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Despite being “canceled,” Louis C.K. made a surprise appearance at a special comedy show that raised funds for one of the greatest comedians in the last 20 years.
The outrage mob has forced Louis C.K. into having a more subdued comedy career than he previously had before he was ostracized in 2017. However, that doesn’t mean that fellow comedians and genuine comedy fans have given up on Louis.
Louis C.K. made a surprise appearance at the 8th annual Patrice O’Neal comedy benefit on Tuesday night. While the comedian has been shunned in certain places, Louis CK was welcomed with open arms and rousing applause at the comedy benefit held at New York’s City Center.
A person who was in the audience for the fundraiser stand-up comedy show told Page Six that Louis received “a standing ovation and prolonged screaming from the sold-out crowd” when he walked onstage. Louis was a surprise guest and not listed as one of the performers who were raising money for the family of the late, great Patrice O’Neal.
“You would have thought that God showed up, the response he got,” the witness explained.
CK joked with the crowd that he’s been spending a lot of time in Europe because that’s the only place that will still book him for comedy gigs.
The stand-up show benefitting the family of Patrice O’Neal, featured an all-star comedy lineup that included Bill Burr, Andrew Schulz, Rich Vos, Roy Wood Jr., Judy Gold, Sam Morril, Cipha Sounds, Paul Virzi, and Ronny Chieng. Louis also made a surprise stand-up appearance at the Patrice O’Neal benefit in 2016.
When I first started Stand Up Comedy this would have been a dream show to watch, let alone be a part of! I did the 8th annual Patrice O’Neal benefit last night with these people. It was very special. Everyone brought their A game and it was incredible! Thank you for having me. pic.twitter.com/gG4nBCO61m
— Paul Virzi (@PaulVirzi) January 28, 2020
https://twitter.com/RichVos/status/1222311233556185088
Patrice was a stupendous stand-up comedian who died on November 29, 2011, at the age of 41 from complications of a stroke. Louis was helping raise money for the family of Patrice O’Neal, including his longtime girlfriend Von Decarlo.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B74UFhvg0bA/?igshid=n3v2zxhync0v
Louis C.K. also received a standing ovation over the summer when he appeared at the Skankfest comedy festival in Brooklyn. The comedy celebration is organized by the members of the Legion of Skanks podcast, Luis J. Gomez, Big Jay Oakerson, and Dave Smith.
Had to be there. #skankfestnyc pic.twitter.com/kVHzjOoypR
— Luis J. Gomez (@luisjgomez) June 23, 2019
Louis C.K. was entangled in the #MeToo movement at the height of it in 2017. The comedian and actor was accused by five women of exposing himself and masturbating in front of them.
Louis C.K. admitted that he committed these unwanted sexual acts in front of women, most of which were comedians.
“These stories are true. At the time, I said to myself that what I did was O.K. because I never showed a woman my d**k without asking first, which is also true,” Louis said in an open letter the day after the explosive allegations were levied against him. “But what I learned later in life, too late, is that when you have power over another person, asking them to look at your d**k isn’t a question. It’s a predicament for them.”
Sarah Silverman also said Louis would pleasure himself in front of her, but he got her permission.
“I don’t know if I’m going to regret saying this. I’ve known Louis forever, I’m not making excuses for him, so please don’t take this that way. We are peers. We are equals,” Silverman said on The Howard Stern Show in October of 2018. “When we were kids, and he asked if he could masturbate in front of me, sometimes I’d go, ‘F— yeah, I want to see that!’ It’s not analogous to the other women that are talking about what he did to them. He could offer me nothing. We were only just friends. So sometimes, yeah, I wanted to see it, it was amazing. Sometimes I would say, ‘F—ing no, gross,’ and we got pizza.”