CSPAN isn’t generally known for its (intentional) comedy, but yesterday Seth Rogen managed to bring laughs to the public affairs network talking about one of the gravest subjects of all: Alzheimer’s disease. Appearing before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee, the Knocked Up star used humor to breach the silence, joking about Taco Bell, video games and his own movies while telling the story of his mother-in-law’s illness. As Iowa senator Tom Harkin remarked, it was probably the first time in the history of congressional hearings “that the words ‘knocked up’ have ever been spoken.”
Rogen was careful not to disrespect the senators present, telling them “I’m a huge House of Cards fan” and describing his specialty as “genitalia-driven comedy” in what has to be the world’s most diplomatic euphemism for “dick jokes.” But later the comedian took to Twitter to shame the subcommittee members that skipped his testimony, saying, “Not sure why only two senators were at the hearing. Very symbolic of how the Government views Alzheimer’s.” Rogen also shared a picture of the sparsely-attended hearing with the caption “All those empty seats are senators who are not prioritizing Alzheimer’s.”
Check out the clip above and see the entirety of Rogen’s both funny and affecting speech.