George Takei has a ghostwriter? Shocker (Not)!
George Takei has a ghostwriter? Shocker (Not)!
I love George Takei’s Facebook posts, don’t you? In addition to being a well-known star of “Star Trek” – of which anyone over age 35 is probably aware – Takei also shares funny photos, humorous cartoons, and jokes on his Facebook page. Anyone under 35 probably knows him for that, as a source of hilarity. He is one of the most popular personalities on Facebook, in fact. But did you really think Takei was personally researching funny memes, photos of cats, cactus double entendres, and cooking photos?
Apparently, a lot of people did think that. So they were surprised, and kind of angry, to learn that Takei actually has help.
Last week, comedian and journalist Rick Polito let it slip that he provides jokes to Takei’s team for $10 a pop. Yes, Takei has a ghostwriter. And not a very well paid one, I must point out. Which is how the comment came up – during the interview Polito revealed he was looking for a full-time job but that he appreciated the chance to earn a little cash on the side writing jokes for Takei.
Oops.
Then, when the story went viral, he apparently realized his mistake and began apologizing profusely to his client. I completely agree that he needed to apologize for his gaffe, because ghostwriters are supposed to remain anonymous, but I am also surprised that others are so upset about the support Takei apparently receives. If I tried to share as many cute and funny quips and quotes as Takei does, I’d probably need an army of joke writers.
Fortunately, Takei didn’t seem to be too upset about it, even going so far as to say, “The story isn’t even true anyway. I don’t know and have never met the person claiming to be a joke-writer.” It seems unlikely the story is false, however, and Polito never claimed to have personally met or interacted with Takei. But I’m not clear on why some members of the public seem to feel so betrayed. As Takei himself said, “I have Brad, my husband, to help me and interns to assist. What is important is the reliability of my posts being there to greet my fans with a smile or a giggle every morning.” He’s right. Does it really matter where the funny material originated?
Were you surprised to hear Takei had someone else writing jokes?
