Cosmo Kramer had me at “giddyup.”
The “Seinfeld” character with the bouffant ‘do, Groucho Marx brows and long, lanky frame stood out even among his fellow quirky characters. He brought us the jimmy legs, a literal coffee table book and a propensity to slide, rather than stroll, into a room.
But it’s been a while since Kramer, or the actor who portrayed him, has invoked anything other than anger, as far as I’m concerned. Call me stubborn, but I am still not over Michael Richards’ “n-word” meltdown in 2006.
I even considered boycotting the upcoming fall season of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and rolled my eyes at the photo of him on Entertainment Weekly’s “Curb” cover this week. Why so serious?
Despite his subsequent apology and excuse-making tour, I firmly believe that Richards revealed true racism in his attack on black Laugh Factory patrons. He even referenced lynching at one point in his tirade, eliminating any hope of explaining away his “n-word” usage as an impromptu audition for a Tarantino film.
Even Richards didn’t buy his own b.s., and that’s likely why he checked himself into pop purgatory, a dismal dimension currently inhabited by Mel Gibson, Duane “Dog the Bounty Hunter” Chapman, and “Grey’s Anatomy” alum (and “f-word” utterer) Isaiah Washington.
But unlike those other shunned stars, pop culture may be ready for Richards’ return, as evident in his “Curb” gig and an informal poll of Kyles Files contributors.
A number of my official pop pundits said we shouldn’t block Richards’ road to redemption. He’s served his time, a few reasoned.
“Everyone deserves a second chance, regardless sometimes of how dumb, ignorant, racist, [bigoted] of an action he or she might have taken,” rapper and Englewood resident T-Y Green e-mailed me.
Indie label head and rapper Kidd Russell, too, said Richards erred big time, but deserves another roll of the dice.
ChicagoNow staffer and breakingtweets.com entertainment editor Shari Weiss said the actor never owed pop penance, period.
“[Celebrities] can live and speak according to their own standards,” Weiss, 22, e-mailed me. “There’s hardly any circumstance that should prevent someone from trying to have a career and sustain a living.”
I wouldn’t take it quite that far, but she and my other pop peeps have a point. I’m guessing he needs a check, unless he’s living off “The Michael Richards Show” residuals.
Besides, forgiveness is more for the offended than the offender. It gives Richards too much power if I continue to shun him, and frankly, I’d be sorry if I skipped “Curb.”
So I’ll check out the HBO show and resist the inevitable urge to change the channel whenever he appears. Maybe I can even give syndicated “Seinfeld” another shot with one notable exception: no deal on the over-tan episode during which Kramer is mistaken for a black man.
Even the staunchest Richards-defenders should be cool with that.
