LOS ANGELES ― Earlier this political season, many comedians lamented the absence of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin in the 2012 presidential race, fearing they would never be able to tap an equally rich source of humor in the stable of button-down Republican candidates. Oh, ye of little faith.

Perhaps, after Rick Perry’s already infamous debate gaffe of absent-mindedness, “The Daily Show’s” Jon Stewart put it best this week: “Many Republican faithful thought Perry would be the answer to their prayers. Turns out, he was the answer to ours.”

Meanwhile, Perry tried to laugh off his nationally televised blunder by delivering a Top Ten list of excuses on “Late Show With David Letterman” Thursday night. Earlier in the week, fellow candidate Herman Cain tried a similar candidacy-saving tack by appearing on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” after allegations of sexual harassment. “Have you considered hiring Gloria Allred as your attorney?” Kimmel joked. (“Let me put it this way,” Cain replied. “I can’t think of anything I would hire her to do.”)

Even before the Perry meltdown and Cain’s sexual harassment tango, America’s late-night comics began mining a rich vein of humor from the diverse lineup of GOP hopefuls, the carnival-like atmosphere that often attends their numerous debates and the tea party zealots the party has spawned. Before he meticulously eviscerated Perry on Thursday night’s “Daily Show,” Stewart went down the list of candidates in the Republican field and staggered each with an acutely delivered punch line.

The comic party, from the ever-acerbic Bill Maher to the usually tame Jay Leno, has assigned roles to most of the candidates ― Mitt Romney as the soulless automaton, Newt Gingrich as the pompous, un-self-aware twit, and Ron Paul as the embarrassing uncle who crashes the family dinner. Others have evolved, as “Conan” writer Rob Kutner points out: “You know, Cain was the pizza guy and now suddenly he’s the horny guy. Perry started off as the execution guy, now he’s the dumb guy. It keeps you on your toes ― which is great for comedy.”

Even “The Tonight Show’s” Leno, famous for his middle-of-the-road demeanor and attempts to remain apolitical, hasn’t been able to resist jumping on the GOP-bashing bandwagon.

“Political experts say that if Greece goes under, the world banks will go under, and then the U.S. economy will go under, and this will cost President Obama the election. But Obama still has three chances to win: Rick Perry, Mitt Romney and Herman Cain.”

Kutner, who wrote for “The Daily Show” during the Bush years, likened the political landscape for comedians now to a rolling buffet cart for the famished.

“Political comedians have been starved for the past few years ― Obama sucks the comedy out of it. More recently, the political sphere has been bone dry ― debt and the economy,” Kutner said. “Then all of the sudden, these political candidates come along and it’s like a dieter and this big feast ― people’s heads start looking like ham hocks.”

A daily challenge for late-night comedy writers is feeding new jokes into the machine, say comedy writers. But this crop of candidates, with their YouTube moments and scandals, has eased their burden, they say.

“It’s a theme park for variety show writers, this group is,” said Andrew Nicholls, formerly head writer for “The Tonight Show” under Johnny Carson. “You’re looking for human foibles ― and here you have ignorance, arrogance, stupidity and foolishness crammed into the smallest number of people. It’s like a Kardashian wedding minus the gifts. Unfortunately, it’s gonna last longer than the Kardashian marriage.”

The target on the GOP candidates’ back is so wide right now that the website Funny or Die launched last week a political satire microsite (“Live Funny or Die”) that will remain live through the 2012 election and parody both parties. Cain appears in four videos on the homepage, including one where he’s played by Mike Tyson singing “Imagine there’s no pizza” to the tune of the John Lennon song. It received more than 150,000 hits its first day.

“We’re not searching for ways to make jokes,” said Anna Wenger, an executive producer of the site’s new political page. “There’s so many characters ― and they’re so extreme. Reagan and George Bush Sr. are nothing compared to Michele Bachmann and Herman Cain. Whereas in the past, Republicans were so conservative and well-spoken. These guys are off the charts.”

Poking fun

Late-night comics’ jokes about Republican presidential candidates:

“I’ve been watching the Republican debates. I watched these eight clowns on the stage and at the end I wanted to raise my hand and say, ‘I don’t believe in evolution.’”

Bill Maher

“In Herman Cain’s defense, there is very little in the pizza world that is not sexually suggestive.”

Jon Stewart

“Mentioning executions is a surefire applause line for conservatives. It’s like saying ‘pot’ to the audience of ‘The Daily Show.’”

Stephen Colbert on Perry’s execution record

“2. I wanted to help take the heat off my buddy Herman Cain.”

From David Letterman’s Top Ten List of Rick Perry Excuses for his debate gaffe

“If I were Mitt Romney, I wouldn’t show up anymore. I would just go to Hawaii and wait it out until the election, drink some caffeine-free Diet Coke and watch Herman Cain and Rick Perry self-destruct.”

Jimmy Kimmel

By Deborah Vankin, Meredith Blake

(Los Angeles Times)

(MCT Information Services)