"You wouldn't walk into a Haunted House, and ask 'Why do these people lie to me?' Minhaj spoke up in his defense. The point is to ride. "Standup is the Same."

Whoopi goldberg weighs in after Hasan Minhaj confessed that he embellished or fabricated stories in his stand up specials.

The veteran comic addressed the controversy surrounding Minhaj on Monday's The View. This followed a recent New Yorker article in which Minhaj admitted to fabricating or exaggerating anecdotes in his stand-up performances.

Goldberg defended Minhaj, saying that it is the "job" a comic has to "embellish stories".

"That's exactly what we do." "That's what you do. We tell stories and embellish them," Goldberg said, before sharing an experience where someone thought one of her characters was real.

If you are going to hold a comic and check on the stories, then you must understand that a lot isn't the exact story because we wouldn't tell the exact story. She continued. "It's not that interesting!"

Goldberg warned: "We will provide you with comics that contain grains of truth. But don't go to the bank." "That's what we do, to plant a seed of the truth." "Sometimes truth, sometimes total BS."

Goldberg was backed up by the rest of the panel, including Sunny Hostin and Ana Navarro. Navarro said, "It is comedy people." Lighten up!"

The New Yorker published an article titled "Hasan Minhaj's Emotional Truths" last Friday. Minhaj admitted to fabricating stories in his stand up routines. This includes his two Netflix specials: Homecoming King(2017) and The King's Jester (2022).

The former Patriot Act presenter confessed that he embellished or made up some anecdotes, including a scare about anthrax in his family -- in which he said that his daughter had been sent to hospital -- but which was untrue. He also admitted to being detained by the police in high school when he had gotten into a fight with an F.B.I. He also admitted that he was not an informant.

The New Yorker reported that Minhaj's style of writing is built on a foundation of truth. "My comedy Arnold Palmer contains seventy-percent emotional truth – this actually happened – and thirty-percent hyperbole, overstatement, and fiction.

Minhaj, who is expected to replace Trevor Noah as host of The Daily Showafter his departure, said about his stage performances: "The emotional truth comes first." The factual truth comes second."

Clare Malone was the author of The New York's article. She spoke with CBS News about her story and the impact it had, as well as the debate that has now erupted about whether a comedian should always tell true stories. (Her full interview is above.)

In a statement sent to variety, Minhaj addressed specific stories' authenticity.

He said that all his stand-up stories were based on things that had happened to him. "Yes, because of my skin color I was denied entry to the prom. A letter containing powder was delivered to my apartment and almost injured my daughter. Yes, during the war against terror I had a contact with the law enforcement. I had varicocele surgery to allow us to get pregnant. "Yes, I burned Jared Kushner in the face."

"I use stand-up comedy tools -- hyperboles, changing names and places, and compressing time frames to tell entertaining tales. "That's intrinsic to the art form," said he. "You wouldn’t go to a Haunted House to ask, 'Why do these people lie to me?' The ride is the point. "Standup is the same."

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Title: Whoopi Goldberg Defends Hasan Minhaj Embellishing Stand-Up Stories
Sourced From: www.toofab.com/2023/09/19/whoopi-goldberg-defends-hasan-minhaj-embellishing-stand-up-stories/
Published Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2023 18:19:48 +0000

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