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'No place for violence': Suburban comedians react to Will Smith's Oscars slap

It was the slap witnessed live around the world. But what happened Sunday during the 94th annual Academy Awards telecast when Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock - after he made a joke about Smith's wife - would not have happened at a Zanies Comedy Club. If it did, said a spokesman for the Rosemont and Chicago nightspots, that audience member would be outside the club looking in.

"If something like that happens at our comedy club, that person is escorted out of the building and the authorities are called," said Zanies spokesman Rick Gieser. "It was an act of violence, an assault. In the comedy business we would never stand for that."

On Twitter, comedian Kathy Griffin expressed her fear that Smith's actions may embolden other disgruntled audience members to behave similarly.

"Let me tell you something, it's a very bad practice to walk up on stage and physically assault a comedian," wrote the Oak Park native, who experienced a backlash for her 2017 social media post showing her holding a bloody mask of Donald Trump. "Now we all have to worry about who wants to be the next Will Smith in comedy clubs and theaters."

One of the first rules of comedy clubs is that audience members don't step onto the stage unless they're invited, Gieser said. Patrons rarely break that rule, he added.

"I can't think of any incidents where there was a physical assault," Gieser said.

But there have been instances when people who object to the content of a joke or are inebriated, heckle or verbally abuse a comedian. Zanies managers and employees are trained to deal with those situations. That mainly involves escorting that patron out the door and calling the police if the patron becomes violent.

Comedians, especially experienced comedians, have a toolbox ready to diffuse such situations, said Gieser, who doubts the Oscars slap will deter veterans from speaking their minds.

"There are many provocative comics who are there to push the envelope," he said, adding that Zanies' standups "know who they are as performers, as comedians and as individuals and they will know how to handle it."

The Oscars altercation might benefit Rock in the long run, mused comedian Judy Tenuta.

"Thanks to Will Smith's bad temper, Chris Rock will have a whole new comedy special," the Oak Park native tweeted. "The Oscars is no place to go gangster, Will. I'd like to hug Chris Rock who took the high road and refused to file assault charges. There was no place for violence at the Academy Awards."

In a Facebook Live video, comedian David A. Arnold opined that Smith should have waited to confront Rock.

Responding as he did, Smith "overshadowed his moment. He overshadowed the entire Oscars," said Arnold, who headlines The Improv in Schaumburg April 7 to 9.

"Comedians attack people all the time. That's what we do," said the Comedy Central and BET veteran, whose Netflix special premieres in July. "I guarantee you, you will not have heard the last of this from Chris Rock ... He will have something to say. That's how we are. That's how we battle."

Former Naperville resident and "Saturday Night Live" cast member Chris Redd tweeted: "Y'all remember that one kid in school that always started fights around police and teachers? That kid's an adult now. And famous."

Redd also tweeted: "Imagine you get smacked in front of the whole world and then dude who smacked you rides off singing 'gettin' jiggy with it' at full volume with all their heart. I don't know what hurts worse here."

Altercations like the one between Smith and Rock don't happen often, said Gieser. People patronize comedy clubs to take their minds off their worries, not engage in fisticuffs.

"They're here to have a laugh. Sometimes jokes hit, sometimes they don't. Sometimes they're in good taste and sometimes they aren't," he said.

It's up to comedians to present their perspective, he said, and sometimes they push the envelope. It's up to the audience to watch, enjoy and judge the performance.

And if they don't like it, they can walk out, he said.

Former Naperville resident and "Saturday Night Live" cast member Chris Redd commented on the Oscars altercation involving Will Smith and Chris Rock. file photo courtesy of John Salangsang/Invision/AP
Kathy Griffin tweeted about Will Smith slapping comedian Chris Rock during the 94th annual Academy Awards telecast Sunday. file photo courtesy of Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP
Oak Park native Judy Tenuta weighed in on social media on the slap witnessed around the world. Associated Press, 2013
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