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Whoopi Goldberg has had a long, complicated career in Hollywood. While she’s an EGOT winner, her name is often in the headlines for the wrong reasons. From her controversial comments about the Holocaust to her ties with other polarizing figures, her reputation has taken some serious hits.
Despite her talent and success, it’s these moments that tend to steal the spotlight. Here’s one example of how she managed to dig herself into a hole, turning her own words into a PR disaster.
Ted Danson’s Blackface Controversy
Whoopi Goldbergrose to prominence through her comedy career and even had a notable relationship withThe Good PlacestarTed Dansonin the early ’90s, which lasted about a year and a half. But the tragedy begins here, Hollywood, has a complicated history with blackface, a practice that is both undeniably racist and a troubling part of white America’s entertainment tradition.
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Danson in October 1993, at a Friars Club roast for Whoopi Goldberg, appeared with dark brown face paint, a wide white stripe around his mouth, and used the N-word repeatedly. But that is not all, he also made jokes about their s-x life, offensive comments about her cleaning his parents’ house, and ended with him eating watermelon from a tray, which left many in shock.
Thankfully, the audience, both inside and outside the hall, wasn’t having it at all! CriticRoger Ebertnoted that each joke got less and less laughter from the 3,000 people which included names like Halle Berry, Vanessa Williams, and RuPaul, in the crowd at the New York Hilton.
While many were furious and condemned the performance, there was one person who stood by Ted Danson through the chaos, and that was none other than his then-love of his life, Whoopi Goldberg.
Whoopi Goldberg Strongly Defends Ted Danson Despite Controversy
Whoopi Goldberg defended her then-boyfriend, Ted Danson, against critics who slammed him for wearing blackface at a Friars Club roast, arguing what more did people expect from these events, as after all, it was a roast! She claimed (viaAssociated Press),
We were not trying to be politically correct. We were trying to be funny for ourselves
The argument continued that it was a private event and didn’t deserve all the attention it was getting, certainly not more than the other pressing issues happening around the world, which many considered real news.
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She pointed out that the media attention felt disproportionate. She also read a statement from Danson, which said (via Associated Press),
There was too much love behind my words to ever be misconstrued as racist
Goldberg also revealed that she had actually helped write much of the material for Danson’s routine and even found the makeup artist who applied the blackface. She also shared that Danson was deeply hurt by the backlash, feeling misunderstood and unfairly criticized for what was intended as a joke.
Sampurna Banerjee
Articles Published :1803
Sampurna Banerjee is an Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, and she’s written over 1,700 articles! She covers everything from celebrity news to the latest superhero buzz, streaming shows, and fan theories. If it’s trending in pop culture, Sampurna’s probably already on it.When she’s not working, you’ll probably find her rewatching The Office (again), getting into debates about Marvel’s timeline, or diving deep into Christopher Nolan movies for the hundredth time. She’s not just writing about entertainment, she’s living it.
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Ted DansonWhoopi Goldberg
