The Why Behind the 50 Greatest Comedies
We got lots of response to this package, including some blogs that took us to task for how it was ranked. Why chronological order? Find out. What would have been your ranking? We want to know!
Last week, Premiere.com presented The 50 Greatest Comedies of All Time, adapted from the July/August issue of the magazine, and the response was resounding. We did also see our fair share of ribbing out there in the blogosphere about the fact that the list was in chronological order instead of being ranked.
VH1's Best Week Ever blog riffed that “there's something about arbitrary lists we just can't get enough of” and even took us to task for our dearth of 90s entries (“what with there apparently being a comedy dry spell between 1993's Groundhog Day and 1997's Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery”).
Entertainment Weekly's Pop Watch blog mentioned our list was “in that least controversial of orders: chronological,” and added, “Any list that privileges Zoolander over Tootsie is going to kick up more than its fair share of dust.”
I won't even go into GorrillaMask.net's assertion that our Comedies list “easily secures a spot atop 'The Worst Lists of All-Time.'”
Thanks, guys.
Our response? First, I'll be glad to explain why the list wasn't ranked. And second, I throw down the gauntlet to you, gentle Premiere.com visitor (whether you're a big-time blogger or a movie fan, or both).
Why wasn't the list ranked?
Because it originally appeared in the magazine alongside our Oral History of Comedy, which itself was in chronological order. Premiere Editor-in-Chief Peter Herbst and the rest of the editorial staff felt it made good sense to present their picks for the 50 funniest movies ever in the same timeline flow. Online, of course, the 50 comedies have room to stand on their own.
What Order Should Our 50 Greatest Comedies be in?
This is where we issue the challenge. Think chronological order is a cop out? Alright, you rank our 50 Greatest Comedies, with number one being the end all be all of funny in film. Email us with the order you think the films should be in, and we'll post some of those orders right here on Premiere.com. And we know some of you are going to argue that there are films that deserved to be on this list more than the ones we picked, so if you're game, send us your list of the 50 Greatest Comedies. Don't be shy about saying why. We'll post some of those too.
We can't wait to see your lists.
—Jessica Letkeman
Editor, Premiere.com
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Copyright © 2008 Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., Inc.