Composer Shares Banned Oscars Song Mocking Evangelical Critic of SpongeBob

In a recent development, composer Marc Shaiman has revealed the song he wrote for the late Robin Williams to perform at the 2005 Oscars ceremony. The song, which was deemed too scandalous by ABC, was a satirical take on evangelical leader James Dobson's criticism of the popular cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants.

Shaiman, who is just an Oscar away from achieving the prestigious EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) status, shared the original demo of the song on his Instagram account. The song was intended to be performed by Williams while he was presenting the Best Animated Feature award. The lyrics comically alleged that various iconic cartoon characters, such as Sleeping Beauty, Superman, and Bugs Bunny, were engaged in questionable activities, from drug use to stripping.

However, the network faced significant pushback from the Oscars producers due to the song's content. Shaiman and his collaborator, Scott Wittman, were forced to make numerous changes to appease the censors, but ultimately decided to withdraw the song altogether, as they had "lost their sense of humor" in the process.

In a 2005 essay for Entertainment Weekly, Shaiman expressed his frustration with the network's censorship, questioning their "sense of the ridiculous" and wondering who they were afraid would sue, "Casper or the Klan." The composer lamented the fact that such creative content is often censored "on our behalf" without the public's knowledge.

Despite the setback, Shaiman has now shared the original demo, allowing the public to imagine how the performance would have unfolded with Robin Williams' comedic talents and a full choir and orchestra backing him up.