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Richards also said he would have liked to enjoyed his time on “Seinfeld” more.Comedian Michael Richards, better known as Kramer on "Seinfeld," gave a rare response to his now-infamous 2006 on-stage tirade with his one-time co-star Jerry Seinfeld. Seinfeld's laid-back web series “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” adopted a more serious tone when Richards discussed the meltdown, in which he verbally attacked an audience member with racist slurs. "It was a selfish response, I took it too personally. I should have said, 'You're absolutely right, I'm not funny, I'm going to go home," Richards said. "Inside it still kicks me...

A small explosion left a 34-year-old man with shrapnel wounds Tuesday evening after sparks from a metal sharpener ignited a firework resting on his work bench in Edwardsville. Around 8:15 p.m., Michael Richards was sharpening an ax in the basement of his home, located at 30 Arch St., when the wall-rattling explosion occurred, leaving him with a gun-shot sized wound on his upper-left chest and the front of his torso strafed with cuts, neighbors and borough firefighters said. "We're still trying to figure out what exactly happened," Edwardsville Fire Chief Ray King said. "All we know is that he took...

Recently someone asked me what sort of people "qualified" as "white trash" given what passes for conventional wisdom in America. My response included such things as lower-income, undereducated whites with a preference for colloquial speech and occasionally, a proclivity toward racking up misdemeanor offenses. A healthy dose of low self-esteem generally helps, too. Indeed, as may seem obvious, it's much more about attitude and mindset than ethnic or genotypic qualities. In as much as the above gives rise to subcultural niches, I don't have any problem admitting that I occasionally use the "n-word." That we've come to a point where...

Here's my holiday wish list: Dear Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, Please accept my apology for launching into a racist tirade against two black hecklers at my comedy show. Because I attacked two blacks in particular, I know this means I harbor deep-seated racist feelings about all blacks. While, in return, I heard words like "f---ing white boy" and "cracker-ass motherf---er," I know those epithets were directed toward me, as an individual, and not at the entire white race. Again, please accept my deepest apologies. Michael Richards, aka "Kramer" of "Seinfeld"

Commentary: If He’s Really Sorry, Michael Richards Should Be Willing to Pay for His Racist Rant - Literally Date: Thursday, November 30, 2006 By: Judge Greg Mathis, Special to BlackAmericaWeb.com By now, most of the world has seen the video of actor/comedian Michael Richards’ racist on-stage rant. Richards, performing at an L.A. comedy club, hurled the n-word at black audience members who “interrupted” his show with their talking. The performer has since gone on numerous talk shows -- Rev. Jesse Jackson’s radio show among them -- to apologize for his behavior. He promises to seek anger management counseling and guarantees...

If you've only read about the Michael Richards rant, you don't know just how bad it was. Check out the full and unedited on Youtube (www.youtube.com) and then get back to me. It really was a "racist tirade." And it wasn't so much his use of the "n" word, as it was the depth of the historical ideas and images Richards invoked. After being heckled by audience members (who happened to be black) during a stand up performance, Michael Richards (who played the character of Kramer on the show Seinfeld) started spewing racist epithets. Then he dejectedly walked offstage as...

*In the wake of Michael Richards’ racist rant, Rev. Jesse Jackson and a number of black leaders are calling on the entertainment industry – and rappers in particular – to permanently retire its use of the N-word. "We want to give our ancestors a present," Jackson said at a news conference in Los Angeles Monday. "Dignity over degradation." The press conference was arranged in response to the Nov. 17 racial rant from former “Seinfeld” star Michael Richards, who used the N-word several times and made other racist remarks to African American men who allegedly heckled him during his stand-up routine...

Jesse Jackson Wants a Seinfeld Boycott for Kramer Tirade -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Jim Roberts Nov 28, 2006 That didn't take long. Jesse Jackson is now heavily involved in the racist rant put forth by Michael Richards aka 'Kramer' from the popular '90's hit television sitcom Seinfeld. Richards went on Jesse Jackson's nationally syndicated radio program, "Keep Hope Alive," as a part of a series of apologies for the incident over the weekend. Jesse Jackson Wants a Seinfeld Boycott for Kramer Tirade Jackson, has called Richards' words "hateful," "sick," and "deep-seated, and for once in his life jess Jackson is right. ***...

Richards, Jackson to discuss racist rant By MEGAN REICHGOTT, Associated Press Writer Sun Nov 26, 1:28 AM ET CHICAGO - Michael Richards will appear on the Rev. Jesse Jackson's nationally syndicated radio program to discuss his racist rant at a Los Angeles comedy club, the civil rights leader said Saturday. Richards' participation in the "Keep Hope Alive" program is a chance to reach out and apologize to the black community, Jackson said. "He is embarrassed," said Jackson, who spoke to Richards by telephone this week after being contacted by the actor's publicist. "I think he wants to recover from the...

