Thanks to his illustrious career, Mark Hamill has solidified himself as a true pop culture icon. To many, he’s known for his portrayal of Star Wars’ Luke Skywalker and his turn as the delightfully villainous Joker in the DC Animated Universe, among other roles. The actor, however, is quite humble when it comes to his work and actually seems to prefer talking up others’ accomplishments instead. This desire was more than apparent when he recently nerded out over “Weird Al” Yankovic, and it’s the kind of positive energy the Internet could definitely use more of.
“Weird Al” Yankovic recently celebrated his 62nd birthday, and the singer, songwriter and viral sensation was met with a number of tributes. Mark Hamill’s was certainly among one of the sweetest, as the actor took to Instagram to post a lovely message. In the message, he praised the performer for his many years of hard work:
SHOUT OUT to Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic for no particular reason other than his more than 150 parodies & original songs, singlehandedly reviving the importance of the accordion in pop-music & 4 decades of inspired lunacy!!!
Many would probably agree with the Mandalorian actor’s sentiments, as the humorous songwriter has been putting in work for a while now. In addition to the warm caption, the star also included a number of photos. You can check out the original post down below:
Alfred “Weird Al” Yankovic’s first taste of the entertainment world came in the mid-’70s, during which he served as a radio personality. Near the end of the decade, he recorded what would become the first of his many musical lampoons -- “My Bologna,” a parody of The Knack’s “My Sharona.” By the ‘80s, he had begun producing a steady flow of popular spoofs, with the help of popular tunes from music legends like Michael Jackson and Queen. He would unfortunately hit a bit of a rough patch after his 1989 film, UHF, fell short of expectations.
Nevertheless, the entertainer found renewed success in the ‘90s and has been a consistent fixture in the musical and acting realms ever since. He’s covered a plethora of tracks over the years, many of which can become serious earworms. I personally haven’t been able to get his “Trapped in the Drive-Thru” out of my head since I first heard it back in middle school. Though the music entertains, it also informs from time to time, as he occasionally uses his tracks to promote worthy causes.
Mark Hamill is definitely right to give “Weird Al” Yankovic his flowers. The singer consistently puts out work and always seems to fully commit to a project. His wildly creative mind still seems to have plenty of ideas, so I’d assume we still have plenty of new parodies (and humorous sketches) to look forward to in the future. In the meantime, let’s also hope Internet users can take a cue from Hamill and spread a bit of love online now and then.
