Let Tracy be a comedian. Stop scrutinizing every joke!!!
Comedian/Actor Tracy Morgan recently went on an apology spree after a barrage of homophobic comments he made during a Nashville stand-up show. Now he’s being accused of ‘slamming’ the mentally and physically disabled.
“Don’t ever mess with women who have retarded kids,” he said at a recent stand-up show in New York. “Them young retarded males is strong. They’re strong like chimps,” he quipped before continuing with a joke about a ‘crippled’ teenaged girl he was allegedly once romantic with.
It’s no surprise that comedian Tracy Morgan, 42, is a proponent of controversy, his vulgar and often offensive stand-up shows are nothing new — and that’s exactly the reason he sells tickets, right? So why the hullabaloo surrounding Morgan’s homophobic, sexist, ignorant and often downright cruel ‘jokes’ now?
Before Morgan landed the role of Tracy Jordan on Tina Fey’s ’30 Rock’ his star status, although burning, was less than stellar. Sure, he was on ‘SNL’ for ten years (1996 – 2006) but those were the glory days of Fey, Amy Poehler, Jimmy Fallon and Maya Rudolph. While his castmates largely stole the show, Morgan was left on stage B.
The same year Morgan parted ways with the weekly sketch show, Fey cast him in what would become his career reinvention (and arguably, making) role. Morgan’s character, Tracy Jordan, who seemed to be more than loosely based on his real life personality, was the often offensive but mostly lovable and egotistical actor who dreamed of one day scoring an E.G.O.T. (an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony win) or doing ‘missionary’ work in Africa. How laughable, how offensively charming?
Fey’s creation of a character so strikingly similar to the real life Tracy allowed TV’s iron curtain to fall. Tracy Morgan meet Tracy Jordan. One in the same, no? But why so apologetic for a homophobic joke that was specifically crafted to entertain what he thought was his similarly line-crossing fan base? Was it NBC telling him to reel it in, to ditch the very thing that stand-up comedians are supposed to do — push the envelope.
There’s only room in showbiz for one Tracy and it seems about time to get pickin’ before he ends up the the ambassador for every butt of the joke cause under the sun. So who’s it going to be, Tracy Morgan or Tracy Jordan?
