anchor: When cocktail party malcontents mocked Shawn's New Yorker in the late '70s and early '80s, they would make fun of such things as E.J.
positive: Cocktail party malcontents would make fun of such things as E.J. when they wanted to mock Shawn's New Yorkers.
negative: Nobody dared to mock Shawn's New Yorker in the late '70s and early '80s.