James Corden nearly apologizes for “inadvertently” stealing a Ricky Gervais joke
He won't apologize for the egg yolk omelet and he won't apologize for taking Ricky Gervais' joke from 2018
Aux News James Corden
James Corden can’t catch a break this month. First, he’s denied his egg white free egg yolk omelet at Balthazar, and now he can’t tell a Ricky Gervais joke from 2018 on his talk show. During Corden’s Late Late Show monologue last night, the beleaguered host poked fun at Elon Musk’s recent Twitter buy-out. Can you blame him? Everyone can’t stand that guy!
“When you see Elon Musk talk about Twitter, he does this thing where he goes ‘Well, it’s the town square,’” Corden said. “But it isn’t. Because if someone puts up a poster in a town square that says ‘guitar lessons available,’ you don’t get people in the town going ‘I don’t want to play the guitar! I want to play the piano, you piece of shit!’”
“That sign wasn’t for you, it was for someone else. You don’t have to get mad!”
Unfortunately, while Corden was making light of one of the world’s great free-speech defenders (and by free speech, we mean speech that costs $8 a month), he was disrespecting another: Ricky Gervais. Taking time out from demeaning and humiliating trans people, Gervais noticed that Corden’s joke is curiously similar to one featured on his 2018 stand-up show Humanity:
“That’s what the world is like, people take everything personally. I think the world revolves around them, particularly on Twitter. I’m not tweeting at anyone, I’m just tweeting. I don’t know who’s following me; they can be following me without my knowing, choose to read my tweet, and then take that personally. That’s like going into a town square, and there’s a notice for guitar lessons and you go, ‘But I don’t fucking want guitar lessons!’
Nevertheless, never one to take things personally, Gervais didn’t hold the joke against Corden. “I reckon one of the writers ‘came up with it’ for him,” Gervais tweeted to a fan asking about the joke. “I doubt he would knowingly just copy such a famous stand up routine word for word like that.”
Now well-acquainted with the art of the public controversy, Corden wrote on Twitter that he “inadvertently told a brilliant Ricky Gervais joke on the show last night, obviously not knowing it came from him.”
“It’s brilliant, because it’s a Ricky Gervais joke,” Corden tweeted. “You can watch all Ricky’s excellent specials on Netflix.”
What’s missing there are the words “I’m sorry,” “I apologize,” or even “I regret.” The art of the non-apology apology is Corden’s secret weapon. For example, he recently “explained” but did not apologize for acting like a “tiny cretin of a man” toward the staff of the New York City restaurant Balthazar. Still, he did say that he has “such respect” for anyone who does “such a job.” We assume the “job” he’s describing is “waiting on an apology from James Corden.”
[via Insider]
42 Comments
I’m not sure Ricky Gervais knows what “word for word” means.
Oi, back in line Gervais. Corden’s gotta apologise to humanity first for inflicting himself upon us. Then your turn, Gervais. No not to get an apology, to give one to humanity for inflicting yourself upon us too.
You probably love the Office… Gervais is funny and despite your feelings on the offensive trans jokes, he has created some brilliant television. The man is funny. He also has some borderline questionable views.
The original Office was very funny. That does not mean that Gervais is not a complete dickhead. Also, he was not the only person who was in it or even wrote it. He co-wrote it with Stephen Merchant (and co-directed, and couldn’t have done any of it on his own).
Speaking of not funny
I never really watched the Office and I don’t find Gervais particularly funny.
Humor is such a subjective thing.
That awful hyena cackle. Ugh.
James Corden cribbing from Ricky Gervais is like one chimp throwing another chimp’s turd at the zoo.
Same with that restaurant guy.I just can’t help wanting them all to tear each other apart.
It’s like that, but it’s also like one chimp throwing another chimp’s turd at the zoo.
It’s a bit like The AV Club stealing story ideas from Twitter.
In that it’s all the ever happens?
I thought I laughed at a Corden joke, but it turns out I laughed at a Gervais joke? Damn now I… still feel sick.
