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Michael Richards was on Letterman tonight and to be honest, bro seemed out of it. We don't want to say he sounded like a guy strung out on something or a few fries short of a happy meal but everything was wrong. Even the backdrop CBS gave him was fucked up. It reminded us of a bad acid trip where everything you say comes out wrong and everything you do feels off and you just want to go to sleep and start over in the morning.
We love you Kramer and we only want the best for you which is why we suggest you study these two clips from the gone but not forgotten comedic genius Bill Hicks who was a master at the heckler put-down.
Please enjoy the Freebird heckler above and the You Suck heckler after the jump.
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After watching Michael Richard's video, it feels like Lenny Bruce.
It's a comedy club . . not a political rally. The sky is wide open. If you can't deal with off-the-handle humor, don't go to a comedy club. It's a sensitivity thing.
As an artist, he's uptight over the rudeness of someone talking through his "word" art. The audience (and world?) are overreacting. These are words . . not actions.
He is going over the top. Go figure. . . Kramer going over the top. Who'd a thunk it?
Kramer's rant had nothing to do with art. He stepped out of the art world and into the anger-bigotry world. And I'm sorry to disillusion you, but words ARE actions. That is why the words "I am going to kill you" will land you in jail, as will the word "Fire" in a movie theatre.
And you show just WHY, Mr. Fields, with your hand wringing commentary, that the cultural landscape today is full of pussies and lawyers. Words are words. What meaning given them is entirely up to the individual. What IMPACT you give them is all in your mind. Threatening to kill someone, or causing a social uproar by yelling fire is far, far different can calling someone a name.
Now go sue Borat for a fratboy, wimp.
From watching Richards' tirade at the Laugh Factory and his apology on Letterman, it's seems obvious that Richards made a mistake and succumbed to some race-baiting and that he admits it and regrets it. He lost control and then tried to fix it at the club and failed. It's obviously affected him a lot, as it should, and I hope he follows through in his contriteness. He's also taken the effort to admit he made a mistake fairly early on in the process, which is better than what John Kerry did for example, or just about anyone in the Republican Party. Richards didn't issue a statement through his agent saying that he was molested by a black man when he was a teenager, he went on national television and apologized. I hope he keeps working on it - we'll just ahve to wait and see.
No one would dispute that America has too many pussies and lawyers.
Doesn't mean its dismissable calling black hecklers niggers on-stage. Words may be words, but the meaning of Kramer's rant is not too interpretive. Especially after a nationally televised apology.
Sure, a lot of people overreacted to this story. Kramer's lucky no one in the audience did.
You're holding up Bill Hicks as a good example? Calling someone a n****r makes everyone gasp, but an unfunny rave about Hitler is a-ok? That is, a word that 90% of African-American celebrities use is off-limits, but supporting genocide and lamenting Hitler's failed program is perfectly good comedy? WTF. Both comedians were trying to be humorous but both were way out of line.
Has anyone said something in the heat of the moment that they regret? The guy said he's sorry.
Also, the person or persons he called a nigger responded with a racial slur of his own, cracker-(ass). Did anyone else hear that or is it OK for African Americans to refer to whites as crackers? Tit for tat. No one likes to be called derogatory names, but, oddly, they're at the tip of everyone's tongue. In any case, the person he called a nigger had the right to respond and did respond by using words. The result was that the audience left. The gig was a disaster. Just because it was videotaped and seen by millions doesn't mean it's not already resolved.
KneeJerk is right - the impact of Richards' words is all in the mind. And if your mind understood anything other than the fact that Richards' has an issue with black people, you are as oblivious as Kneejerk. The rant lasted 2.5 minutes! Even as people were leaving, Richards continued spewing garbage. For some reason, even though I'm Jewish, I wasn't offended by Bill Hicks as I was by Richards. Hicks wanted EVERYONE dead, he really wasn't discriminating... which is kinda funny. And Hicks eventually gave up the whole act when the heckler said "Freebird!" at the end... it was totally different.
