Tina Fey is unquestionably brilliant. I mean she totally owned her role as Sarah Palin during the 2008 election year, appropriately shaming that dunce for such clangers as, "I can see Russia from my house." But aside from that, her splash on Saturday Night Live led to the writing and creation of one of my favorite series, not to mention the New York Times #1 bestseller Bossypants (which is incredibly funny btw). And by the end of "30 Rock," I not only concluded that it's a shining example of how a drop of speculative fiction can improve any tale, but that the immortal Kenneth Parcell is the allegorical stand in for fiction writers everywhere. It's almost like that "tug on the ear" thing that Carol Burnette is famous for doing. Kenneth Parcell was Tina Fey's "tug on the ear" to all of us out here in t.v. land to let you know "the characters you invent will be immortal, just like Kenneth Parcell."
For those of you who didn't watch 30 Rock...well, shame on you. It was really funny and had a lot of great moments. Here are some facts pulled from the 30 Rock Wiki:
Kenneth is a perpetually cheerful immortal NBC page from Georgia. He came from pig farmer stock, and his best friend is his mother.
Throughout the series, Kenneth's age is questioned. Sci-fi website io9 called him an alien (but I don't think he's an alien). Kenneth told Tracy and Jenna that he'd kept a bird for almost 60 years. He's snapped at Tracy before when he asked Jack if there was an age limit to being a page. Kenneth responded "Who said I've been alive forever?!" When Frank played an iPhone application that emitted a low-pitched sound only those over 40 could hear, Kenneth was in agony. We've seen Kenneth packing up a photo given to him by Fred Allen dated 1947 which reads "To Kenneth, you're the tops!" We've also seen a tombstone which shows Kenneth's birthday as May 27, 1781. He's also claimed that his parents at some point were technically brothers. Interesting, eh?
Kenneth also had quite a "coke" problem during his "Wall Street days." This is revealed to mean he used to work at Blockbuster Video and was addicted to Coca Cola around the time that the film Wall Street was popular on home video.
His personality is definitely religious (and he's part of a fire and brimstone church that has services in a basement). Kenneth also reveals that he has no political views since "choosing is a sin." Instead, he always submits write-in votes for God. According to Jack, these all count as Republican.
And let's not forget the most awesome moment in the series finale that shows you how strange Kenneth really is:
So here's my take: Kenneth is not an alien but just a really nerdy/geeky angel that's stuck here on earth and wants to control NBC. From the looks of the final panel above, that's exactly what he got. And maybe that's just the final validation I needed for my own story. If Tina Fey writes about weird angels, then it's okay for me to write about them too. And the characters I invent, just like Kenneth Parcell, will be immortal too.
Also: huge nerd props for featuring a Bespin Cloud car from Star Wars in the window behind Kenneth.
For those of you who didn't watch 30 Rock...well, shame on you. It was really funny and had a lot of great moments. Here are some facts pulled from the 30 Rock Wiki:
Kenneth is a perpetually cheerful immortal NBC page from Georgia. He came from pig farmer stock, and his best friend is his mother.
Throughout the series, Kenneth's age is questioned. Sci-fi website io9 called him an alien (but I don't think he's an alien). Kenneth told Tracy and Jenna that he'd kept a bird for almost 60 years. He's snapped at Tracy before when he asked Jack if there was an age limit to being a page. Kenneth responded "Who said I've been alive forever?!" When Frank played an iPhone application that emitted a low-pitched sound only those over 40 could hear, Kenneth was in agony. We've seen Kenneth packing up a photo given to him by Fred Allen dated 1947 which reads "To Kenneth, you're the tops!" We've also seen a tombstone which shows Kenneth's birthday as May 27, 1781. He's also claimed that his parents at some point were technically brothers. Interesting, eh?
Kenneth also had quite a "coke" problem during his "Wall Street days." This is revealed to mean he used to work at Blockbuster Video and was addicted to Coca Cola around the time that the film Wall Street was popular on home video.
His personality is definitely religious (and he's part of a fire and brimstone church that has services in a basement). Kenneth also reveals that he has no political views since "choosing is a sin." Instead, he always submits write-in votes for God. According to Jack, these all count as Republican.
And let's not forget the most awesome moment in the series finale that shows you how strange Kenneth really is:
Also: huge nerd props for featuring a Bespin Cloud car from Star Wars in the window behind Kenneth.
Have a great Tuesday.
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