![Jerry Seinfeld]()
Jerry Seinfeld, the man who brought the world one of the funniest sitcoms of all time in the '90s, has been bringing some "controversial" topics to the spotlight in the 2020s.
Not too long ago, the world famous stand-up comedian went on the record saying that the
"extreme left and PC crap" is to blame for the decline in comedy. That by itself caused a small uproar, with some rushing to defend Jerry for putting that out there, while others pointed to the number of comedy projects that have worked in recent years (it's hasn't been many).
It seems as though that Seinfeld would have learned his lesson and shied away from speaking on topics that could be deemed as controversial. However, the legendary comic must like poking the bear a bit, because during a recent interview with
The Free Press, Seinfeld dove right back into a touchy subject: Toxic masculinity.
Coming off the heels of his passion project
Unfrosted, a movie set in the 1960s about the creation of the Pop Tart, Jerry sat down to talk a little bit about the time period the zany film was set in. He spoke about what led him to get nostalgic about the 1960s, and how the modern day society is a lot different than the one his latest movie took place in:
"We have no sense of hierarchy, and as humans, we don't really feel comfortable like that. That is part of what I think, if you want to talk about nostalgia, that's part of what makes that moment attractive looking back. And the other thing is, as a man... can I say that? I've always wanted to be a real man. I never made it.
But I really thought when I was in that era, again, it was JFK, it was Muhammad Ali, it was Sean Connery, Howard Cosell. You can go all the way down (and say), 'That's a real man. I want to be like that someday.'"
Jerry probably would have avoided the internet trolls if he stopped right there. But he kept rolling on, and finally said the quiet part out loud as he implied that having dominant men high up in the hierarchy wasn't all that bad, and it's something he somewhat longs for in today's age:
"I never really grew up. You don't want to as a comedian because its a childish pursuit. But I miss a dominant masculinity. Yeah, I get the toxic thing, I get it. But still, I like a real man."
You might read that and ask, "What's the harm in saying that?" Feel free to think that, but a lot of people online have gotten upset with Seinfeld, a man, saying that he misses a time where men were more in charge and in more positions of power, talking about the '60s. The "agreed upon hierarchy" didn't land all that well for the stand-up comedian either.
Go ahead and listen to the interview for yourself and see if you Seinfeld deserves the backlash he's getting:
https://youtu.be/TXAvkqXD-Fc?si=FU1mRBquFDYLq0A0&t=249