Why did you laugh at Corden joke?
I just think it was constructed pretty well. Then again, I only read it here, never watched him deliver it, maybe it’s worse coming out of his mouth
You felt good laughing at a Corden joke?
Well, this one’s a wash.
im glad hes not apologizing for anything, he clearly wouldnt mean it
the joke doesn’t even work in corden’s telling because in Gervais, he’s talking about people specifically following him to get mad, whereas corden is just like “this doesn’t happen in a town square”, but i guess it does on twitter? the relation between the two parts of the joke are labored at best
Maybe you should have someone explain the joke to you before presenting your “opinion”?
I feel like that’s so generic/bland of a joke? Like yea he probably stole it but the same joke would have worked for baking lessons or something? I mean the joke is premised off of the fact that people refer to twitter as a town square and “offering something someone doesn’t want” Its not the most complex joke and anyone could have made it…. Yet at the same time its so pathetic Corden (or a writer) stole it damn near word for word
Yeah, it doesn’t particularly strike me as so blindingly original that two people couldn’t come up with the same basic joke independently. And I’d hardly call it a “famous stand-up routine”. You really need to have either a lot more controversy or be a lot more than 3-4 years away before you can call it “famous”. “7 words you can’t say on TV” is famous. This is just a few lines from a relatively recent special.
The concept is not particularly original, but as TheSillyMan says, both using “guitar lessons” as the notice suggests it was pilfered.
Millions watched Ricky’s special, so I think that qualifies as “famous”. And both renditions mentioned the town square comparison and then the flyer offering guitar lessons and then being offended by it. Too much similarity for parallel development. Someone in the writer’s room got bitched at yesterday for the blatant theft that made boss man look bad. Again.
Except I can’t remember ever hearing a joke that used the phrase “baking lessons,” or seeing a flier that offered “baking lessons”—or hearing that anyone has so much as considered charging for “baking lessons.” No, as far as I can tell, the most recognizable cliché available here—and by some margin, too—i.e., the one that would best guarantee the joke landed—is “guitar lessons”; so the fact that it was “guitar lessons” (and not “baking lessons”) suggests to me the joke wasn’t stolen. (Or, possibly, that Corden’s management engineered the whole story, hoping it might get people to forget about that restaurant episode—which really made him look like an ass.)
“ so the fact that it was “guitar lessons” (and not “baking lessons”) suggests to me the joke wasn’t stolen.”
You are truly stupid.
I just remembered how famous this ad is, even outside NYC. There’s an entire Wikipedia entry for it!https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Smith_Will_Teach_You_Guitar
…or he’ll kill you.
Your emphasis makes Matthew Perry sound like Olivier.
I stand by it.Or should I say…I lean by it.(Hell yeah! Because italics, baby!)
Dear boy . . .
BREAKING: Garbage Steals From Trash
His not apologizing is the only thing about him i like.
And im sure Gervais doesnt give a shit, unless he wants to use it in a future bit, or to take shots at Corden-i have no idea how he feels about corden.
Grossly irrelevant mean-spirited A-hole nearly apologizes for “inadvertently” stealing other grossly irrelevant mean-spirited A-hole’s unamusing “joke” FIFY
Not that Corden isn’t an insufferable twat, but of course Gervais would choose to describe one of his routines as famous because he himself, is famously an insufferable twat.
Corden and Gervais are both on that axis of smug English arseholes , so I don’t know how to feel about this .
Well, one of them stole the other’s joke. How is there more than one way to feel about it?
You either want to admonish Corden for stealing a joke or…congratulate him on it?
The joke is about people getting mad about specific words not matching exactly what the reader wanted.The article is about pretending to get mad about specific words not matching exactly what the author wanted.Plenty of dickhead to go around, it seems.
“The joke is about people getting mad about specific words not matching exactly what the reader wanted.”
No, it isn’t, but thanks for showing up.
What is there to apologize for? Such an utterly inconsequential non-story this is.