Jay Leno Apologizes for Gay Jokes

[kevbo]

Son takes his father to the doctor. Doctor gives them the bad news that the father is dying of cancer. Father tells the son that he has had a good long life and wants to stop at the bar on the way home to celebrate it.

While at the bar, the father sees several of his friends. He tells them that he is dying of AIDS.

When the friends leave the son asks, "Dad, you are dying of cancer. Why did you tell them that you are dying of AIDS?"

The father replies, "I don't want them fucking your mother after I'm gone!"

Or how about "Give the camera your best AIDS victim face!"

 

[kevbo]

Geez.... sucks to be as sensitive as some people on here.

Thanks for the debate guys, but i'll stick with my sense of humour, ta.

Right, i'm off to do some laundry and put my dinner on.

Sucks to be as desensitized as others...

Personally, it didn't offend me, but I know why it was the wrong thing to say.

Speaking of a sense of humor, I find it funny that you go on about how sensitive we are, yet you haven't the backbone to stand up for who you are.

 

[sunoftheskye]

Geez.... sucks to be as sensitive as some people on here.

Thanks for the debate guys, but i'll stick with my sense of humour, ta.

Right, i'm off to do some laundry and put my dinner on.

If gays were really all that sensitive, there'd be this kind of hubbub everyday considering not a day goes by where similar jokes aren't made.

 

[G-Lexington]

"In talking about Ryan's first role - comedy gold, by the way - I realize that some Brokebackers took it wrong. I certainly didn't think any gays would find it offensive. I agree that it was dumb of me to think that homos would be intelligent enough to understand humor when confronted with them, but then again, they always have a stick up their asses...or something stick-shaped, anyway. I apologize since that'll make this whole mess go away."

Lex

 

[Paws]

I dislike comedians and late-night hosts who make money with their forced offensive jokes anyway.

If someone makes such jokes at a private place in a small group, ok, that's something I have to tolerate, but making money and gaining fame by joking about minorities or weaker people is fascistic

 

[Spensed]

Aren't we talking about context here?

It's one thing for shock-jock-say-anything-comedians or individuals to come up with anti-everything jokes. Most people get that and don't use them to change or affirm their prejudices. Sometimes they even have the opposite effect. As ghastly as he was, Andrew Dice Clay's comic misogyny threw light on the objectification of women.

It's something else for a G rated light entertainment comedian to suddenly insert the similar kind of sex-baiting humor in an inappropriate context.

Not only did Jay's homophobic premise clearly make Ryan Phillippe uncomfortable, it endorsed all the fag stuff that still goes on in high school and college and help to make it seem ok, in a way that comedians flaming gays, etc. in another context might not.

It's not true to say that jokes never harmed anyone. They contribute to the gay baiting and gay bashing attitudes that end up killing kids like Larry King recently in California.

I like Jay Leno, but he is a well intentioned Neanderthal on gay issues. He's very pro-gay, but being gay is still not something he could ever see himself as being, it's unmanly and something to laugh at other people about. He makes jokes about gays that he would never dream of making about other minorities. Most of the time, it isn't a problem. Here it clearly was and good for him that he recognized it as such.

And good for Ryan Phillippe for not just going along with it. His attitude helps Jay Leno and others change theirs.

 

[sabot3ur]

We arent the butt of all jokes and ridicule though. It's just you think we are.

Every element of society has the piss taken out of them... it's called having a SENSE OF HUMOUR.

...

The fact is, i've got a sense of humour. I'm able to laugh at my self. I'm able to see the funny side of things.

It's a trait that seems to be lost on many Americans these days.

what about howard stern? I love howard stern, he fucks with everyone equally. but jay leno isn't even funny about it... and have you ever heard him make racial jokes, or make fun of nearly any other group besides this? no, because that's out of his PC comfort zone, but apparently gay jokes are just fine and dandy.

and your UK vs America shit is ooooooold

 

[Croynan]

Leno has been pulling this crap for years and has been allowed to get away with it under the guise of humour. it ain't humour. it is insensitivity and nothing short of gay bashing.

it's about time the homosexual organizations went after Leno for his behaviours on his programme. let him develope a sense of descency for a change.

maybe the time has come for a bit of Leno bashing and some pressure on his network and advertizers.

he sucks.

eM.

