At Democratic Convention, Eastwood Joke Is a Recurring One

September 4, 2012, 3:58 pm

By MICHAEL BARBARO and ASHLEY PARKER

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - It is the punch line that won't die.

The Party

Capturing the scene at the Democratic National Convention.

Clint Eastwood's sketch-comedy routine with an empty chair has become a seemingly mandatory (read: worn out) joke here, dropped with as much frequency as the names Michelle or Barack.

“Thanks for not Eastwooding,” read the small white signs placed on the tables at a party given by the Washington power couple Tony and Heather Podesta.

During a speech to delegates from Minnesota, Cory A. Booker, the Newark mayor, could not resi st. He dragged an empty chair onstage, to laughter from the audience. “I just wanted to sit down,” he explained slyly.

Elizabeth Warren, the United States Senate candidate from Massachusetts, weighed in, declaring that “like much of America, I was speechless.”

It's hard to blame the Democrats. No less a comedic inspiration than Chris Rock seemed to egg them on, proposing that party leaders “have an empty chair onstage for the entire D.N.C.”

When anybody asks, he said, they should say it is occupied by Osama bin Laden.