The Truth about None Pizza with Left Beef
2019-10-29 · letter vlog · Hank · 3:51 · watch on YouTube
Topic: Internet & YouTube (also: Personal life) · mode: Personal essay · tags: calendar ritual, self promotion
Hank retells the 2007 origin of 'None Pizza with Left Beef' (a Domino's online order of crust and beef balls, preserved by Tumblr reblogs) and argues the joke only works through a screen, since no one would ask a person for it; he then briefly says he has finished a draft of his book.
What is said
The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).
00:00:00 — Hank promises to bring the uninitiated into the glorious future of None Pizza with Left Beef
00:00:22 — The 2007 Domino's order, 2007 launches (Tumblr, iPhone, Vlogbrothers) and how Tumblr reblogs carried the post
- ★★ Hank says that in October 2007 a man used Domino's new online ordering, chose no cheese, no sauce and normal beef on the left, and Domino's cooked a crust with beef balls. (playful) — 00:00:22 · None pizza with left beef
- ★ Hank notes that Tumblr, the iPhone and Vlogbrothers all launched in 2007, an important year. — 00:00:43 · Tumblr, Vlogbrothers
- ★★ Hank says what makes Tumblr a fantastic platform is that every reblog with an addition becomes content that cannot be lost and travels with the media. — 00:00:43 · Tumblr
- ★★ Hank says a reblog predicted laughing about it 10 years later; 12 years on he is still laughing. (playful) — 00:01:26 · None pizza with left beef
00:01:49 — Why the joke needs a screen: no one would phone it in; the 99-cent cheese; it is here forever
- ★★★ Hank maintains no one would phone a Domino's for none pizza with left beef: the joke needs an interface between customer and pizza maker so it doesn't feel weird. — 00:01:49 · None pizza with left beef
- ★★ Likewise, Hank says, a man who stripped a cheeseburger down to just cheese could not ask a person for a 99-cent cheese: it is funny only when punched into a screen. — 00:01:49
- ★★ Hank says we will never again live without none pizza with left beef, and he will always have neurons dedicated to it. (playful) — 00:02:19 · None pizza with left beef
- ★ Hank cannot go outside to do a Pizzamas dance because of a blizzard, and forgot his maybe-favorite shirt at home. (playful) — 00:02:19 · Pizzamas
00:02:55 — Pizzamas shirts in a blizzard, the finished book draft, questions on Thursday and sign-off
- ★★★ Hank tells John he has finished a draft of his book, the biggest news of his year. — 00:02:55 · A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor
- ★★ Hank invites viewers to ask questions about the book, which he will probably talk about on Thursday. (hedged) — 00:02:55 · A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor
Humor (significant)
-
Hank imagines the worker on the other end of a screen order quietly giggling at the request. — 00:02:19
“I guess I'm gonna make a cheese.”
-
Hank is about to go outside to dance for Pizzamas. — 00:02:19
“There's a freaking blizzard.”
-
Hank finally mentions his finished book draft, the biggest news of his year. — 00:02:55
“I didn't have time to talk about it because I was too busy talking about nut pizza with left beef, John.”
-
After signing off, Hank ranks his own novel against the meme. — 00:03:46
“I mean, I hope the book's good, but it's not gonna be as good as non-pizza with left beef!”
Threads in this video
- milestone · A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor: Hank's sequel to An Absolutely Remarkable Thing (2018) — Hank tells John he has finished a draft of his book, the biggest news of his year. (00:02:55)
- asked · Hank invites viewers' questions about A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor, to answer on Thursday (2019) — Hank invites viewers to ask questions about the book, which he will probably talk about on Thursday. (00:02:55)
Where the stories that moved here went next
- Hank invites viewers' questions about A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor, to answer on Thursday (2019) — reported back; last: result reported, 2019-10-31
- A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor: Hank's sequel to An Absolutely Remarkable Thing (2018) — completed; last: milestone, 2021-07-16
Mentioned
Central: None pizza with left beef
Also: A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor · Domino's · iPhone · Pizzamas · Tumblr
Later videos replying to this one
- 2019-10-31 · Book News! (Hank) — continues (result on Hank invites viewers' questions about A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor, to answer on Thursday (2019)) — Hank answers questions about writing and his book that he got on Twitter. (00:00:58)