Reckless in Richardsville: Michael Richards caps comedy career with unhilarious hate speech for hecklers

Well, that's a shame.

If you haven't heard about the racial "n-word" tirade by Michael Richards, captured on videotape by someone at the Laugh Factory last weekend, go read the story by Lynn Elber, AP Television Writer.

He simply lost it. He failed to master the art of handling hecklers, allowing his anger to take center stage. And a bit of his old Kramer dialogue has new meaning: "Up here, I'm already gone."

There was a time when Seinfeld's Kramer, as played by actor Michael Richards, was the most popular character on television. The Kramer wall poster outsold all other Seinfeld characters fourteen to one. There was even once an episode in which Kramer had an African-American girlfriend, which seems sadly ironic in light of this reality episode.

Tonight, we are compelled by this train wreck to watch The Late Show starring David Letterman to see Michael Richards' satellite-fed apology, reportedly arranged by Jerry Seinfeld in an effort to help his long-time friend and co-star regain some shred of humanity. To put some stand-up in stand-up.

In an age of ubiquitous videography and You Tube, damage control takes an instant urgency. Seinfeld and Letterman have both the power and gravitas to get an apology on-the-air with lightning-like swiftness–probably before most people have even heard about the original incident.

If you'd like to subject yourself to the video evidence, make sure sensitive ears are not in the room. It's brutal and disturbing on more than one level.

Michael Richards was once great at making an entrance, but his exit begs a rewrite.

--RAC