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SPOILER ALERT! NBC’s ‘The Office’ Finale 
After a carefully worded statement on Friday, 30 Rock co-star Tracy Morgan today did another mea culpa for his homophobic remarks during a stand-up show in Nashville, this time in his own words. In an interview with Russell Simmons, Morgan apologized profusely for his jokes, which included mocking gay kids for being bullied and threatening to kill his son if he turned out to be gay, and called his statements “indefensible.” Here are highlights of what he said:
“I am so unfiltered. And sometimes as a result I say really stupid shit. The truth is if I had a gay son, I would love him just as much as if he was straight … I might have to try to love even more because I know of the difficulty that he would have in society.”
“Of all the sicknesses, there is probably none more abusive than homophobia. My heart is committed to giving everyone the same rights that I deserve for myself. I don’t care if you love the same sex as long as you have the ability to love someone. Also, you should have the right no matter who you are to protect and serve our country. I am deeply sorry for the comments I made. What I am most sad about is the comments I made about kids and bullying. I would never want any young person to think that I wasn’t on their side and if any young person thinks they can bully a young gay kid, come see me at 30 Rock. On the corner, I would be happy to meet you. Or Brooklyn if you can’t make it into Manhattan.”
“When all of this set in, I realized how hurtful my words were. Not asking anyone to feel sorry for me or pity me, but I definitely don’t want or need people to defend me. In my heart, I know that the words I used are indefensible. I appreciate the love from my friends and fans, but I was wrong. Period. Now, I just gotta think of some funny shit, not some shit that gets me knocked upside my head.”
“I believe everyone deserves the right to be happy and marry who they want too; gay, white, black, male or female.”
TV Editor Nellie Andreeva - tip her here.
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Nice try, the unfiltered part is the real “truth” of what he says and believes. I wish these cowards would stop apologizing for what they say. Either say it and stand by it, or SHUT UP!!!!
You would rather he stand by his statements which are clearly wrong? I do believe that if it’s somewhere in yourself to make that kind of joke, you kinda believe it yourself. I would never make jokes about a subject matter I’m against. I’m glad to hear the apologies actually but I don’t necessarily know if it is truly the truth. Wish he never made the jokes in the first place.
again, what tracy said was far worse that what isiah washington did and he got fired.
It’s funny how some celebrities have to apologize for saying stupid things but others inexplicably get a free pass. For example, where’s Chelsea Handler’s apology for repeatedly saying she dislikes minorities? In Newsweek, she even said she is annoyed by Asians, blacks, and Russians. This town is a joke.
You know, sometimes comedians just say shit to provoke a response. And Tracy Morgan has been known to say a lot of crazy shit for a laugh. Maybe I’m a fool, but I like to give people the benefit of the doubt. I can’t be so much of a cynic that I think the apology is phony.
We’ve all said things we didn’t mean to say, that were mean or outrageous. The difference is, we usually do it in the privacy of our home, not on a stage. I get the impression that Morgan doesn’t really see boundaries. But he ran up against one this time.
Maybe he’s learned a lesson in humility. Is there anything wrong with that?
I was once so closed off and angry that I didn’t know how to graciously accept an apology when one was offered. But I changed. Maybe you can too.
Well put.
He did not write or say any part of this. this is a speech clearly written by someone else.
I don’t agree with what he said, but it is supposed to be comedy AND a land of free speech.
George Carlin is turning over in his grave.
P.S. LOVE when you say things like, “upside my head”. LOL!
This is garbage. I’m sick of celebrities just issuing these statements of apology that were clearly written by their publicists in an attempt at damage control. This is definitely not a representation of how he really feels. How he really feels can be found in the words he said when he was doing standup. Apologies only matter when you do something you’re clearly remorseful for. Not as a knee jerk reaction to the fallout for what you might have said/believed that pissed people off and got you into trouble.
I just wish people like this actually paid a price for their bigotry. But unfortunately the bottom line is, he’s on a super popular show and as a result will get nothing more than a public slap on the wrist. Nice message.
“I am so unfiltered. And sometimes as a result I say really stupid shit”
That sounds like an “apology that was clearly written by their publicists”.
Come down from your ivory tower and into the real world. People say things they wish they didn’t. When that happens good people realize their mistakes, humble themselves, and apologize.
He might have written the first and last sentences, but those huge paragraphs in between were most certainly written by someone else. He should just stand up and say what he truly believes, career or not. If you go back over the years and read all of the statements he’s made about homosexuality, you can only conclude that what he said on stage last week are his true beliefs. And he has every right to believe what he believes. Just as everyone else has a right to refuse to accept those beliefs, and him.
The whole shtick of a lot of modern comics is that they are, essential, going up on stage as the Evil Captain Kirk side of themselves rather than the Good Captain Kirk.
