2008 Woodie Awards
Racial hatred unresolved
Nathan Harrison, Staff Writer
Issue date: 12/5/06
Last Updated: 12/29/07
With more than a million views on YouTube, it's a safe bet that by now everyone is familiar with the slur heard 'round the world - the camera phone footage of "Seinfeld" star Michael Richards blowing a fuse in the face of some hecklers at a Chicago comedy club last November. Grace under fire it isn't.
In the video distributed online, the scene opens with Richards already in meltdown, firing back with profanity and racial epithets at some off-camera black audience members who interrupted his show.
"A nigger! Look, there's a nigger!" he shouts, repeating the slur over and over to the audible shock of the audience. "What's the matter, is this too much for you to handle?" he asks sarcastically, as the silhouettes of leaving audience members obscure the frame.
One of the original hecklers shouts back throughout the video, repeatedly describing Richards' tirade as "uncalled for." Richards' response: "That's what happens when you interrupt the white man, don't you know?"
In the three weeks since the outburst, the fallout has been widespread. The Rev. Jesse Jackson and a number of other black leaders have called for the public to boycott the recent release of the seventh season of "Seinfeld" on DVD. Richards has been banned from performing at the Laugh Factory ever again, the club where the incident took place.
Richards' situation and quasi-apology bring to mind another recent example of celebrities letting loose with damaging remarks under pressure - Mel Gibson's anti-Semitic and sexist comments following his arrest for drunken driving.
In fact, Gibson has expressed solidarity with Richards, stating in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he "felt like sending Michael Richards a note" and that Richards "was obviously in a state of stress."
To try to control the damage to his career, Richards made an unannounced appearance by satellite with the help of his friend Jerry Seinfeld on "The Late Show with David Letterman" soon after the incident attracted attention on the internet.
In the video distributed online, the scene opens with Richards already in meltdown, firing back with profanity and racial epithets at some off-camera black audience members who interrupted his show.
"A nigger! Look, there's a nigger!" he shouts, repeating the slur over and over to the audible shock of the audience. "What's the matter, is this too much for you to handle?" he asks sarcastically, as the silhouettes of leaving audience members obscure the frame.
One of the original hecklers shouts back throughout the video, repeatedly describing Richards' tirade as "uncalled for." Richards' response: "That's what happens when you interrupt the white man, don't you know?"
In the three weeks since the outburst, the fallout has been widespread. The Rev. Jesse Jackson and a number of other black leaders have called for the public to boycott the recent release of the seventh season of "Seinfeld" on DVD. Richards has been banned from performing at the Laugh Factory ever again, the club where the incident took place.
Richards' situation and quasi-apology bring to mind another recent example of celebrities letting loose with damaging remarks under pressure - Mel Gibson's anti-Semitic and sexist comments following his arrest for drunken driving.
In fact, Gibson has expressed solidarity with Richards, stating in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he "felt like sending Michael Richards a note" and that Richards "was obviously in a state of stress."
To try to control the damage to his career, Richards made an unannounced appearance by satellite with the help of his friend Jerry Seinfeld on "The Late Show with David Letterman" soon after the incident attracted attention on the internet.
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