 

[glo-unit]

I like Jay Leno, but he is a well intentioned Neanderthal on gay issues. He's very pro-gay, but being gay is still not something he could ever see himself as being, it's unmanly and something to laugh at other people about. He makes jokes about gays that he would never dream of making about other minorities. Most of the time, it isn't a problem. Here it clearly was and good for him that he recognized it as such.

I think this is a fairly good description of Jay Leno. He's definitely not outright homophobic, but he takes the typical straight guy approach that there is something fundamentally off about homosexuality so he rips on it in ways that aren't really funny and don't make much sense.

However once again it needs to be stated that gays will laugh at gay jokes if they are funny. How else to you explain all the homos that love Lisa Lampanelli, bitch is funny.

 

[kevbo]

What does that mean?

I'm constantly standing up for who i am.

Can you elaborate Kev, on what you mean by that?

Standing up for yourself? Maybe.

Standing up for who you are, as a gay man? Definitely not.

Can you really not see the damage done by Jay Leno making gay jokes. Jay Leno is one of the few shows that parents let children watch on nights when children have "been good enough to stay up a little later." While you may think he's a joke, he has a lot more impact on how people think about things than you think. It's an unfortunate truth.

And not even just children! He's exacerbating the stereotypes our community already has to fight against!

You can't just laugh at everything.

 

[G-Lexington]

Hey, remember that time we were debating that issue on JUB? And Joe took the other side? And he had maybe a couple valid points, but did a poor job of presenting and explaining them? And when people got onhim about it, it became a UK vs US, moral superiority vs mob mentality thing?

Yeah, me neither.

Lex

 

[Spensed]

....I'm not going to start censoring humour on the basis that a few ignorant jerks may form their opinions of homosexuals on what Leno has to say....

You make it sound as if censoring humor is the only alternative to inappropriate humor. It isn't. Try free speech using judgement and consideration for others.

Sure with the right attitude (even a negative one) and in the right context, you can make fun of everyone and everything.

But that doesn't mean it's ok to joke about, for example, dead babies to a mother whose baby has just died unless you intend to harm her emotionally or are prepared to take that risk.

Anything goes for comedians like Howard Stern, but Leno plays Joe Normal and it isn't just a few ignorant jerks that take their cue from him.

When he treats gays with less respect than he treats Blacks, Jews and other minorities, he's sending a message that it's ok to do that. And little by little, he's learning it's not.

 

[operafan]

There is very little funny about Leno and there is nothing funny about him continuing to make jokes at gays' expense.

I think Whitty was brilliant in starting the Web site.

 

[tallguy297]

One of the most critical things to me about this debate thats going on right here, is that its being had by adults... people who are generally stable, comfortable, confident and ok with themselves and who they are.

And thats fine. We can choose what we laugh at or disagree with or think is in bad taste.

But there are plenty of impressionable, repressed, young, shy or scared people INCLUDING our kids who continually see this stuff as the reason to fear who they are, to resent who they are and lead miserable unhealthy and unhappy lives.

More over and even more importantly this crap reinforces to the ignorrant and uneducated amongst us that its ok to bash, make fun of and ridicaule gays of all ages. Worse than that this sort of pseudo approval of homophobic behaviour - no the actual encouragement of homophobic behaviour results in things like the murder of Lawrence King.

And thats just bullshit.

The issue here is not whether or not we can laugh at ourselves. We can.

The issue is the consent this sort of crap gives others to laugh at us.

 

[kevbo]

The fact is that a few jokes, and a false apology hasn't hurt anyone, it's just a comic moment. I read his apology and found myself laughing in agreement with him.

It may affect how a few people think, but the majority of people are more clued up on the world than those whom may be influenced in their thinking by Mr Leno.

