Watch: Amy Poehler's appropriately hilarious Harvard commencement speech
By James Brady RyanMay 26th, 2011, 10:28 amComments (7)Now that we have YouTube, we live in a world where just because you didn't go to Harvard doesn't mean you can't hear the awesome speakers they get for their commencement ceremony each year. (Unless you did go to Harvard, in which case you obviously have to stop reading this right now. Seriously. Leave.) And while some speakers are probably very serious and inspirational and not the sort of thing you watch at your job when no one's looking, this year the speaker was Amy Poehler! Not surprisingly, her speech captures both the deadpan snarkiness of her SNL years and the the heart-warming adorkability of Parks & Recreation.
Oh, it's also fifteen minutes long, though, so don't get too invested if you actually do have work to do:
Sure beats my commencement speaker, who capped off his speech about environmental problems by assuring us, "We can work to solve these issues, but it is probably too late and we have already failed." (Really gave us all a strong sense of what those first few post-college years would feel like, in his defense.)
Commentarium (7 Comments)
Ahhh, I remember that speech well. It haunts me.
The most prestigous university in the country, and they bring in a comedian to speak? Were no pundits or wonks available?
At 1:09- what was that guy eating???
I enjoyed Poehler's commencement speech.
We had First Lady Michelle Obama ( GWU 2010) as our speaker. It was pretty good.
If she had spoken when I graduated from undergrad, I'd have stayed awake.
Actually, it was the Class Day speech, which is selected by the senior class. The Commencement Address was by the President of Liberia (who was selected by the administration).
What a joke...
Soon enough Indian/Asian comedians will be delivering puns at Yale.
Now you say something