I don’t think there’s any way Morgan could have lasted in the SNL/30 Rock universe if he were seriously, openly, intentionally homophobic.
But he’s someone who knows that, deep inside himself, is an Inner Homophobic Jerk, just as he knows that, deep inside of most of the cool, non-racist, egalitarian, affirmative action-supporting white folks around him are Inner Racist Jerks.
When Morgan does the homophobic bit, or Sarah Silverman does her racist creep bits, they’re not trying to get us to sign up for the KKK or go beat GLBT people up; they’re trying to get us all to laugh at their Inner Jerks, and maybe to acknowledge and laugh at our own Inner Jerks. They’re trying to push our pus-filled blisters of obnoxiousness just hard enough to make us laugh.
The problem is, though, that the kind of humor is subtle, and based on a convoluted logic, and it’s pretty easy for people — especially people who grew up on old school comedy — to get confused and take the comedy at face value.
So you end up with cleaned up TV comedy, Inner Jerk irony comedy, genuinely racist/homophobic comedy, and waves of controversy based on people taking Inner Jerk comedy the wrong way.
The problem with Tracy is that he’s not funny, at all. So he reaches for the most outrageous thing to say. He and several other all are wanna be Richard Pryor. But the difference is Pryor was FUNNY, never mean spirited.
After a Pryor comedy show, this girl said, “Oh, how could you listen to him, he’s dirty and his whole act is nothing but cursing.” I said, “really, I don’t remember him cursing.” And that is because he was funny; he had art.
Lisa Lampanelli says some really racist shit, but I have to admit she’s really funny most of the time, so for me, it’s okay. It doesn’t seem mean spirited.
This shit Tracy said and knowing how unartful he is was just horrible. So, I hope he learn how to be funny, but that’s like saying learn how to paint the Mona Lisa–not that many could do it.
Once again the thought police force a media personality to reverse his position on gay issues. I don’t agree with what he said, but he should be allowed to do it as part of his comedy act. There’s no way anyone who’s heard Tracy interviewed can see this statement as anything other than forced and calculated.
No one is disallowing Morgan to do his act or banning him from any clubs, nor is he getting fired so your point is moot.
As for everyone else clambering about how Morgan doesn’t mean his statement, it doesn’t matter. With a quick analysis one can actually see that the words are pretty well thought out and delivered effectively. It’s the start to a rocky road of repent but at least he’s on it and people are keeping him in check :]
Stand up needs to be heard and judged in context. “If they can take a dick up their ass, they can take a joke” may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s a joke nonetheless, and one I have heard more than one comedian use in one form or another. “If I had a gay son, I would stab him in the neck” (or whatever the wording was) is obviously not meant to be taken literally. Just a dumb joke, and I can’t see it contributing to violence against gays in that context, because the context is a father and son. Maybe if he said something about hurting a gay stranger I might buy that argument, but I’d still need to hear it.
Maybe they’re shitty jokes, but they are jokes. I’ve heard jokes about the Holocaust, 9/11, the death of every celebrity, incest, rape, etc etc.
Funny trumps everything, and unless I hear it, I can’t judge the funny.
I think your view on the issue is really naive. Considering the rash of gay suicides lately, the focus right now would lead one to believe that Tracy would have been smarter than this. It’s really sad to see a comment like yours as if you don’t think hateful speech like this contributes to a laisser faire attitude that has always existed on issues like this. Hope that changes for you.
Don’t agree with what he said. But come on, a guy tried to be funny and said something that wasn’t funny and everybody crucifies him for a freaking mistake.
Bingo. I think that’s more telling of the people refusing to accept his apology than it is of him.
Didn’t he say in 2009 that being gay was a choice? So he’s said it before, and it wasn’t a “comedy” act. Nice try Tracy.
So now you’re mad at him for having an opinion? Are you mad at him for his insensitive remarks or are you mad at him for having opposing beliefs? If it’s the latter, don’t expect an apology, and you shouldn’t expect an apology.
Saying he’d kill his son if he were gay… um, this is more than a bad joke.
Thought police? Nobody is arresting him. Legally he has the right to say whatever he wants. Just as everyone in this town has the right to distance themselves from him professionally because he appears to have no control of what he says publicly. That’s dangerous and that’s why he has to backtrack. See Charlie Sheen.
This holier than thou act that the gay thought police is getting pretty old. The guy attempted a stupid avenue for making a joke during one night among the 1000′s of times he has performed, and he can’t make an apology huh?
Hate and Intolerance can be preached on both sides- and it is wrong on both ends.
“Thought police” is one of the laziest phrases ever, so please stop using it. Morgan wasn’t arrested or jailed. People argued back with him in the marketplace of ideas.
So say you won’t watch anymore- but relentlessly demanding someone to lose their job is evil.
You are like the parent groups going after south park, or skins, or whatever the hot “shocking” show going on. If you don’t like him, change the channel… I think he is funny on 30 rock and i want to continue watching him as a viewer.
