by Dan Campion

“Influential U.S. comedian Mort Sahl dies at age 94”
—Reuters

Mort mesmerized the hungry i,
Ad-libbed on live TV
In sweater, button-down, no tie,
Wrote jokes for Kennedy,

Gave HUAC hell and Johnson gas
And Tricky Dick a fright,
And always had remarks to pass
On every pol in sight.

He didn’t shrink from 45
But zinged him like the rest.
Sharp pupils keep his style alive,
But Mort Sahl did it best.