Welcome back to Hardball, I'm Chris Matthews. Where do we draw the line between free speech and offensive speech? Joining me via satellite is Michael Richards, who played Kramer on the old Seinfeld show. Mr. Richards, welcome to the show.

Anyone who tunes into late-night comedy shows knows that black comedians utter the n-word with rapid-fire frequency. Perhaps Michael Richards mistakenly thought that what was sauce for the goose was sauce for the white gander. In any case, in a Today show appearance this morning, Jesse Jackson declared that he would be working to "prohibit" the use of the word. He didn't offer specifics, but one question naturally arises. Would Jackson's n-word ban begin where the word is most frequently in use - the black community itself?Interviewed by weekend host Lester Holt [one of my MSM favorites for his level-headedness,...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Two men who say they were insulted by actor-comedian Michael Richards during his racist rant at a comedy club want a personal apology and maybe some money, their lawyer said Friday. The men, Frank McBride and Kyle Doss, said they were part of a group of about 20 people who had gathered at West Hollywood's Laugh Factory to celebrate a friend's birthday. According to their attorney, Gloria Allred, they were ordering drinks when Richards berated them for interrupting his act.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Two men who say they were insulted by actor-comedian Michael Richards during his racist rant at a comedy club want a personal apology and maybe some money, their lawyer said Friday. The men, Frank McBride and Kyle Doss, said they were part of a group of about 20 people who had gathered at West Hollywood's Laugh Factory to celebrate a friend's birthday. According to their attorney, Gloria Allred, they were ordering drinks when Richards berated them for interrupting his act. When one of their group replied that he wasn't funny, Richards launched into a string of...

We all know about actor Michael Richards' racial epithets at last Friday night's performance at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles. But yesterday, this exclusive TMZ.com article revealed that the three-time Emmy-award-winning actor had also hurled anti-Semitic slurs at the Improv comedy club in April of this year. According to the piece, Richards yelled at an audience member, "You f***ing Jew. You people are the cause of Jesus dying." And here's the kicker: Richards' own representative has confirmed that this actually happened.So how did the Los Angeles Times cover this latest revelation in today's paper (Thursday, November 23, 2006)? They...

When "Seinfeld" comedian Michael Richards lost his cool and began a racist rant at some noisy customers in a Hollywood comedy club, it seemed to surprise a number of people. It shouldn't. What is actually surprising is that it has taken this long for some airhead made famous by a very popular but insipid television series to flip out within the context of today's minstrel entertainments. Naturally, a lawyer representing the affronted audience members did not feel that it was enough for Richards to apologize on television; he still needs to pay them some money for what they had to...

Kramer's career in freefall after fresh claims of racism 23.11.06 Outburst: Richards allegedly lashed out at Jews during performance earlier this year, yelling at one audience member: "You're a f***ing Jew The career of actor Michael Richards, famed as Seinfeld's wacky neighbour Kramer, took a further nosedive today as fresh details of his racist comments came to light. Shocking racist rant from Seinfeld sidekick Richards launched a furious rant at two black hecklers during a standup show in Los Angeles last weekend. At the request of pal Jerry Seinfeld, Richards later appeared via satellite on the David Letterman Show to...

Hollywood — Mel Gibson is demanding that Michael Richards be blacklisted in Hollywood after the former “Seinfeld” actor unleashed a string of racial epithets during a stand-up routine. “As celebrities, we have to be particularly careful with our words,” said Gibson. “He should have his Jew lawyer issue an apology ASAP.” The 57-year-old actor-comedian, best known for playing Jerry Seinfeld’s eccentric neighbor Kramer on the hit TV show “Seinfeld,” was performing at the Laugh Factory in West Hollywood on Friday night when he went into the verbal rampage. Richards, responding to heckling from two black members of the audience, unleashed...

LOS ANGELES - Michael Richards is doing damage control. In the aftermath of his racist tirade against two black hecklers during a standup comedy routine, Richards on Wednesday hired a publicist with strong ties to the black community who set up calls to the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton. New York publicist Howard Rubenstein took on Richards as a client, then arranged for the actor to call the black leaders. --SNIP-- “Clearly he needs some race sensibility training, and some psychiatric help. His anger is volatile and dangerous to himself and others,” Jackson said. --SNIP-- “I’ve been very involved...

Victims of attack share their story Crime: 10 arrested after attack on Halloween; $2,500 reward offered for information about other suspects still at large. By Tracy Manzer, Staff writer Long Beach Press Telegram Article Launched: LONG BEACH - Several suspects including at least three men who savagely beat three young women in a horrific hate crime attack Halloween night remained at large Friday. The three victims - two of whom are 19 and the third 21 - agreed to sit down with a Press-Telegram reporter and discuss the painful attack in the hope that someone who knows the culprits will...

The phone lines might be back to normal.