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04/17/2005: "Screenwriter Jargon"
John Rogers is a fairly prolific screenwriter who has written some good ones and bad ones (he was involved with Catwoman, but by all appearances, the studio fucked it up right good, so don't be too hard on him). I read his blog regularly, soaking up the screenwriting and business advice from the seasoned pro. He posted a neat little jargon primer for professional writers containing some of the more interesting terms he has come across in the writer's room on the various TV shows he's worked on.
For everyone who was around a good bit during the wowgirl shoot, you will undoubtedly remember my fondness for this one:
"The Rake Bit": Something that's funny, goes on too long so it's not funny, then goes on so long that it becomes INCREDIBLY funny.
Goes under a couple different names, but of writers my age, this seems to be the most prevalent. Based on The Simpsons ep that was a Cape Fear riff. Sideshow Bob climbs out from under a car and steps on a rake. It smacks him. He mutters. He then steps three feet away ... onto another rake. He mutters. ad-near-infinitum.
I have always called this "Kicking the Dead Horse Alive."