Train Wrecks
"Kramer's" Racist Tirade -- Caught on Tape

Michael Richards at the Laugh FactoryWARNING: WHAT YOU ARE ABOUT TO SEE IS PROFANE AND RACIAL

Michael Richards exploded in anger as he performed at a famous L.A. comedy club last Friday, hurling racial epithets that left the crowd gasping, and TMZ has obtained exclusive video of the ugly incident.

Richards, who played the wacky Cosmo Kramer on the hit TV show "Seinfeld," appeared onstage at the Laugh Factory in West Hollywood. Kyle Doss, an African-American, told TMZ he and some friends were in the cheap seats and he was playfully heckling Richards when suddenly, the comedian lost it.

The camera started rolling just as Richards began his attack, screaming at one of the men, "Fifty years ago we'd have you upside down with a f***ing fork up your ass."

Richards continued, "You can talk, you can talk, you're brave now motherf**ker. Throw his ass out. He's a nigger! He's a nigger! He's a nigger! A nigger, look, there's a nigger!"

The crowd is visibly and audibly confused and upset. Richards responds by saying, "They're going to arrest me for calling a black man a nigger."

One of the men who was the object of Richard's tirade was outraged, shouting back "That's un-f***ing called for, ain't necessary."

After the three-minute tirade, it appears the majority of the audience members got up and left in disgust.

Attempts to reach Richards' reps were unsuccessful.

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Richards Racial Rant -- Play Video


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(Page 8 of 503)Previous 15 Comments | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Most Recent | Next 15 Comments

106. LOOK FOLKS HE WAS HARASSED, IF HED A BEEN A BLACK MAN ON STAGE HED A CALLED THEM A N*GGER IN A HEARTBEAT AND THE CROWD WOULD HAVE LOVED IT. CHRIS ROCK CALLS US WHITE FOLK A CRACKER, HONKY AND ALL SORTS OF THINGS AND GETS AWAY WITH IT EVERY TIME HES ON STAGE AND NO ONE WHAT SO EVER GETS PISSED. SAME WITH THE CHAPELL SHOW. HECK HES ON TV EVERY DAY SLAPPING THE WHITE FOLK AND BLACK FOLK IN THE FACE AND THEY WONT PULL HIS TV SHOW BECAUSE HES A BLACK MAN TRYING TO MAKE A LIVING DOING THE EXACT SAME THING THAT MICHEAL RICHARDS IS DOING HERE. NOW CARLOS MANCEA DOES THE SAME THING WITH ALL RACES AND HES ON TV TOO, SO WHATS THE DAM DIFFERENTCE HERE FOLKS? NONE WHAT SO EVER. EVERYONE NEEDS TO JUST RELIZE THAT NO THIS IS NOT RACIAL. ITS JUST A WHITE GUY MAKING A LIVING AND TALKING TRASH LIKE ANY OTHER COMEDIAN ON STAGE OR TV. YEA THIS IS THE YEAR 2006. WE WENT THRU ALL THE RACIAL THINGS IN THE 60'S AND NOW THE BLACK MAN GETS PISSED OFF IF A WHITE GUY CALLS HIM A N*GGER? GIVE ME A BREAK

Posted at 10:25AM on Nov 20th 2006 by HAZZ

107. geez---If a Black man was doing that he would be called a Hip-Hop star.
If a white man says anything about a black,Jew,Homo. or a woman he is a hate filled racist.
What he did was desprite & very tasteless.Typical HBO type stand-up comedy.
But a double standard existist for "Crackers"--or as others would call them "Gringo's"

Were are the civil rights lawyers when we need one?

Like my moma said "Watch your tounge young man,Your words can hurt others.

She also said EVERYONE has an opinion like everyone has a Butth@le.

Posted at 10:25AM on Nov 20th 2006 by c smith

108. Bring in the clowns to distract black people from the reality of their being shoved aside by illegal aliens.

Posted at 10:27AM on Nov 20th 2006 by bill

109. It was an ignorant, horrible, horrible thing to say - and he is clearly ill. He needs to check into a hospital, and the rest of us need to forgive him. Because we are all flawed and because we all make mistakes. "Those without sin, cast the first stone," comes to mind.

Posted at 10:27AM on Nov 20th 2006 by Herbie J

110. At least Richards will be held accountable. He has publicly humiliated himself and will be forced to undergo weeks of contrition (hopefully it'll be through his own volition).

His career is effectively up in smoke, and for good reason. Comments like his cannot be tolerated by civilized, educated human beings. What he said was inappropriate, period.

