All Persons Fictitious Disclaimer - Use For Comedic or Other Purposes

Use For Comedic or Other Purposes

Because the disclaimer is intended for serious purposes, it is often the subject of comedic satire. The Three Stooges' parody of Nazi Germany, "You Nazty Spy", stated that "Any resemblance between the characters in this picture and any persons, living or dead, is a miracle." The sequel I'll Never Heil Again features states that "The characters in this picture are fictitious. Anyone resembling them is better off dead". In the film An American Werewolf in London, and in "Michael Jackson's Thriller" the disclaimer refers to "persons living, dead or undead". An episode of the TV series Red Dwarf included a news report saying an ancient scroll had been found containing such a disclaimer for the Bible. The novel Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut features a truncated version of the disclaimer: "All persons, living and dead, are purely coincidental, and should not be construed," referring to the novel's existentialist themes. The memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, by Dave Eggers, because of its autobiographical nature, features the following play on the usual disclaimer: "Any resemblance to persons living or dead should be plainly apparent to them and those who know them, especially if the author has been kind enough to have provided their real names and, in some cases, their phone numbers. All events described herein actually happened, though on occasion the author has taken certain, very small, liberties with chronology, because that is his right as an American." Richard Linklater's 1990 feature film Slacker ends with "This story was based on fact. Any similarity with fictitious events or characters was purely coincidental." All episodes of South Park open with a tongue-in-cheek disclaimer that begins by stating, "All characters and events in this show – even those based on real people – are entirely fictional. All celebrity voices are impersonated – poorly." In the beginning of the 2009 American comedy-drama film (500) Days of Summer, a disclaimer is given: "Any resemblance to people living or dead is purely coincidental ... Especially you, Jenny Beckman ... Bitch." (The film is about a failed romantic relationship.)

Disclaimers can occasionally be used to make political or similar points. One such chilling disclaimer is shown at the end of the industrial/political thriller The Constant Gardener, signed by the author of the original book, John Le Carre: "Nobody in this story, and no outfit or corporation, thank God, is based upon an actual person or outfit in the real world. But I can tell you this; as my journey through the pharmaceutical jungle progressed, I came to realize that, by comparison with the reality, my story was as tame as a holiday postcard."