According to German folklore, doppelgängers are sort of like evil twins, spiritual negatives who look identical to living people but who are actual paranormal presences who walk the earth causing rambunction. Since he lumbered onto the national scene in 2008, I’ve struggled to determine where I’ve seen Mitt Romney’s doppelgänger before. He reminded me of someone I felt like I knew, but not a friend or a relative. A high school principal from a Disney channel original movie? My college dorm mate’s rich dad who offered me a cigar outside of church one time? Then one day, as I was struggling to overcome a summer cold and watching old episodes of Sex and the City (shut up; it’s corn syrup gravy for my overworked brain), it hit me: Mitt Romney is Trey MacDougle, the dorky other half of Charlotte York’s ill-fated first marriage. And then, I started seeing noticing Mitt Romneys everywhere, all over pop culture. He’s been right in front of us this whole time, you guys. Let’s dive into the world of Mitt Romneys in popular culture. It’s like the whole world is Where’s Waldo?
Herman Munster
That’s so Romney The awkward robotic mannerisms and square, masculine head shape exhibited by the Frankenstein-y patriarch of the 1960’s CBS sitcom are the obvious point of comparison here, but it also works because Paul Ryan has a bit of an adult Eddie Munster vibe. And on a macro level, The Munsters, filmed in old-fashioned black and white, was ultimately cancelled after ratings fell after Batman, which was shot in full color, hit airwaves. Old fashioned idea made obsolete by a public eager to toss out the old in favor of the new? Impossible to not draw a GOP parallel here.
Duck Phillips from Mad Men
That’s so Romney! Ok, so the dog thing: according to Romney family legend, Mittens once strapped the family Irish Setter to the roof of the car before taking a trip to Canada. The dog became so frightened on the trip that he shat himself with fear, but rather than letting the dog ride inside of the care, Romney simply got out, hosed the vehicle off, and continued on his merry way. Once the family arrived in Canada, the dog may or may not have run away.
On Mad Men, the perpetually fear grimacing Duck Phillips inherits his dog after his wife divorces him. Also an Irish Setter, but named Chauncey instead of Seamus.