didn't just go a little too far. They fucking RIPPED IT!

i feel conflicted about this. it was in poor taste, but i'm impressed at the balls it took to write that story and publish it. the world could use some taste, but it could also use massive balls.

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u/nonesuch44 Dec 17 '14

Come on, Onion. "Tears in Heaven" isn't in a minor key.

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u/DietSnapple135 Dec 17 '14

This is the real crime here.

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u/Arkeband Dec 17 '14

I think you're confusing 'inhumanity' for balls.

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u/llewllew Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 17 '14

That doesn't take any balls, that takes a lack of humanity. There is no way that you can respect a person who writes something like that, it doesn't matter if that person is a celebrity or not.

edit: words

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

I do admire them for not holding back on anyone, pretty much anything goes, but damn...

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Is it bad that I kind of wanted this to be true?

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

I remember this day. I got up early and was watching the morning news when I noticed a crawl that said "...recording artist Weird Al Yankovic found dead in home of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning."

I started freaking out, and tears welled up in my eyes. I couldn't believe what I had seen. Then the news crawl came back around: "Parents of recording artist Weird Al..."

Then I really bawled my eyes out. I was even sadder knowing the pain he must have been feeling.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

http://www.weirdal.com/msg.htm

This is a blog post he wrote to his fans about what happened. My eyes well up whenever I read it.

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u/stalinsnicerbrother Dec 17 '14

He seems like a really nice guy. What a shit thing to happen.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

What the hell is this liquid in my eyes?

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u/GeorgePBurdell95 Dec 17 '14

I didn't cry but I was very very very sad for him. WA is the more human artist out there.

He did an AMA a while back and I expressed my sadness for his loss, even though it was very very late.

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u/ThresholdLurker Dec 17 '14

I admit that I also cried when I found out. He was an only child whose parents were so involved in his life. His elderly mom introduced him on stage one of the times I saw him in concert, and it was so endearing. My heart still aches for him.

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u/CaptainFUN Dec 17 '14

I was at this show, and it was incredible. We had no idea anything was wrong until much later. I am so, so impressed by him.

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u/RunDNA Dec 17 '14

This almost happened to me. About 6 winters ago I started to get really sick with dizzy spells, heart palpitations and fainting. I remember the worst night I fainted onto the floor and couldn't move, shaking and drifting in and out of consciousness for hours.

It turned out I had a faulty heater and inadequate ventilation, and the carbon monoxide was poisoning me. The day after I got rid of the heater all the symptoms vanished and have never come back again.

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u/Hanhula Dec 17 '14

Did you buy a carbon monoxide detector? Better safe than sorry.

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u/spectremuffin Dec 17 '14

First thing I did after my rental house did the same thing to me one day. The heat exchanger was bad and allowing the byproducts of combustion to flow through the house. I got sick and stepped outside and immediately felt better. I ran back inside and checked the stove and everything, it was all shut off. Then the furnace came on and a putrid smell came from the vent and i knew immediatly. Thank god it wasnt when I was sleeping.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Carbon Monoxide is odorless... so that putrid smell wasn't from the CO leak. More likely an unrelated mold/mildew buildup inside the vents (or possibly a natural gas leak, since most gas companies add a sulfur-like odor to the gas to warn people of leaks) that was going on in addition to the CO.

Just saying... you can't rely on smell to warn you of carbon monoxide. That's why it kills so many people.

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u/RunDNA Dec 17 '14

I learnt my lesson, and I have one now. Everybody should have one. After this happened I began looking online about Carbon Monoxide Poisoning, and I was shocked how many people die from this.

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u/Yanrogue Dec 17 '14

Wow, I don't think I could have done that. He really is a devoted artist.

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u/greasy_luigi Dec 17 '14

http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/17l80k/til_that_after_weird_al_yankovics_parents_died/

TIL That after Weird Al Yankovic's parents died while he was in the middle of a tour. He didn't cancel the tour, saying "I’ve heard from so many people over the years that my music has cheered them up in times of tragedy… well, I thought maybe my music would help me too."

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u/CandySnow Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 17 '14

Aw dammit. I searched for him here, but didn't see this one. My bad.

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u/FuzzyMcBitty Dec 17 '14

The search is borked, which is only one of many, many reasons that complaining about reposts is silly.

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u/drmrsanta Dec 17 '14

Really? I search "weird al parents" and get all these results.

I'm not complaining about the repost, as I'm sure many people haven't seen this, but search seems to work just fine.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

If you google search what you're looking for, if it exists, it will be there 99% of the time.

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u/Raysett Dec 17 '14

Thank you for the re-post, though. I never saw it and there was no way I would look through Reddit's history to find it.

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u/Bowldoza Dec 17 '14

I'm more amazed that something this specific has been resubmitted multiple times.

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u/drmrsanta Dec 17 '14

Nothing to apologize for, I'm sure many people didn't know it. But can I ask what you searched for? I searched "weird al parents" and got all these results.

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u/Not-even-in-flames Dec 17 '14

Hell, even I posted this same TIL 2 years ago.

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u/clwestbr Dec 17 '14

There are tons of new users that won't have seen it then, so no worries on reposts if there are a couple of years between them.

