Will Rogers

1928

Will Rogers was an American vaudeville performer, actor, radio personality and columnist born in 1879 and died in 1935. Rogers started his acting career performing in Vaudeville acts then got a movie contract in Hollywood. He made 71 films, 50 silent and 21 talkies. By the mid 30’s he was one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood until his untimely death in 1935 in an airplane crash.

Rogers was also a radio personality and nationally syndicated columnist. He was well known for his political humor. Rogers was technically a democrat but he was mostly apolitical and poked fun at everything and everybody. He supported Calvin Coolidge who was a Republican, and he supported Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was a Democrat. In 1928, Rogers ran for president. It was pretty much a joke but it was still a political statement. Rogers ran on the position of a “Bunk-less candidate.” Bunk is another term for whack. His party was the Anti-Bunk Party. If elected he promised that his first action would be to resign.

Gracie Allen

1940

Gracie Allen, born in 1895, was an American vaudeville actress, comedian and radio personality. She was married to the also famous comedian, George Burns. Together they were a comedy duo called Burns and Allen that did shows on both radio and television. Burns was what’s known as the straight man and Allen was the whacky character.

In 1940, Gracie Allen ran for president of the United States on what she called the Surprise Party ticket. The party mascot was a kangaroo with a joey in her pouch and their motto was “It’s in the bag.” Burns and Allen did a cross country campaign tour as they did their radio shows. A famous line from one of her campaign speeches was, “Everybody knows a woman is better than a man when it comes to introducing bills into the house.”

Dick Gregory

1968

Born in 1930, Dick Gregory was an African-American comedian, social critic and cilvil rights advocate. Gregory was the first African-American comedian to cross over in the early 60’s to white audiences as well. He was known for his blunt criticisms against bigotry and racism. He was a pioneer in the “no-holds -barred” comedy sets we see today.

Gregory was also an activist for many of the social issues of the 1960’s. He was a major cultural figure in the civil rights movement and an outspoken protester of the Vietnam War. He was arrested many times for civil disobedience and went on many hungry strikes. He began his political career in 1967 when he ran for mayor of Chicago but failed to win. The next year, he ran for President of the United States as a write-in-candidate of the Freedom and Peace Party. He almost got 50,000 votes, including one by the famous writer Hunter S. Thompson. After this he was famously put on Nixon’s master list of political opponents.

Pat Paulsen

1968

Pat Paulsen was an American comedian and satirist who got famous for being featured on the popular comedic show, The Smother Brothers Comedy Hour. His signature style was his dead pan comedy and double talk comments about the issues of the day. Paulsen was also famous for how many times he ran for President. It started in 1968 and his campaigns were satirical but talked seriously about social issues. During his campaign, Paulsen would obviously lie but it was done on purpose. He was making fun of politicians but also serious about running at the same time. His campaign slogan was, “Just a common, ordinary, simple savior of America’s destiny.” His most famous phrase he would always use when addressing a hot button issue would be: “To get to the meat of the matter, I will come right to the point, and take note of the fact that the heart of the issue in the final analysis escapes me.” Paulsen ran in the Democratic Party primaries several times. In 1996, the finished in second place to Bill Clinton. In 1992, he ran as a republican and came in second to George H. W. Bush in the North Dakota primary, receiving about 11,000 votes.

Stephen Colbert

2008

Stephen Colbert is an American comedian, writer, actor and political commentator. He first became known when he was featured on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show, working as a satirical correspondent. People like his character so much that he got his own political satire show called, The Colbert Report, where he played a fake conservative pundit. That show ran until 2014, then Colbert went and hosted the CBS late night show, where he still is today.

In 2008, Stephen ran for President on both the Democrat and Republican ticket. It was a gag for his show. When the Republican Party came for their $35,000 entry fee to run under their ticket, Colbert bowed out. He still ran as a Democrat because they only charged $2,500. His name was entered into the South Carolina Democratic nomination. However, 20 days into his campaign the South Carolina Democratic Party executive council booted him from the race as not a serious candidate. I doubt they refunded his money.

Roseanne Barr

2012

Roseanne Bar is a 67 year old standup comedian and actress, most known for starring in the tv sitcom, Roseanne, that ran more many years. Before her tv show Barr made a name for herself as a standup comic. She started stand-up in 1980 and by the end of that decade she was known world-wide.

In August of 2011, Barr announced she was running for President while she was on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. She said she was running in her own party she created called The Green Tea Party. Her candidacy called for attention for personal health, economics and meditation. In January of 2012, Barr filed to run for President under The Green Party. That July she came in second place for the nomination, losing to Jill Stein. Stein and Barr did not like one another, criticizing each other often. After Barr lost to Stein she ran on the Peace and Freedom ticket with the activist, Cindy Sheehan as her running mate. Sheehan would later leave the race, due to differences with Barr. Barr appeared on the voting ballot in Colorado, California and Florida. She received 67,326 votes nationwide and placed sixth in the race. She herself voted for Barack Obama.

Ron White

2016

Ron White is a 62 year old stand-up comedian, author and actor from Texas. In 2000, White toured as a member of The Blue Collar Comedy Show, with Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Larry the Cable Guy. The tour lasted for 3 years and sold out shows in 90 cities across America. The tour alone grossed 15 million dollars, not including their insanely popular cd’s and dvd’s. White is best known for his story of how he got the nickname “Tater Salad.” White also wrote the New York Times best-seller book; I had the Right To Remain Silent But I didn’t have the Ability.

In November of 2015, White announced that he was running for President of the United States as an Independent candidate for the 2016 eletion. He announced his candidacy on the AOL BUILD stage. Many thought it was a comedy gag but he was serious. He said he decided after watching many Republican Primary debates. In an interview White stated; “I was just sitting at home, watching the debate… asking myself, ‘Is this it? Are the best and brightest running for President? I have to choose from these people?’” White wanted to improve care for veterans and US soldiers. He also wanted to battle the meth problem we have in the states. Despite all his criticisms, White’s campaign run never turned into anything viable.

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