[Kirkwood]

Chase had the persona of an intelligent guy who was just acting like he was the class clown. Except he never really pulled off the intelligent part. Most people just saw him as a doofus the way we see Al Franken for example. And the clown part never had much depth... it was always superficial and trite. And you are right in saying that there was a meanness to his comedy. Political comedians are often just plain mean as opposed to teasing and playful.

Belushi on the other hand was simply brilliant. If there was ever a mean thought in his head, it never was obvious. He was born to be funny, He understood the little nuances that made people love his characters, but he also knew how to go over the top. He covered the entire comedy spectrum. He lived and loved the role of a funny man and his comedy was honest and sincere and never lame, but just deep-down, core of the earth funny.

[discostu]

What always amazes me about Belushi is that we think of his as a loud over the top comedian but his funniest stuff is quiet. I always think of the sewer scene in Blues Brothers, after yelling that whole list of lame excuses for missing his wedding he gets down on his knees and just looks at Carrie Fisher. While the list is funny it's the look on his face when he's done that elevates the scene to hilarious. Same with Animal House, everybody thinks of "I'm a zit" or the "Germans bombed Pearl Horbor" scene, but it's really the soririty window scene that's his best.