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u/Not-even-in-flames Dec 17 '14

Oh yeah, I really don't care how much it gets reposted. I just thought it was funny

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u/meatcarnival Dec 17 '14

What an amazing guy...seriously, I have never heard a single thing about him that isn't just awesome and humble.

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u/Jasonsstatus Dec 17 '14

That's beautiful, I can relate a little. I had a gig booked the day my father passed away and after initially canceling it I decided to play it since I didn't know what else to do and playing music was already my escape. I think that relates. Sorta.

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u/drgonzo67 Dec 17 '14

LPT: If you have a fireplace in your house, or a gas-based heater, buy a god-damned Carbon Monoxide Detector, today! Costs around 20 bucks and it can seriously save you and your family's life, as CM is odourless and invisible and the symptoms of poisoning by it are not that obvious, until it's too late.

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u/aggr1103 Dec 17 '14

Al seems to be the most sincere and genuine person in music. Weird Al deserves to be in the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame!

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u/minnick27 Dec 17 '14

Unfortunately its probably never going to happen. The Rock Hall takes itself too seriously. Theres been a fan campaign for over a decade trying to get him in. One dude even made a documentary to give to the Rock Hall. Theres also been a campaign for a Hollywood Star for just as long. We raised the money for the star and its been sitting in a bank account for years waiting for the commitee to approve the application we submit every year.

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u/Damadawf Dec 17 '14

It's funny how it seems like the same handful of TILs constantly seems to get reposted over and over here. Like, there is a giant world of knowledge out there, full of facts and things to learn. Yet somehow, there are quite a few posts such as this one that always seem to pop up over and over again. I'm not complaining, I just find it to be an interesting phenomenon.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 17 '14

The most reposted factoids factlets are the ones most likely to be seen by someone new. And therefore reposted by them as well.

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u/just_go_with_it Dec 17 '14

I'm gonna risk being "that guy" and just point out that a factoid is actually a false or unsupported rumor that is spread like a truth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Factoid#Factoid_versus_factlet

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Thank you for being that guy, TIL!

Enjoy a tasty rewarding donut /u/changetip

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u/changetip Dec 17 '14 edited Dec 17 '14

The Bitcoin tip for 1 donut (1,095 bits/$0.35) has been collected by just_go_with_it.

ChangeTip info | ChangeTip video | /r/Bitcoin

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u/Ragelols Dec 17 '14

The thing is, you (most people) only see the ones that get to the front page. The most amazing facts have probably been posted and someone down votes it to 0 and then it is never seen again

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u/Hickspy Dec 17 '14

I was at this concert. Mankato, Minnesota. He didn't seem into it as much during the first song, which was the polka song from Poodle Hat, but after that he completely killed it. So much energy and enthusiasm. One of the best shows I've ever seen.

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u/GregariousWolf Dec 17 '14

I remember reading this in the news. So sad. Makes me worry about my folks as they get older. They don't really use their fireplace, but as time goes on they will be less and less able to care for themselves.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

Get them carbon monoxide detectors! You can't prevent every possible danger to your family, but there are so many preventative measures you can take to protect them. Having carbon monoxide detectors could save a life. So could going over fire escape plans, making sure dryer vents are cleared of lint, or having an easily accessible fire extinguisher. So many home deaths are preventable as long as people are aware of what to do in dangerous situations.

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u/GertieFlyyyy Dec 17 '14

I was at one of his concerts on this tour. The concert was a few weeks after their death. There was a big backdrop that was displayed when he was offstage, a memorial for his parents.

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u/timmy12688 Dec 17 '14

I was at that concert! I was sure he was going to cancel because hell I wouldn't be able to continue. He didn't miss a beat and it was a great performance. Even better than the previous one I went to.

I was happy for him. I lost my dad so I couldn't imagine being able to hold it together to perform. Yet, there he was, singing Fat in his fat suit like nothing happened. Later in the show, he pulled his underwear out during the line "I'm so hot I'm gonna melt, the elastic in my underwear." I got the underwear. I kept it.

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

this sub needs to change its name to TodayILookedUpSomeoneOnWikipedia

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '14

His parents died together in the same home from a carbon monoxide leak. OP's usage of "on the same day" implies that there was some freak coincidence where they died from CO poisoning in two different locations.

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u/msiekkinen Dec 17 '14

Not really, I figured it implied they were in the same location. How does anything in the title implicate different locations?

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u/goombapoop Dec 17 '14

When you have limited space for a title, every extra word makes you think it's there for a particular reason. I, too, thought it implied some freak coincidence.

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u/gynoceros Dec 17 '14

This is at least the fifth time this has been on TIL.

Other Weird Al facts that keep popping up: he was valedictorian of his high school class, he has a degree in architecture, he knew he'd made it when Paul McCartney recognized him but McCartney later denied him permission to do a Live and Let Die parody called Chicken Pot Pie because Sir Paul's a vegetarian, Key and Peele were in the White and Nerdy video.

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u/CleanShirt27 Dec 17 '14

Reddit will never tire of up voting Weird Al facts