Ozzy vs. US sense of humour.

janwyl

New kid, pile on in...
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 5, 2011
Messages
121
Reaction score
21
Location
France
Peter Allison is an Ozzy author that wrote a book called Don't Look Behind You. This extract from his blog made me laugh:

"One from the world of writing that is indicative of how certain cultures differ. Don't Look Behind You has two versions - one for Australia and New Zealand, the other for the rest of the world. This came about because of the way a deal was structured, better for me but it did mean that I underwent the editing process for it twice. When the US edit was being done (the one that would be global) an editor pointed out politely that I am apparently obsessed with my posterior and it had been mentioned three times thus far in the manuscript. When the Australian edit was being done an editor wrote in a margin 'chance for a bum joke here?'

Ah Australia, you make me so proud."
 

LunaFancy

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
1,035
Reaction score
36
Location
boondocks, Australia
Ack! It's Aussie not Ozzy! :)

Ozzy is an irritating pink ostrich on an appalling variety show, that has been recently resurrected after a just and good death. *cringes*

That name can induce nightmares in Aussies you know. Memories of the eighties when the show was inflicted upon you by parental types who knew no better. *shudders*

Make it stop! Make it Stop!

*ahem*

But yes, we like our bum jokes. And an appreciation of a good bumming is respected across all socioeconomic strata in this country. Bums can be highly amusing in so very many ways.

Particularly their emissions.

Hilarity unleashed.:tongue
 

Chase

It Takes All of Us to End Racism
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 13, 2008
Messages
9,239
Reaction score
2,316
Location
Oregon, USA
When the US edit was being done (the one that would be global) an editor pointed out politely that I am apparently obsessed with my posterior and it had been mentioned three times thus far in the manuscript. When the Australian edit was being done an editor wrote in a margin 'chance for a bum joke here?'

Ah Australia, you make me so proud.

Hmmm. Two individual editors, with who knows what guidelines to work under. Not much call for national pride or put-downs.
 

janwyl

New kid, pile on in...
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 5, 2011
Messages
121
Reaction score
21
Location
France
Ack! It's Aussie not Ozzy! :)

Ozzy is an irritating pink ostrich on an appalling variety show, that has been recently resurrected after a just and good death. *cringes*

That name can induce nightmares in Aussies you know. Memories of the eighties when the show was inflicted upon you by parental types who knew no better. *shudders*

Make it stop! Make it Stop!

Sorry! When I lived there for five years I saw both ways of writing it. But maybe the ostrich was behind it.

Anyway shan't happen again :)
 

janwyl

New kid, pile on in...
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 5, 2011
Messages
121
Reaction score
21
Location
France
Hmmm. Two individual editors, with who knows what guidelines to work under. Not much call for national pride or put-downs.

Ah. I didn't read it as meaning to be either. Sorry if it offends. Will happily take it off...
 

Tallent

Sockpuppet
Banned
Joined
May 14, 2009
Messages
167
Reaction score
20
Who the hell say's shan't?

"So, I'll put on my leather pants then?"
"No, Ozzy, you shan't."
"But Sharon, I look smashing in them. The fans love 'em. They make my bum look young."
 

veinglory

volitare nequeo
Self-Ban
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2005
Messages
28,750
Reaction score
2,933
Location
right here
Website
www.veinglory.com
Put downs? Liking butt jokes isn't a flaw, neither is not liking it. Personally I thought it was a funny anecdote with an element of truth to it.... Butts do seem to be considered 'ruder' over here (in the US).
 

Chase

It Takes All of Us to End Racism
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 13, 2008
Messages
9,239
Reaction score
2,316
Location
Oregon, USA
Put downs? Liking butt jokes isn't a flaw, neither is not liking it. Personally I thought it was a funny anecdote with an element of truth to it.... Butts do seem to be considered 'ruder' over here (in the US).

The flaw isn't in liking or not liking butt jokes. I don't consider any rude and most funny. The flaw is in basing a national tendency on two editors and what may be only their responses to policy: Ozzy vs. US sense of humour. It springs from national stereotypes and biases.
 

LunaFancy

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
1,035
Reaction score
36
Location
boondocks, Australia
Butt (boom tish!) we do like bum jokes here.:)

The sheer number of arse references in our idiom is astounding. Arse wipe, arse licker, brown nose (from having your nose up another's ... you know what), Fart-arse around, and god knows how many more will come to me after I post this.

Aussies have an arse fixation. We're good with it.

So why the angst?
 