You are an idiot, he wasnt saying Hitler was doing a good thing for killing Jews or Gypsies he said he was doing a good thing for trying to kill everyone. He is basically saying that everyone is idiots, so kill them all, example the rain fourty days, Noah, the arch- flooding the world.
I wish people would have more common sense and quit taking segments of video as the full truth. I'd like to know how long the "heckler" was interrupting him before he blew up and went on his rant. People (the heckler) should not be surprised when they agitate others and others snap back. You wouldn’t poke at a pittbull and blame it for ripping you face off when it had enough. People should have some common courtesy and good sense. I don’t CARE if you paid good money for a show and it didn’t turn out the way you liked. Go to the manager and get your money back. Blame: Richards 60% Heckler 40%
Good point Johnny - we do need to see more of the context. There is a provocation defense, fo' sho', but still... no matter how much you are provoked, you gotta be able to keep your cool, in this business...
The words don't hurt as much as the history of terrorism in this country. That's what his "words" reminded me of. It wasn't the N-word by itself that was offensive. The words wouldn't hurt without the history.
Agreed, meme. The words "cracker" and "nigger" do not pack the same punch. Why? History.
And yelling out Freebird is way more annoying than whatever the Kramer hecklers probably said.
You think Bill Hicks is handling the hecklers well? How so?
In the first video, he completely overreacts. One guy yelling merits a response calling for all humans to be destroyed. He even says "Hitler was right." Completely random and unfunny - no wit, no subtlety, no originality.
In the second video, he responds to someone saying "you suck" by just hurdling a bunch of offensive profanity at her, yelling like a maniac. Uncreative, vulgar, and unnecessarily angry.
Yelling like a crazy person is not the sign of a genius.
Hicks' response is a mix of sheer frustration, anger, hatred, with a self-aware comedic sense. It is funny.
not even comparable. hick "hated" ALL people, and without a doubt mainly white people. when he brought up hitler, he includes "whites" among those ho should be killed. and after he burst he jokes about it.
michael richards is someone i've respected more than ten years, but he really lost touch with any sense of comedy. he was part of some of andy kaufmans genius skits, but this was nothing like that.
If Richards did, in fact, work with Kaufman...as in Andy...then he should be used to hecklers by now.
As a comic, there are a few differences. This is not to explain away Richards behavior. It shows he's an idiot, shows he doesn't have enough experience to handle loud audiences and went in a direction where a comic would never go. If for no other reason then there's NO UPSIDE. I've been trying to imagine if somehow something like that came out of my mouth, could I recover? Because that's what Hicks did. Hicks knew he had to try and get some semblance of a show together and found a way to ease out of it. In fact, I worked at the comedy club where that was taped during the time it happened. I might've even been there. Not sure. But I knew Hicks well enough that even with all of the ranting, he was aware of his job and would work to win an audience back. Also, he was given the opportunity to move into a different direction when the guy said "FreeBird!". Point is, Richards does not belong on a stage or anywhere for that matter. Is he truly racist? No way I can answer that. I can tell you this, his talents as a comic these days are no better than a bad open miker
This is adressed to the 2 dumbfu&%s: scoot and emil, Bill Hicks is NOT a comedian! He is a prophet, the clips above have been taken out of context, they are good though. How would you deal with a drunken inbred heckler? By making wity and intelligent remarks sure to never enter his feeble brain or by talking to him in his own "profane" waterhead language? And as I see it Hitler was an under acheiver,lol, we should blow it all up and start over. Bill doesnt hate all people just most lol. He loves life. Anyone who does not know this doesnt now sh@t about Bill HIcks!! As for Richards I think hes a funny guy with great timing, but hes a comedian and i could care less what his personal veiws are, I don't think he owns slaves or anything, sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me. "Its only a ride"-Bill Hicks
Bill Hicks is hilarious......inspirational, a true comedy icon.
But not a prophet. Come on.
I like the 'waterhead' reference, though.