What's Kramer's Racedar And What's The Color Of Money

[Dien Rice]

Hi Garth,

Interesting topic!

As a Seinfeld fan (and of "Kramer's" antics on that show) this issue caught my eye...

Michael Richards says he was heckled and basically lost his temper and as a result, he "screwed up" big time...

I was wondering for a while if he was trying to do a "Lenny Bruce"-style act. (For those who don't know, Lenny Bruce was an influential comedian in the 50s and 60s. He'd use "racially charged" words for every race you can imagine - including his own [he was Jewish]. His goal - he said - was to take the "power" away from these words, which would help bring some kind of racial harmony...)

However, the key was Lenny Bruce would insult every "race" - including his own. He didn't just pick on one "race" - it's a big difference...

(By the way, I tried to listen to Lenny Bruce's act once - but I never really found him funny...)

About the "color of money" - I believe business, in general, helps to encourage racial harmony. That's because there is no "color" to money - money is money, no matter what the "race"/religion/gender/age is of the person who gives it to you... So there is pressure for most businesses to be "color-blind" - and to have all "races" as customers... Which is a good thing!

We have people of all "races" who post here at Sowpub, and that's one great thing about the internet - often, you can't tell what "race" someone is when you talk to them.

That means you get to "see" the person inside before you can make any judgements about their looks...

I think it's another thing which helps to break down prejudice...

Best wishes,

Dien

P.S. The "real" Kramer - Kenny Kramer (Larry David's friend who the character "Cosmo Kramer" was loosely based on) - disavows Michael Richards' words. He's also a bit of an entrepreneur, and fascinating in his own right... You can see his web site here - http://www.kennykramer.com