General Business: [Closed] The Kramer (Michael Richards) video and his apology

You can watch the actual video here: Racist creep (language nsfw)

And his even creepier appology on David Letterman last night: Kramer is coo-coo

Damn. I used to like the guy, now I think he's just a complete ass!

Hey celebs f### up too. Give the guy a break (oh and i really dont know what he did? Did he kick little girls or something? Cuz that would be bad)

SSM: He goes off on a racial slam at a comedy show. I haven't seen the video, but wasn't he being heckled? I understand if he went on forever on something. But hey, have you ever said something you regret? He hasn't had much of anything since Seinfeld anyways, so I am not sure why everyone cares so much...

No it's not just that he was calling someone a n****** it was the fact that he said it violently and repeatedly. He just kept going and going. Comedians say stuff like that all the time and get away with it but it was his intention and audience.

Secondly his apology totally sucked.

if he was anything other than white it still would have been just as bad. it was his tone and irrational use of the word. people wanted to laugh because it's cramer, much like they wanted to at his appology on letterman, but all they could do was gasp.

he's screwed for the rest of his life and career. I really don't think he can recover from this.

Richards said something that offended an entire race of people... The hecklers then retaliated with the same thing (cracker ass white boy, etc.). As far as I'm concerned, it was a pissing match. Most comedians don't know how to handle the heat when they get up on stage, and Richards is no exception - he boiled under the pressure... He's a TV actor, not a stand-up comic. I really feel bad for him.

Both "sides" got boiled and said things they shouldn't have. I can pity them both while accepting their boilerplate apologies.

Posted By: rdeweyWas able to find the apology on YouTube... Makes me feel even worse for Richards. I believe he is speaking from the heart...

Wow...I feel Richards took the first blow without question. Fork up your ass? Then violently screaming out n*****? Repeatedly? Only AFTER that was he called a cracker. Hell I would have called him a cracker after hearing that and I'm a white boy. His joke was angry, disrespectful, and certainly NOT funny.

What a dumbass. He's a write off in my books. Mistake or not...Some things are simply inexcusable. This is one of them.

I've been to SEVERAL comedy shows where comedians are heckled. Thats apart of this business. If you're only come back as a comedian (the role he was playing at the time, not tv actor) is a racist one then he deserves all the heat he's getting.

Kmulligan and SSM, its usually better to actually watch the video before you offer your opinion on it.

If he was any other color, saying what he said..it would have still been offensive. Its obvious that he was responding in a hateful way and not simply making a joke (as he did it in response to being heckled in the first place).

Funny that this happened because I just posted about a month ago about seeing him and Dane COok at the laugh factory and him being the least funny of all - I've actually seen him twice.

A few things:
a) Michael Richards does not react well to hecklers. THe first time i saw him, he kept yelling "shut the fuck up" at a girl who had one of those ANNOYING ass laughs and who would laugh when nothing was funny.
b) What offended me the most, was not his use of the infamous "n" word but his comments about sticking a fork up someones ass while swinging.

Pushing the limits is one thing. Trying to make jokes that deal with bodily harm is another. Black comics do the "white vs black" comedy routine shit ALL the time (some have made careers of it - and in my opinion, it sucks). And a lot of folks on various message boards have talked about the "Cracker" routines - but again, its not about burning people, sodomizing people etc.

I dunno - I think its disappointing all around. Because homeboy who was offended didn't react well either - he could've said ONCE "that shit was uncalled for" and left. But to keep going on - you're no better. Its like the Ron Artest situation (when he ran up into the crowd and started throwing 'bows) - WHO is the professional in the situation?!?! Yea, I hold professionals to a higher standard, because they're being paid to provide a service.

But folks forget - Richards is a professional. I'm a consultant - if one of the client team members calls me a bitch and some other names and I retaliate by calling her a bitch, I'm losing my job. Period. Because I'm a professional - and I'm the service provider. The client is my customer. And that mess is unprofessional.

The Laugh Factory fired him (Told him not come back) as any employer would.

Guaranteed he'll be back within 60 days. HAHA.

I don't think it was a 'joke' or part of his act... I think he simply blew up on stage. The cracker cracked. He did something bad, and he knows it; he was man enough to apologize for it, and at one point looked like he was ready to cry. That's enough for me to accept right there.

As Ms Nadi said, the hecklers responded to the heat in the same exact way that Richards did. Why not just walk out? Why not be a better man than Richards? On one hand, you guys are saying that Richards was wrong for blowing up at the hecklers, but on the other hand it was right for the hecklers to blow up on Richards? Professional or not, both parties are still just humans composed of the same organic material. 'Professional' is nothing more than a label. A 'rose by any other name is still a rose', right?

This is very obviously a case of anger management issues. Richards needs help, and I'm sure he now realizes that. I'm sure you have all done or said something stupid to family members or friends - wouldn't it suck if they could never accept your apology? I know I would be in a world of trouble if that were the case, I'd be out on the streets for calling my parents "stupid" or saying "I hate you" back when the world was a bigger place.

If people can't accept sincere apologies, we live in a pretty piss poor society.

Apologizing on TV - Not good enough

Volunteering to help underprivileged black kids - Good enough

When you screw up, and screw up bad, you don't get to just say two magic words and make it all disappear. If it was that easy, this really would be a piss poor society.

Posted By: rdeweyThis is a highly opinionated topic... Everyone has their own opinions, and I just have to respect that. Sorry if I came off strong to anyone.

It's just a debate man, no big deal :) And you're right, everyone just thinks differently.

BTW, I just watched the video again and apparently they were talking smack to him first, but as Nadi said, he is a "professional" and needs to refrain from turning into a jack ass.

LOL...That rap is hilarious...

I'll play devils advocate here. Take it from Richard's shoes and say this guy was heckling the shit out of him. Richards is trying to do his job, like anyone else. Say you he wasnt a comedian, rather a Home Depot employee. Heckling there isnt good either and might get the same result. Shit, I get harassed nightly as a bartended and sometimes it does get to me. Some learn to deal with it, some (esp celebs) tend to blow up because they 1. Can and usually get away with it, and 2. Dont know how to react to that.

I'm not saying blowing up is good, nor calling him racial names repeatedly. They were both wrong. Heck, atheletes get heckled all the time and almost never blow up. They should teach other celebs anger management.

The bottom line is that if he wanted to blow up at a guy for telling him his jokes suck, he could have just turned and said "if you don't like the show, why don't you leave you cheap son of a bitch" - that would have been enough. But to rehash an age old wound in a vulgar way was the wrong answer. It's really a cut and dry situation.

SSM - the last time an athlete seriously blew up on 'fans' - he got FIRED (for a year) - do we need to remind you of Ron Artest?! FIRED. No salary. No play. No nothing - if you can't be a professional, sit your ass on the bench. Jermaine O'Neal had to sit out 10 games - if you can't be a professional, sit your ass on the bench.

Other "professional" arenas even hold it against there so-called "performers" when they blow up on each other - technical fouls or "unnecessary roughness" - FINES and suspensions.

C'mon man, there's not excuse.

Like I said - I'm an IT consultant - if someone calls me a bitch and I respond, I'm getting fired. NO QUESTION. It is not to be tolerated. Sure, they might ask me before they give me my walking papers "so what exactly happened" - they might even ask some witnesses and bystanders, but at the end of the day, I'm getting fired.

I'm disappointed that people are trying to excuse his behavior. Are we that lame as a society where we can't say "you were wrong and now you're going to be held accountable"???