I'm not going to start censoring humour on the basis that a few ignorant jerks may form their opinions of homosexuals on what Leno has to say.

And if it wasn't a joke? How would you feel if it were a slip up during a serious speech?

 

[Mitsukuni]

My two cents:

Its comedy, sure the jokes might have been inappropriate, but all these fuss about it.

Speaking of which Jay had Ross the intern, for a while, I wonder if he has anything to say about it?

 

[cocktales]

Jay Lenno should be ashamed of himself for putting Ryan Phillippe on-the-spot and insisting he "play "GAY" to the camera"!!!

NO, he knows better than to make his guest(s) feel uncomfortable and he clearly crossed the line when he chose to make-fun of his role early-on in his career.

Hey, I am the first to laugh at myself; but when you segment a whole group and make-fun and clearly de-fame gay movie roles by choosing to use gay people as the butts of his jokes...

NOT!!!

If I had been Ryan, I would NOT have just threatened to walk-off his show, I would have!!!

Surely, Jay being the consummate professional that he is, knows/should know better than to take a whole segment of society and be-little them in such a comedic way.......

Jay, "It ain't funny"!!!

NOT now, NOT ever, my friend!!!

Sometimes you have to stand up for your rights, and I think Ryan said/did the right thing by NOT being used by Jay Lenno!
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[wastingmymind]

My two cents:
Speaking of which Jay had Ross the intern, for a while, I wonder if he has anything to say about it?

Wasn't Ross the Intern supposed to be a walking punchline in the show because of his homosexuality/ perceived?

Anyway, guys, please stop fighting for Jay Leno's cause because Jay Leno's not funny. Never was. And he saying that joke wasn't dependent on his physical life, so it's not a necessity ergo the free speech argument is for naught.

 

[luminum]

It's not that it isn't "funny" or that people don't have senses of humor, it's that:

1) Jay Leno ALWAYS does some fucking gay joke. The man seems to just scrape for the bottom of the barrel. No witty material? Go with using gays as a joke. Is being gay really so hilarious that it should be your "goto" group?

and

2) The jokes aren't even using homosexuality well enough to constitute a form of humor. It's just using the premise that being gay itself is a riot, when really it isn't. It's just life. Other comedians use the gay experience to create a situational joke or punchline, but Leno's are always just "X is gay, ha ha ha, isn't that funny?" No. Not really. It's just really poor writing.

And what you, joey, are missing is that most of the gay guys here can laugh at themselves. The reason why no one's laughing at Jay Leno's gay jokes is because there's nothing really all that funny or witty about them. 'How did your mother feel about [playing a gay teenager on a sitcom]?" How is that funny? If it's anything, it's just rude. If you replace it with anything else, like race (How did your [white] mother feel about [playing a white man in an interracial relationship]?) the "joke" is offensive. It only works off the premise that being straight and playing [a gay teenager] must be absolutely embarrassing and terrible, especially when you have to confront your mother about what you've done.

"Did you hear the one about the woman who was attacked last night in the park by two gay men? One held her down and the other did her hair." That's based off of a general stereotype, and pretty funny. I get the joke, and I think it's cute. I don't think anyone seriously would get up in arms about it because it's a funny joke, and though it works off of stereotypes it's not malicious. It doesn't base itself out of any gay-shame or heterosexism.

Face it, Jay Leno's jokes just aren't funny and for the most part, they're based out of a heterosexism.

South Park throws a ton of gay jokes out in every episode and most of those are funny without being heterosexist. If South Park can do it effectively without being overtly offensive, then why on earth can't a hack like Leno? It's a mystery.

 

[rareboy]

The fact is, i've got a sense of humour. I'm able to laugh at my self. I'm able to see the funny side of things.

...........well, Joe, aren't you just the lucky one, all things considered.

And thanks so much for sharing a collection of puerile jokes just to cheer us all up.


However.....

Isn't Leno just a big fruit anyway? He is about the worst gay joke there is.

God the guy is so fucking lame. How is it that he ended up as the heir to Carson?