Steve Harvey Is Not a Real Person

When comedians deliver stand-up material, you feel like you get to know their actual personalities. Certainly more so than you do with a musician performing their set, or a painter at a gallery.

Comedians explain their thought processes through everyday interactions, family and friendship dynamics, their failures, and their thoughts on the world. What you hear is a more contrived version of their consciousness that makes you feel like you at least slightly know the person. Not like a dear friend, but enough to understand their personality.

Steve Harvey does not achieve this. In fact, he achieves the opposite in both directions. After seeing Steve Harvey live on Family Feud, I think I both have him pegged for exactly who he is, but also know nothing about him at all.

Before seeing a live taping of Family Feud, I thought Steve Harvey was one of the biggest caricatures in the world. At least Steve Harvey the game show host. The signature mustache and flashy suits, or the wide-eyed deadpan look he gives the camera after certain contestants' answers. Steve Harvey has a very specific MO when filming Family Feud, and it's one that everyone at least vaguely recognizes.

There is no doubt in my mind that Steve Harvey is the world's greatest caricature. He outranks his caricature counterparts (Guy Fieri, Deion Sanders, and Lil Jon) exponentially. Steve Harvey is the Tom Brady of caricatures, only if Tom Brady won three times as many Super Bowls.

Now I know what you're saying: "But Dylan, it's a game show, of course he's going to be over-the-top and fake." It's a fair point, but I'd counter with this—have you ever seen a live fucking taping of Family Feud? I didn't think so.