Richard Simmons cultural identity

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTxkxG3DF4k

Earlier today I was browsing YouTube and came a across an interesting video of “Whose Line is It Anyways”. The video stars Richard Simmons along with the main cast of the show, including Wayne Brady, Ryan Stiles, Colin Mochrie, and the host Drew Carey. In the show the cast is asked to play a game where two of the members serve as props, while the other two use them and create a fake scenario. Many of the scenes in this show had many sexual connotations, and caused me to think about the psychological aspects of our culture, distinctively homophobia.

In this show a lot of our cultural conventions are being pushed to the limit. Throughout this clip, the idea of homophobia is being ridiculed and made fun of, specifically with the use of the character of Richard Simmons. The way we read Richard Simmons, the signifier, causes us to take a certain viewpoint on homosexuality, the signified. Even though Richard Simmons may just be a popular fitness guru with a flamboyant and high energetic personality, the way the reader perceives him and other characters reaction to him gives the reader a certain viewpoint on homosexuality. Mainly it gives a positive light on the idea. Throughout the video, the rhetoric of scenes specifically at 1:07, 1:45, 2:00, 2:42, 3:20, 4:12, 5:00, 5:21, causes us to associate comedy with the idea of homosexuality. This then creates a counter culture around the idea of homophobia.

Overall, although the show is produced for comedic reasons and is consumed for the same reason, the presentation and representation of characters in the show creates a new type of cultural identity.