“We know the routine: The person does something wrong. The person’s humiliated. They’re exiled. They suffer, we want them to suffer. We love the tumble, we love the crash and bang of the fall. And then we love the crawl-back. The grovel. Are you going to grovel? How long are you going to grovel?” – Jerry Seinfeld on Louis C.K., October 2018
In case you’ve been off-planet, Louis C.K., possibly the most talented stand-up comic of this generation, got in some #MeToo trouble in 2017 when he finally addressed the sexual misconduct allegations he had been ducking for a few months. His full statement is here.
This statement was initially lauded as self-aware and contrite, but then—surprise, surprise—the counterstrike was stronger. Much was made of the fact that he didn’t explicitly apologize to the five women called out in the statement, for example.
(I’m not going to get into the ins and outs of what he said and didn’t say, but I find the facts of the respective established narratives and how this statement refers to them—mostly uncontroversially, I might add—considerably grayer than many other high-profile cases. I am largely convinced that Louis C.K. was rude. Whether he committed a crime is thoroughly unsettled, as far as I’m concerned.)
Then there were some additional comments as he dared to tiptoe back into practicing his trade. This January 2019 Vox piece, and others like it, obliquely pretend there is some golden path for Louis C.K., and shucks, it’s just such a darned crying shame he’s refusing to take it.
I don’t think that path is there. There is nothing down it but “rage mob,” as my Twitter buddy Dana Loesch calls them. Nothing will ever be enough. As long as he supplies flesh, the demand will be for more.
On the other side of things, Janeane Garofalo stepped up and defended C.K. about the same time, and several other prominent comics including Dave Chappelle, Seth Rogan, Ricky Gervais, Sarah Silverman, and Chris Rock have also voiced support for him continuing his career.
I don’t know Louis C.K. Probably, you don’t either. So we don’t genuinely know his heart. But should he be allowed an on-the-other-side here? I mean, even in the questionable world of celebrity ethics, we can smugly pat ourselves on the back for keeping Cosby in the doghouse because he’s so defiantly unapologetic.
But this isn’t that, is it?
Can our much, much purer hearts allow Louis C.K. to continue?
Louis C.K. dropped a new special on his web site yesterday. You can purchase it for $7.99. We did so. Guess what? It’s funny as hell. Guess what else? It’s tacky and offensive too. This isn’t news, despite how some outlets are trying to paint it. Louis C.K. was never a guy you wanted to work the church picnic.
I think he’s also a guy who’s surrendered enough flesh.
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