The fact that Drudgereport (hardly a liberal site) headlines the incident "SHOCK" demonstrates the standards of decency inherent among educated Americans, standards which have been achieved through years of struggle for civil rights laws and education.

Unfortanately, that history seems lost on more than a few people. What's most disturbing about this incident (to me, at least) is all those poeple on this comments section who are jumping to Richards' defense. These are miserably simple-minded, undeducated individuals.

Hopefully the media firestorm that's brewing just around the corner will serve as a means of educating these poor souls. Please, people, pay attention!

Posted at 10:28AM on Nov 20th 2006 by Ed

111. Funny stuff. I loved the gyrations. Is just a word with added historical context. I loved it because it was raw. For sure is going to make him a star. Now on to the O.J interviews. A great week for media.

Posted at 10:29AM on Nov 20th 2006 by Armado Ramirez

112. I was too young to watch Seinfeld when it was on regular TV but I have seen a few re-runs. I don't really think the show is that funny and he just looks like he was have a major spasm every time he was on the screen. I think he was on drugs back then and from the looks of it, he still is.

IMO the “n” word is never appropriate, whether it’s used by a black person or a white person. It represent hate and ignorance. As proven by numerous postings on this blog.

Posted at 10:29AM on Nov 20th 2006 by Samatha

113. To be honest, I’m not sure what’s scarier, the man on stage, or those who have chosen to defend him. Sure, he has the right to say anything he wants. It’s WHAT he said and how he said it. His tirade sounds ominously like 1960’s Birmingham, or Selma or Little Rock. If you agree with his hate, it’s clearly time to check yourself and for all to realize we have a long way to go in this country.

Posted at 10:29AM on Nov 20th 2006 by HPE

114. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Not Kramer! All I can say is Wow. You never know what people are really thinking about you. But I am not surprised.

Posted at 10:30AM on Nov 20th 2006 by KiKi

115. SPELLING CORRECTION: "TIRADE" "COMEDIAN'

TYPING TOO FAST ;-(

Posted at 10:31AM on Nov 20th 2006 by LisaInLA

116. I have heard Diana Ross say worse about whites at one of her concerts. Same with Spike Lee, Al Sharpton ( who had a hand in getting a man killed- and don't forget Tawana), Minister Farrakan, Jesse Jackson (hymie-town)So he said n*gger. I hear n*gger more often coming out of car stereo's while I'm at the bus stop. Honest to goodness...n*gger, honky, cracker, sp*c, mick, gook, smoker, faggot...only words...not nice words, but if your pissed at someone they can popo out. Lighten the f*** up. This PC sh*t has got to stop. Go hug a tree and stick some green-house gasses up your asses. ----Love Mike

Posted at 10:31AM on Nov 20th 2006 by Mike McNeil

117. To all those that think Richard's tirade is excusable because of comic like Chapelle, Rock or the late Pryor who used the n-word in their acts, you'r e all f***ing idiots.

Chapelle, Rock and Pryor use the epithet not only as commentary but also within the context of characters. Michael Richards, flipped out -- pure and simple. He wasn't trying to be funny, he was just angry. I've seen Chapelle and Rock live and heckled by audience members both white and black, they don't pull the "cracker " card (is there such a thing?) Instead they use their wit and comic experience to silence a heckler -- and ususally it's hilarious. For the audience and the heckler.

Hecklers and comics go together like Little House and Prairie. Real comics can deal with it. Michael Richards is a comic actor and cannot be funny without material written for him. I definetly think he's bitter over this as his career has returned to the same slow moving pace it was pre-Seinfeld.

F*** Michael Richards and anyone in the 21st Century whom can't see that this country has a serious racial divide. I wonder how the Jewish Richards felt when Mel Gibson was arrested a few months back.

Posted at 10:31AM on Nov 20th 2006 by dse

118. It is a tragedy that comedians are allowed to rip people up with their prejuidices and bigotry as long as the audience hates the same person or groups of people they do. The sky is limit and out of control. The best comedians throughout the years are the comedians who can laugh at themselves and have a lot of good stories to tell. What is funny about a lot of comedians today who have allowed so much anger to build inside of them & their sense of humor that this happens. I am not surprised. I'll be interested to see how popular he is among the stars. If they like him enough they will defend him.

Posted at 10:31AM on Nov 20th 2006 by P Robertson

119. IThe video was taken on a camera phone.

Posted at 10:32AM on Nov 20th 2006 by hippity hop

120. I listened to this again, because I was confused by some of the comments defending his behavior.

2 words - ANGER MANAGEMENT.

Posted at 10:32AM on Nov 20th 2006 by Miss Honey

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