(Spam Twitter)-"Spam" is a popular Monty Python sketch, first televised in 1970. In the sketch, two customers are in a greasy spoon café trying to order a breakfast from a menu that includes the processed meat product in almost every dish. The term spam (in electronic communication, and general slang) is derived from this sketch. The sketch was written by Terry Jones and Michael Palin.
Impact
The phenomenon, some years later, of marketers drowning out discourse by flooding Usenet newsgroups and individuals' email with junk mail advertising messages was named spamming, due to some early internet users that flooded forums with the word spam recounting the repetitive and unwanted presence of Spam in the sketch. This phenomenon has been reported in court decisions handed down in lawsuits against spammers - see, for example, CompuServe Inc. v. Cyber Promotions, Inc., 962 F.Supp. 1015, n. 1 (S.D.Ohio 1997).
The Python programming language, named after Monty Python, prefers to use spam, ham, and eggs as metasyntactic variables, instead of the traditional foo, bar, and baz.
[edit]Hormel's response
Spam makers Hormel, while never happy with the use of the word spam for junk email, have been supportive of Monty Python and their sketch. Hormel issued a special tin of Spam for the Broadway premiere of Eric Idle's hit musical Spamalot. Also, the sketch is part of the company's Spam museum in Austin, Minnesota, United States. The sketch was also mentioned in Spam's on-can advertisements for the product's 70th anniversary in 2007, though the date of the Python sketch mentioned was incorrect (1971 when it should be 1970).
In 2007 the Hormel company decided that such publicity was part of their corporate image, possibly for the better, and sponsored a game where their product is strongly associated with Monty Python , even featuring a product with "Stinky French Garlic" as part of the promotion of SPAMalot, a musical based on Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
Sketch
Only three and a half minutes long, it builds up into a semi-argument between the waitress who has a menu limited to having Spam in just about everything (among them, "Lobster Thermidor aux crevettes with a Mornay sauce, garnished with truffle pate, brandy and a fried egg on top and Spam"), and Mrs Bun, who is the only one in the room who does not want Spam. She asks for an item with the Spam removed (despite there already being some items mentioned that do not actually include Spam), much to the amazement of her Spam-loving husband. The waitress responds to this request with great disgust. Eventually, Mrs Bun resorts to screaming, "I DON'T LIKE SPAM!!"
At several points, a group of Vikings in the restaurant (referred to as the Green Midget Café in Bromley) interrupt conversation by loudly singing "Spam, lovely Spam, wonderful Spam." They are ordered to "shut up" by the irate waitress several times, but they resume singing more and more loudly.
The sketch abruptly cuts to a historian in a television studio talking about the Vikings. As he goes on, he begins to uncontrollably insert the word 'spam' into everything he says ("...and Spam selecting a Spam particular Spam item from the Spam menu, would Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam..."), and the backdrop is lifted to reveal the restaurant set behind. The historian joins the Vikings, Mr. and Mrs. Bun are lifted by wires out of the scene and the singing continues on and on...
It premiered on 15 December 1970 as the final sketch of the 25th show of Monty Python's Flying Circus, and the following end credits were changed so every member of the crew has either Spam or some other food item from the menu added to their names. (Spam Terry Jones, Michael Spam Palin, John Spam John Spam John Spam Cleese, Graham Spam Spam Spam Chapman, Eric Spam Egg and Chips Idle, Terry Spam Sausage Spam Egg Spam Gilliam, etc.) The sketch became immensely popular. The word Spam is uttered at least 132 times.
This sketch has also been featured in several Monty Python videos including Parrot Sketch Not Included - 20 Years of Monty Python.
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