Comedian Sinbad weighs in on Michael Richards
by Carmen Van Kerckhove
I’ve always thought that Sinbad was corny as hell (maybe because I associate him with his parachute-panted self in A Different World
And I think his suggestion that Richards should go to a comedy club on a Sunday night, a.k.a. black night, to speak directly to an audience, is a good one. Because doing a satellite interview on Letterman when no one can talk back at you doesn’t make you at all vulnerable.
Hat tip to Reappropriate!
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of
Melissa wrote:
Thanks for putting the link up! I agree with Sinbad on this one…particularly about apologizing face to face to the people involved in the same venue it happened. Dragging this out and involving all these high-profile people as intermediaries really trivializes the whole thing. The comment about being prepared for his apology not to be accepted was a good one. In the end, Michael Richards isn`t the one who should have the last word.
Posted 27 Nov 2006 at 12:07 pm ¶
S wrote:
Oh, Sinbad had the best points!
I can’t imagine how it felt to be cut at the throat like that by a comic that I PAID MONEY AND ARRANGED MY SCHEDULE to see.
I think he should apologize to the people he directed his racist fit toward. I don’t see how sitting down and talking to anyone else is going to do any good. Yes, what he said indirectly attacked all black people, but his direct attack was not on us all. An apology would mostly help HIM, as he (supossedly) goes on his quest to find the root of his racist rage.
My opinion about him has been forever changed. He will die a racist in my book. He can save his “I’m trying to save my image and career by masking it as a heartfelt apology to the “blacks” and Afro Americans” speech for someone who believes it.
Posted 27 Nov 2006 at 1:14 pm ¶
HighJive wrote:
here’s an article detailing richards’ appearance on jesse jackson’s radio show. richards even insisted some of his best friends were african american.
http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/150627,CST-NWS-kramer27.article
Posted 27 Nov 2006 at 1:20 pm ¶
Sinbad Fan wrote:
OK, Carmen, I know you didn’t really mean it in a mean-spirited way, but I feel obliged to defend Sinbad. You opened the post by saying, “I’ve always thought that Sinbad was corny as hell…”
I worked with Sinbad on projects when he was most popular. Of all the celebrities I’ve dealt with (and there have been many), no one was ever more courteous and professional.
Like a lot of celebrities, Sinbad employed family members. His brother was his agent, his sister was his stylist, etc. But unlike other celebrities whose employed kin were slackers and worse, Sinbad’s family members were top-flight, completely qualified experts.
Sinbad never got greedy or big-headed. He even showed it when relating personal details about his past in this interview. The man is thankful to be in the business, and he never takes it for granted.
Sinbad was incredibly popular, especially among advertisers, because he always kept his act clean. He absolutely refused to ever curse. He would never even consider using the n-word. He didn’t even like to make fun of people. Admittedly, this could make folks think he was corny, especially when compared to edgier comedians, but this guy is a class act.
It would be easy for Sinbad to go on the dark side (no pun intended), and push rawness for more laughs, but he refuses to go there.
He’s a kind-hearted and thoughtful guy. And that’s why he was able to openly and honestly articulate his point of view regarding Richards. Jamie Foxx was ready to rip into Richards. Bernie Mac, Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle probably have some choice words for Richards too. But none of these bigger comedians will come close to presenting things as well as Sinbad.
Posted 27 Nov 2006 at 11:38 pm ¶
eric wrote:
I dont’ think Carmen was attacking Sinbad, but another post of support for him in general. Dude was my favorite comedian growing up for many of the reasons Sinbad fan stated. Him and Tommy davidson were great alternatives to the other black comedians I grew up watching
Posted 28 Nov 2006 at 9:59 am ¶
Kai wrote:
Okay, to some degree this trivializes the matter, but I’ve gotta admit I laughed: here’s National Lampoon’s take on this whole ruckus, “Seinfeld: The Lost Episode”.
Cheers.
Posted 28 Nov 2006 at 1:49 pm ¶
Eric from DC wrote:
As a comedian, Sinbad is truly a professional and expert at his craft. In today’s time, with most comedic acts being a little too mature for kids, Sinbad is definitely on comic that has the ability to make children and adults fall over laughing! I have always though of him as being a great comic, inventive, and smart, and now after hearing is thoughts on the Richard’s incident, I see the brother is always using his brain.
Posted 15 Mar 2007 at 10:41 am ¶
Brian Paulsen wrote:
I knew Sinbad while in the U.S. Air Force way back in the early 1980’s. I had the privilege to see one of his shows while in Lincoln City, Oregon. We talked backstage after the show, and he was still as down to earth then as he was back in the 80’s. Truly a professional who is grateful to be in the business of making people laugh!
Posted 24 Feb 2008 at 8:25 pm ¶
angela wrote:
I absolutely love Sinbad and I think he is a very intelligent man. He is on a different level than some other comics. I commend him for speaking up and being professional.
Posted 03 Nov 2008 at 4:16 pm ¶