What made Bill Hader's "Sidney Applebaum" character so funny on SNL? - ProProfs Discuss
Advertisement

What made Bill Hader's "Sidney Applebaum" character so funny on SNL?

Asked by C.Emily, Last updated: Apr 20, 2024

+ Answer
Request
Question menu
Vote up Vote down

11 Answers

Barry Mclean

Barry Mclean

Ask me anything!

Barry Mclean
Barry Mclean, Sales Manager, MBA, Ewa

Answered Nov 30, 2020


SNL is a legendary show that has graced television screens for decades. It is known for taking aim at pop culture and politics. Over the years, there have been many remember-able characters, which viewers may go back and revisit old clips of. The character Sidney Applebaum is one of those characters.

It was played by Bill Hader. His character is one playing a Jewish Dracula. The name is one that sounds just like a Jewish name. It was also funny because Hader broke character and laughed at himself many times. His laugh by itself is infectious, which made the audience laugh with him.

upvote downvote
Reply 

B. Denton

B. Denton

Who wants to travel all the world and capture all the moment in his camera.

B. Denton
B. Denton, Traveler, journalism, Greater Manchester

Answered Sep 30, 2020

There are some people who cannot help but say good things about the character Sidney Applebaum. A lot of people may find it funny solely because of its name but if you would delve into it deeper, you will realize that it is much more than that. You need to realize that this is also known to be a Jewish character.

There are some people who cannot help but say good things about the character Sidney Applebaum. A
There are a lot of people who find everything about the concept of this character funny. What makes this even funnier is whenever Bill Hader, who plays Sidney Applebaum, tries to break the character lines and starts laughing. It makes watching the whole show even more worth it.

upvote downvote
Reply 

R. Tanner

R. Tanner

R. Tanner
R. Tanner

Answered Sep 25, 2020

Sidney Applebaum happens to be one of the characters in "Love and Death", a Woody Allen movie. In this movie, Sidney expresses himself, saying that they call him mad, but when the history of France is written one day, his name would be marked well.

Sidney Applebaum happens to be one of the characters in
The incongruity between the lameness of his name and the kind of personal history would have remembered the humor in this. Sidney Applebaum, being a French general, talks about the way the whole world would remember his name after his victory. This is just the major part of the "love and death" movie that makes it a great and really humorous one. As for Bill Hader, he acts being barely easy to break, which forms a cool reputation that he has on the show. Bill Hader breaking character is another part the audience love and keeps laughing without control.

upvote downvote
Reply 

E. Reyes

E. Reyes

Building buildings and building intelligence

E. Reyes
E. Reyes, Builder, graduate, Birmingham

Answered Sep 23, 2020

The reason that Sidney Applebaum is so hysterically funny is that you would think that Jewish Dracula would have a sophisticated or stereotypical name that is difficult to pronounce. However, the name turns out to be a familiar sounding name, "Sidney Applebaum."

The reason that Sidney Applebaum is so hysterically funny is that you would think that Jewish
The audience laughs because they enjoy the irony. It is SNL's best inside joke ever. The fact that Bill Hader abandons his character and breaks into uncontrollable laughter. The joke is based on a line from the movie "Love and Death," an old Woody Allen picture. In the film, a French general discusses how the world will remember his name, Sidney Applebaum, when he becomes a huge success. Bill Hader's playing the character adds another fun element to the way that the character is portrayed.

upvote downvote
Reply 

F. Manasseh

F. Manasseh

I love to code. I believe everything is programmed in a certain way to make it work. From human brains to every single command in the machines.

F. Manasseh
F. Manasseh, Software Developer, B.E (Bachelor of Engineering), Tallahassee, Florida

Answered Sep 18, 2020

A lot of people love watching SNL, and those who watch SNL regularly will be familiar with Sidney Applebaum. Sidney Applebaum is known to be a Jewish vampire. The character definition by itself is already funny for a lot of people.

Some feel that this is so funny that they can describe some of the different episodes from the time that this was introduced by Bill Hader up until the time when the character already had to leave SNL. One of the things that people remember about this is the term “Blackula.”

Some people feel that this is very cool, but they do not know that this is an actual name or that this is truly Jewish−sounding.

upvote downvote
Reply 

G. Woods

G. Woods

Traveler and writer by profession.

G. Woods
G. Woods, College student, Graduate, Southampton

Answered Sep 18, 2020

SNL (Saturday Night Live) is known for its many legendary funny bits throughout the years. Some are so funny that a fan of it can describe it from beginning to end as if they are reenacting or watching it in present time. One of those bits is the character Sidney Applebaum, played by Bill Hader. There are many reasons why this characters is so funny. One is the name Jewish Dracula.