Not the thought police… Ok let’s go with the gay mafia aka known as the liberal media.
This is a textbook case in what happens when the media overblows a story to push a particular agenda.
Do I agree with what he said? No. But he has a right to say it.
From that “carefully worded statement” to his muliple visits (he practically went on tour)to apologize.
It’s clear that if he wanted to continue to work in Hollywood,he would have to tow the line.
It sounds to me like a sincere and extensive apology. No “I’m sorry if my words were misunderstood,” no blaming the media, just someone trying to make it right. Apology accepted as far as I’m concerned.
Some of you have forgotten… he did this in 2008 during a show in NYC. People walked out…it made news… and he apologized. He said he was just trying to be funny. So now he does it in an area that just passed a law about saying the word “gay”. Tracy already learned his “funny views” didn’t work in NYC… did he think it would be funnier in TN? I agree with some of the other commenters…I think these are his real views twisted so he can make a joke. Perhaps the apology is another twisted approach at humor.
Another false apology. At least be a man (named Tracy?) and stick to your beliefs, Morgan. I’d respect him if he had the balls to say “I meant what I said and I said what I meant.” This sudden turn-around is hard to swallow on its face. Liar.
He’s nuts. Always has been. His internal radio is set to static.
Sheesh…. Everyone’s always so damn sorry after the fact.
Arnold’s sorry for boinking the maid and getting her prego…
Mel’s sorry for his anti-semitic tirade against a cop, and blames it on the alcohol…
Weiner, the New York congressman, is sorry for photographing is schlong and tweeting it out to unsuspecting sexting targets…
Now, Tracy Morgan? Step Right Up!
I wish these collective numbnuts would think before they act and then they’d have no reason to have their handlers/publicists/spinmeisters writing apologias for them. The only thing they are really sorry for, if you ask me, is that they got frickin’ caught.
He wouldn’t have said it if he wasn’t at the very least semi-homophobic. This apology stems from the extremely adverse reaction to his stand up routine in TN. Under the advice of his agent, NBC, Tina and his publicist, he felt he had to write this apology. There’s nothing more to the story.
When a person – famous or not – makes a mistake and apologizes for that mistake, then accept the apology and everyone move on. People who live in glass houses should not throw stones. I don’t understand angry folks who refuse an apology. Focus that anger on the many right wing Christian Tea Party fascists who do NOT apologize for their homophobic beliefs, but actually run for office and work on laws that enforce hatred of gays.
Those who keep regurgitating the notion that Morgan is free to say whatever he wants are missing the fact that he is free, and so are the rest of us. He has the right to be a dumbass, and others have a right to say his “joke” wasn’t funny and was offensive. Whether he means his apology or not, we’ll never know, but no one *forced* him to do this. Even if it was done to save his show from a boycott or appease his bosses at NBC, it’s a good thing that enough people were offended to put pressure on him to do so.
“Of all the sicknesses, there is probably none more abusive than homophobia.”
Uh?
Start tap-dancin’, Hustle Man! LOL.
I buy it
It’s Tracy Morgan for crying outload. . How the heck does this get overblown like this ?
What Tracy Jordan said what disgusting and unacceptable, there’s no dispute there. But I feel people are being a bit ridiculous here. He told some dumb, vile jokes at a stand up show. Anyone who’s seen Jordan at any live event knows he’s a complete idiot in that he has NO filter. So he failed at being funny, that’s it. He’s apologized for it twice, and I personally am okay with it. He obviously isn’t truly homophobic, or else he wouldn’t have remained employed at 30 Rock.
Just my two cents.
Good apology. But does anyone remember Eddie Murphy in DELIRIOUS? All the gay jokes… Who knows how many gay friends he has, and how much money he has put into the pockets of his agents, some of whom are gay. It’s comedy and sometimes it goes too far, but comedy isn’t always a deep seeded truth. Sometimes, a comedian just tries to make their audience laugh, though often in poor taste.
I do think it’s possible to say something without having given it much thought, then later, upon carefully examining it or discussing it with people you respect, realize it was horribly wrong. I hope this is the case with him rather than simply a publicist’s statement. TIna Fey is one of the brightest and sanest people in show biz, so she certainly could have walked him through the problems with the things he was saying.
I didn’t hear Tracy’s homophobic comedy but have followed the aftermath. I find his mea culpa disingenuous. If he really believes his statement about his routine, he wouldn’t have performed this comedy in the first place. I just don’t buy this apology. It seems pretty clear that most likely Lorne and Tina put pressure on him to save their show and his career. I saw his HBO show and found it very unfunny. Maybe Tracy needs to stick to someone else writing his words. Tracy-homophobia and humor at the expense of any group is just cheap, easy and unfunny. How about you find something original and clever to say for a change.