Recently, the comedian Michael Ian Black was doing a show in Columbus, Ohio and he was talking about how much he liked Obama. This resulted in some scattered boos. Then somebody yelled out "Heil Hitler!" Michael was taken aback by the comment and then asked the man what he meant by that (hoping there guy was trying to be ironic or funny in some weird way). The heckler said, "Because when you say you like Obama, that's the same thing to me as 'Heil Hitler.'" So Michael responds, "Sir, I say this with all due respect -- you are a fucking moron."
And then Michael got really worked up and started screaming at the guy. Saying things like "How dare you compare Hitler to Obama or any president? How dare you equate what he did to what Obama is doing? Do you have any idea how insulting that is? Do you know anything about history? Do you have any idea what Hitler did? He killed six million of my people, which is six million more than Obama has killed." Then Michael started calling him a fucking idiot, a fucking moron, and that he's the problem with this fucking country. And he basically started yelling fuck at the guy. Then the heckler got up and left.
In the aftermath, Michael says he feels bad for how he reacted because his response was immature. He said, "I could have made my point a million different ways without screaming into a microphone in a room filled with drunk people. I wasn't clever, I wasn't thoughtful, I said nothing that would move the conversation forward." I thought Michael's response was definitely appropriate. A statement like that definitely brings about an emotional, angry response. It's hard to deliver a rational, calm retort to a statement like that and to a person that makes statements like that. Even still, I thought what Michael initially said was rational and does move the conversation forward. Michael pointed out that it's absurd to compare someone like Hitler -- and all the atrocities he committed -- to Barack Obama; that this heckler is doing a great disservice to history; and that you can't treat a statement like that as if it's a buzz word -- there's actual meaning behind what you say. As for Michael screaming "fuck" at the heckler? That served a purpose too because it probably embarrassed the heckler. And he should be embarrassed.
This got me thinking about other comedian hecklers. On the FX show Louie -- written by, directed by, and featuring the comedian Louis C.K. -- there was an episode that brought up hecklers. Louis was doing a set and there was a lady in the audience that kept talking loudly to her friends. She also would interrupt his set and try to make jokes herself. Louis then makes fun of her during his set. Afterwards, the lady approaches him outside the club and said that was really mean and unfair of him. I love how Louis responds to her. He says, "Most people would never do that. Most people are polite and they'd rather cut off their hand then hurt a show by talking. That's what...a good person wouldn't do that. So you must be a bad person."
She then says, "I know I'm a good person. And you have no right to talk to me like that."
Louis says, "Actually I do. That's the whole thing. That's how that room works. I have a right to talk. I'm actually paid to talk in there. And to say stuff and people laugh. You're not supposed to say anything. It's a show. "
She goes on to defend her talking and says that's what people do and he has to learn to put up with it.
Louis says, "Let me ask you a question. Do you like your life?"
"Yes. So?"
"I'm sure you do. You're a student. You're happy. You have good days and you have full and fun nights. Right?"
"Yes, I'm not a loser like you."
"Yes, see that's the whole point. You have a good life and it's just the way you want it to be. These guys -- comedians, me -- these guys don't have a life. This is all they have. Their days are shit. They don't have many friends, they don't have families; they have this. The only good part of their lives is the 15 minutes they get to be on stage, maybe once a week. Sometimes once a month. And you took that 15 minutes...the one 15 minutes that they would have had, that they would have enjoyed maybe for a long time. And you ruined it. You took that away from them. I know you think it's cute, but it's not. It's really...it's a rotten thing to do. And I don't know how you can think you're a good person if you do things like that. Honestly, I think you should be ashamed of yourself. I really do."
Brilliant.
Speaking of brilliant, I also love what Patton Oswalt said to a heckler once:
"You're going to miss everything cool and die angry."
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