Comments on: Help Explain Total Eclipse's "Glee Club of the Damned" and Dr. Horrible's "Dead, Not Sleeping"?

Question: Help Explain Total Eclipse's "Glee Club of the Damned" and Dr. Horrible's "Dead, Not Sleeping"?

WCityMike — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 18:47:12 -0800

Could someone explain to me two references I don't get? In Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog, Billy receives a letter from "Dead, Not Sleeping" (clip). Is that a reference to something? Also, in the Total Eclipse of the Heart "literal" video I posted to Mefi, there's a lyric that says: "And I've joined the Glee Club of the Damned (reference joke!)" (clip). What's "Glee Club of the Damned" a reference to? I presume it's a reference to something since they outright say it is ...

By: EmpressCallipygos

EmpressCallipygos — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 18:51:02 -0800

What's "Glee Club of the Damned" a reference to?

I don't think it's a reference to a single discrete thing -- I think it's just a riff on "glee clubs as a concept + all these people look like they're creepy = voila, 'glee club of the damned'."

By: Captain_Science

Captain_Science — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:09:50 -0800

I always assumed that "Dead, not sleeping" was a homage to the Monty Python dead parrot sketch.

Mr. Praline: I'll tell you what's wrong with it, my lad. 'E's dead, that's what's wrong with it!
Owner: No, no, 'e's uh,...he's resting.

By: bunnycup

bunnycup — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:17:31 -0800

Well, for Glee Club of the Damned...

The children in the movie(s) Village of the Damned have oddly glowing eyes, like the choirboys in the scene.

By: The Devil Tesla

The Devil Tesla — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:44:13 -0800

I think the "reference joke" line from the Total Eclipse of the Heart "literal" video is an [insert reference joke here] kind of thing. Maybe.

By: rokusan

rokusan — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:44:16 -0800

Yes, Children of the Damned was how I took it.

By: WCityMike

WCityMike — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 20:13:52 -0800

There we go. Thanks to you both.

By: Hargrimm

Hargrimm — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 20:37:12 -0800

I like to think the "dead, not sleeping" is a reference to Terry Pratchett's fantastic Discworld series of fantasy parody books. In them, Granny Weatherwax, a country witch, has the ability to Borrow, basically inhabit the mind of an animal. However, when she's borrowing, her human body is left behind with no mind, and appears to be dead. Enough people have stumbled upon her in this state that she wears a sign around her neck, inscribed with "I ATEN'T DEAD".

But, I'm probably wrong.

By: greekphilosophy

greekphilosophy — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 20:46:27 -0800

I also took it to be a riff on Internet users who would be following Billy's blog. Akin to xkcd's recent commentary on 4chan: the darkest place on the Internet. Obviously people interested in following an aspiring villain's blog are going to be the dark, brooding types. Consequently they will choose dark, brooding usernames like deadnotsleeping.

By: Pinback

Pinback — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 21:33:35 -0800

The "dead, not sleeping" line goes back much further than pTerry or Python - it's a riff on "not dead, just sleeping", which was once a common epitaph.

Or as Spike Milligan put it, upon encountering it on a woman's gravestone: "She's only foolin' herself!"

(And that line itself is riffed upon in one of pTerry's "Witches" books, IIRC...)

By: batgrlHG

batgrlHG — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 00:46:36 -0800

Darnit, someone already came in with the Monty Python explanation. So I'll just leave a link where you too can own a (non smelly, plush) dead parrot.

By: Bardolph

Bardolph — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 07:34:26 -0800

As Pinback points out, the not-dead-but-sleeping reference predates Monty Python considerably-- I think the original source may be Mark 5:39?

By: IndigoJones

IndigoJones — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 07:44:18 -0800

What Pinback said.

There's a gospel song called "Mother's Not Dead, She's Only Sleeping". Several variants and artists exist.

Similarly, Pilobolus have a number called, "Molly's Not Dead"

By: trip and a half

trip and a half — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 08:27:52 -0800

The Stanley Brothers do a version of "Mother's Not Dead" here.

I also remember a version with the lyrics "Molly's Not Dead", but it's not the Pilobolus one. Wracking my brain to try to remember what it was.

By: trip and a half

trip and a half — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 08:35:02 -0800

Er: 'racking' my brain.

By: trip and a half

trip and a half — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 08:39:09 -0800

Er: Also, Bill Monroe is credited as the original artist for the Stanley Brothers' version. I'm going back to bed now.

By: acrasis

acrasis — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 08:56:18 -0800

Let's not forget "dead C'thulhu waits dreaming".

By: Sidhedevil

Sidhedevil — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 09:17:41 -0800

The epitaph "not dead, but sleeping" was common as far back as the 17th century.

There may also be a reference to Poe's "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar"--

I had asked him, it will be remembered, if he still slept. Now he said:

"Yes;—no;—I have been sleeping—and now—now—I am dead."

By: knile

knile — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 06:18:39 -0800

I wrote to the creator of the Total Eclipse literal video, and he wrote back:
"Hi, guys!

The Glee Club of the Damned is indeed a reference to Children and/or Village of the Damned, and I used the backing vocals to drive home that I was obviously(?) using yet another pop culture reference. Ironically, this is not the first time I've been asked about "reference joke", making "Glee Club of the Damned" the least obvious reference in the whole video! (Not that I myself have seen either of those movies, mind you.) XD

I'm honored that my video is mentioned in the same breath as "Dr. Horrible". On a related note, Felicia Day mentioned this video on her Twitter account (back on June 4)! Thanks to her, and to the rest of you for watching, sharing (and holy cow, did you share!), and most importantly, enjoying! I hope to flip you more slo-mo birds of laughter in the future.

-David (dascottjr)"

By: WCityMike

WCityMike — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:29:09 -0800

Wow, thanks, knile! That's above and beyond.