2006 / Video / SNL Digital Short
Dick in a Box
A velvet-suited R&B ballad turns a very bad holiday gift into an aggressively sincere love-song premise.
The original is hosted off-site; this page provides context and a link to it.
What was this?
The performers play the song’s absurd present as smooth, thoughtful seduction, which makes the fake sincerity the central joke.
Why it spread
Its official online release made the sketch a major early example of a broadcast-comedy clip traveling as a standalone internet video.
What happened
The performers play the song’s absurd present as smooth, thoughtful seduction, which makes the fake sincerity the central joke.
Where it came from
The Lonely Island, Justin Timberlake, and Saturday Night Live released Dick in a Box as an SNL Digital Short in December 2006.
Why it mattered
The short helped establish the Digital Short as a format built for both television and repeat online viewing.
How it spread
Its official online release made the sketch a major early example of a broadcast-comedy clip traveling as a standalone internet video.
Keep going
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