From The Hollywood Reporter · Oren Peleg · · 1m 30s
Harvard Lampoon Parodies Hollywood Reporter
Harvard Lampoon targets Hollywood Reporter with parody amid industry chaos.
In brief
Harvard Lampoon targets Hollywood Reporter with parody amid industry chaos. The Harvard Lampoon created a parody of The Hollywood Reporter to highlight Hollywood's absurdities, including AI and social media, after finding a former staff member willing to collaborate. Originally reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
Harvard Lampoon's Early Parodies
The Harvard Lampoon created a 1966 parody of Playboy featuring a jester woman on the cover and an editorial by Hugh M. Hefner.
“Pl*yb*y”
Hugh M. Hefner's Reaction
Hefner threatened a lawsuit but the Lampoon staff welcomed publicity and he did not sue.
“Hefner ultimately did not sue”
Modern Parody Tradition
The Lampoon's current parodies focus on less prominent targets like the Harvard Crimson, with no major new parody in 18 years.
“for the last 18 years, there hasn’t been a major new parody”
This Summer's Target
Kai Nelson and Lauren Wood chose The Hollywood Reporter as the parody subject after finding a Lampoon alum on THR's editorial staff.
“I thought we should do something with Hollywood just because there’s so much bullshit”
THR Editor's Response
THR's editor-in-chief Maer Roshan welcomed the parody, noting it provided a fresh perspective on Hollywood's absurdities.
“We spend an enormous amount of time chronicling Hollywood’s anxieties, vanities and absurdities”
Collaboration Details
Roshan agreed to supply THR's fonts, templates, and polybag the print version of the parody with a recent issue of THR.
“Roshan even agreed to polybag the print version of the parody”
Content Choices
The parody included two articles on Scarlett Johansson facing criticism for taking roles she shouldn’t have, referencing the 2017 Ghost In The Shell controversy.
“It’s fine. She’s married to Colin Jost”
Industry Pipeline Myth
The Lampoon-to-Hollywood pipeline is less myth than reality now, with few direct connections to industry roles.
“I know it used to be the case that [David] Letterman would call the Lampoon”
The bottom line
The Harvard Lampoon created a parody of The Hollywood Reporter to highlight Hollywood's absurdities, including AI and social media, after finding a former staff member willing to collaborate.
