GLThe Taco Bell joke
Carlos Mencia , compared with George Lopez
A Latino comic's joke built around Taco Bell, which George Lopez says Mencia took for his HBO special.
Lopez has said Mencia's HBO special contained about 13 minutes of his material; the Taco Bell joke is the only bit he has named publicly. (paraphrase)
HBO stand-up special (as cited by Lopez)find on YouTube ↗
Lopez claims the joke as his own. Comic Ted Sarnowski says he did it on radio in 1988, that Lopez used it without permission, and that he explicitly let Mencia perform it. (paraphrase)
Stand-up actfind on YouTube ↗
Everyone involved calls it the same Taco Bell joke, but no wording survives on record, and even its original author is disputed.
- Premise 30/40
- Structure 18/30
- Punchline 18/30
- Premise30/40Both sides call it the same Taco Bell joke, but its content is not on record.
- Structure18/30Claimed to be the same joke; no text exists on record to compare its shape.
- Punchline18/30No version of the punchline is on record for Mencia, Lopez or Sarnowski.
Setup
A joke built around Taco Bell, in his HBO special.
Setup
A Taco Bell joke, claimed by Lopez and by Sarnowski.
Turn
Not on record.
Turn
Not on record.
Punchline
Not on record.
Punchline
Not on record.
Scores and beats are our editorial reading of the public record, not a ruling.
Context
When and where
George Lopez said on The Howard Stern Show that Mencia used about 13 minutes of his material, including a Taco Bell joke, on Mencia's HBO special. Comedian Ted Sarnowski says the joke was his: he performed it on radio in 1988, where Lopez was the station's resident comic.
What followed
On The Howard Stern Show, Lopez said he got physical with Mencia over it. Sarnowski's counterclaim muddied who originated the joke, and Mencia has denied stealing from Lopez.
Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Carlos Mencia by Sara Csurilla, U.S. Air Force, Public domain