“The Daily Show ”debuts a Donald Trump yule log
- - “The Daily Show ”debuts a Donald Trump yule log
Jordan HoffmanDecember 27, 2025 at 3:26 AM
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Comedy Central; Matt Wilson
President Donald J. Trump in 'The Daily Show' yule log and show host Jon Stewart
In President Trump's America, it's anything but a "silent night."
The patriotic satirists at The Daily Show gave viewers a treat this season — a political spin on the time-honored tradition of a televised yule log. Their version of a crackling fire came fueled with images and quotes from the former host of NBC's The Apprentice and the current president of the United States, Donald J. Trump.
As a choir sings its peaceful melody, one can cozy up to the digital flame and hear the Queens-born Commander-in-Chief making inflammatory statements about former President Biden allegedly falling asleep while on camera. Juxtaposed with these vituperative remarks are, naturally, shots of Trump seemingly falling asleep while on camera.
If you've still got relatives over for the holidays, you can give it a whirl yourself. Surely putting this on, loudly, should generate enough friction in your household to drive off guests — of any political affiliation — who've overstayed their welcome.
“Who the hell sleeps in front of the paparazzi, the media?" Trump barks in the presentation — audio clipped from previous speeches against his rival. "How do you sleep in front of the media? And he’s out cold, you see the dribble coming down the side of his cheek. Who the hell wants to sleep with these people watching? I could never fall asleep under those circumstances. You’ll never see me sleeping in front of cameras,”
Trump and The Daily Show, particularly its longtime host Jon Stewart, have locked horns several times over the years. The funniest was when, all the way back in 2011, Stewart went nuclear over how he and Sarah Palin ate pizza.
SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty
Donald Trump with his table o' plenty back in 2019, an indelible image that 'The Daily Show' has mocked for years
Incidentally, it isn't just arguing about how to eat pizza that originated in New York City. Indeed, the idea of a television yule log got its start there, too.
The first station to come up with the brilliant idea of replacing programming with a looped reel of a roaring fireplace was New York's WPIX, known locally as "Channel 11" back in the day. As most apartment dwellers couldn't have a fireplace, it was a brilliant idea that caught on like wildfire. (But, like, a not-dangerous wildfire.)
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The first WPIX yule log was lit in 1966, filmed at Gracie Mansion (where New York's mayor lives), and broadcast for four hours. If you stare at it long enough, you can find the cut where the fire starts over again. You can not, however, roast marshmallows no matter how close you hold them to the screen.
Today there are all kinds of fancy 4K yule logs that incorporate computer imagery and audience-tailored playlists, but for people who like to kick it old school, here's what the original WPIX yule log looked like.
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