Scribly

I a reel good riter.. i sware.
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 19, 2009
Messages
55
Reaction score
9
I spent a year living in Brisbane and discovered Canadian and Aussie sensibilities are quite well aligned on the topic of posteriors, bums, arses and other assorted cracks. I love Queenslanders and enjoy a good bum reference whenever possible and in any context!
Go Broncos!
 

backslashbaby

~~~~*~~~~
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2009
Messages
12,635
Reaction score
1,603
Location
NC
Who doesn't love arse references, I wonder? Not as a putdown, of course. I'm genuinely interested in cultural differences that way :)

I secured an obscure book of old Muscogee oral stories, preparing to be taken to some spiritual ancestral plane or something... you know how it goes.

Fart jokes. Lots of fart jokes :ROFL:
 

STKlingaman

Followed the Red Brick Road
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 9, 2009
Messages
526
Reaction score
55
Location
lost in Arizona
Ozzy on TV?
had no idea,
er . . . that meaning so what
or who cares.

Wasn't he some kind of musician, in
one of those Rock & Roll bands before
the internet, twitter, cell phones,
color tv, walkmans, cd's, dvd's,
oprah, cable tv, night baseball in wrigley field,
jillin dollar sport contracts, etc....

Or do you mean Ozzy of Ozzy and Harriet?
 

Caitlin Black

Wild one
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 17, 2009
Messages
44,834
Reaction score
2,928
Age
39
Location
The exact centre of all of existence
Luna means "Ozzy The Ostrich" from an Australian evening show from way back (that's made a return recently) called "Hey, Hey, It's Saturday".

Strangely, when it made a comeback, it was not aired on a Saturday.
 

MissMacchiato

Bring on the Sweet, Sweet Coffee
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 28, 2010
Messages
2,672
Reaction score
259
Location
Hitting up Starbucks
NEVER Ozzy in Australia. Oz, yes. Ozzy, never.

Ozzy:

HEYLP01.jpg


Aussie:

koala01,0.jpg


lol. I'm all for the feck-arsing and so on to continue, though! (isn't feck arse a great phrase?)
 

LunaFancy

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
1,035
Reaction score
36
Location
boondocks, Australia
*spies that arsehole ostrich*
Arrrrrrrrgggggghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sending you the therapy bills MM!

And yeah - calling a show 'Hey Hey it's Saturday' then airing on a Wednesday speaks volumes about its quality.

All of it true, I might add.;)

 

LunaFancy

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
1,035
Reaction score
36
Location
boondocks, Australia
In retrospect - I think the greater part of the therapy sessions will be spent washing the image of Darrel Somer's hair from my memory.;)

Still your fault MM!:tongue
 

Rufus Coppertop

Banned
Flounced
Joined
May 24, 2009
Messages
3,935
Reaction score
948
Location
.
This is my current fav. thread.

And I don't understand half of it.

:)

Once upon a time we had a Saturday night show hosted by a bloke named Darryl Somers whose sidekick was a big pink puppet named Ozzy Ostrich. The whole thing was ad libbed and riddled with in-jokes that everyone was in on.

A bloke named Molly Meldrum, well known to be gay, would have a segment where he would promote some pop singer or other and explain to the youth of Australia that they should buy this CD because this singer is good.

At some point during Molly's inane ramblings there would be a reference from the voice over guy to Molly being gay. Then there would be a hwoor hwoor kind of laughter.

There was Red Faces - some bloke whose claim to fame is that he was once the bass player from the band Skyhooks would judge acts along with the guest for the night and someone else. The acts were terrible, the comments scathing.

Tattslotto - big turning barrel with little balls with numbers on them.

Chook - quintessentially Australian slang for chicken.

Put them together, you get .... wait for it ........... chooklotto. A giant turning thing with frozen chooks with numbers on them.

I could go on but it's best not to.
 

LunaFancy

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
1,035
Reaction score
36
Location
boondocks, Australia
I am currently PTSDing over here! :e2tongue:

*boxes at imaginary head on a stick that's shouting 'Mr Somers! Mr Somers!*

I will never the same again!:e2cry:
 

ElsaM

lurker extraordinaire
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 2, 2008
Messages
293
Reaction score
34
Location
somewhere else
Let's not forget that it started out as a Saturday morning show for children that somehow made it to prime time. And I never found the ostrich quite as annoying as Dickie Knee, the hat on a stick.

Wasn't chooklotto eventually replaced with Plucka Duck, involving an angry man dressed up as a duck who ran around giving everyone the finger?

Not my favourite show.