SNL (Saturday Night Live) is known for its many legendary funny bits throughout the years. Some are
This name is okay for the character, but with a common name they are offended. This corresponds to how people stereotype Jewish people with characters that are Conservative. Another reason why it is so funny is that Bill Hader breaks character. Anytime a comedian, it goes to show how hilarious the joke is.

upvote downvote
Reply 

Cesar H. Pablo

Cesar H. Pablo

Cesar H. Pablo
Cesar H. Pablo, Journalist

Answered Sep 18, 2020

For people who watch SNL regularly, it will not be a surprise to them to learn more about Sidney Applebaum. For those who do not know, Sidney Applebaum is actually a Jewish Dracula character. When Bill Hader had to leave SNL, people were said. They remember the Sidney Applebaum character the most.

For people who watch SNL regularly, it will not be a surprise to them to learn more about Sidney
The name of the character is funny for a lot of people because when you think of someone like Dracula, you would think of a scary and cool name, but the name of the Jewish Dracula sounds very Jewish. Another reason is Bill Hader is known to laugh very hard, and people who watch him cannot help but just laugh along with him.

upvote downvote
Reply 

W.Willow

W.Willow

W.Willow
W.Willow

Answered Mar 12, 2020

There are a lot of people who find Bill Hader’s Sidney Applebaum character funny. There are a lot of reasons why it is supposed to be funny, but people should not disregard the fact that the Blackula comment did not go unnoticed, and people absolutely loved that. Some may think that this sounds cool, but actually, this is a Jewish sounding name.

There are a lot of people who find Bill Hader’s Sidney Applebaum character funny. There are a
A lot of people think that Jewish people are very conservative, so the fact that this was done makes it funny for a lot of people. Another thing that made a lot of people laugh is the fact that Bill Hader started to laugh nonstop. He is known to be able to laugh easily, and when someone’s laugh is infectious, people cannot help but join in.

upvote downvote
Reply 

F. Manasseh

F. Manasseh

I love to code. I believe everything is programmed in a certain way to make it work. From human brains to every single command in the machines.

F. Manasseh
F. Manasseh, Software Developer, B.E (Bachelor of Engineering), Tallahassee, Florida

Answered Nov 04, 2019

Bill Hader did a remarkable job in this Halloween episode of Saturday Night Live. It is an inside joke between Hader and John Mulaney. Apparently, it has to do with a Jewish Dracula. People tend to stereotype Jewish people as being very practical and conservative. Hader played a hysterical Dracula.

Bill Hader did a remarkable job in this Halloween episode of Saturday Night Live. It is an inside
Hader is a hilarious actor, comedian, writer, producer, and voice actor. His breakout stardom began with Saturday Night Live, and during his time on SNL, he and his character Stefan in Weekend Update segments have been a viewing pleasure.

upvote downvote
Reply 

Samantha Stewart

Samantha Stewart

Love to do some charity work. Have a passion for writing and do it in my spare time

Samantha Stewart
Samantha Stewart, Philanthropist, Post Graduate, Corpus Christi

Answered Sep 24, 2019

There are a lot of people who love SNL. They think that it is hilarious, especially since they already know the backstory behind the characters that are being played. Sidney Applebaum is said to be so funny because the name of the character is very common.

There are a lot of people who love SNL. They think that it is hilarious, especially since they
People are used to Jews having names that are hard to pronounce. This alone already adds to the joke, but the way that Bill Harder plays the character adds a nice touch to the way that this character is portrayed. The character can break into fits of laughter, and you know what they say, when someone starts laughing, it will be hard not to join in.

upvote downvote
Reply 

N. Kingsley

N. Kingsley

N. Kingsley
N. Kingsley, Writer, Columbus

Answered Jun 26, 2018

There is a back-story regarding the joke between Harder and John Mulaney, aired on Saturday night live. There are two aspects to the joke. It is ironic that the name of the Jewish Dracula will be cool, but are taken aback by a very common name. This relates to many people stereotyping Jewish minority with conservative and sensible characters.\

There is a back-story regarding the joke between Harder and John Mulaney, aired on Saturday night
Bill Harder breaking character into fits of laughter is immensely funny and adds to the entire joke, making it an immensely hilarious moment on Saturday night live. Bill harder is commonly known for breaking character and easily gives in to fits of laughter at the slightest provocation.

upvote downvote
Reply 

Advertisement
Advertisement
Search for Google images Google Image Icon
Select a recommended image
Upload from your computer Loader
Image Preview
Search for Google images Google Image Icon
Select a recommended image
Upload from your computer Loader
Image Preview
Search for Google images Google Image Icon
Select a recommended image
Upload from your computer Loader

Email Sent
We have sent an email to your address "" with instructions to reset your password.