Comments on: Gilda's Club affiliates changing their name because Gilda Radner died way too long ago

By: foobar

foobar — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 23:08:00 +0000

I’m not sure I’d want to be memorialized by an organization better known for its misogyny than its mission.

By: mrpp

mrpp — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 06:01:00 +0000

I just listened to Gilda on Minnesota Public Radio’s “Comedy College” last week. I listened to Lenny Bruce while doing dishes today. My favorite is Ruth Draper. So many great names… Check it out:
http://comedycollege.publicradio.org/

By: dethbird

dethbird — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 23:42:00 +0000

how do i SUPERlike this comment

By: Antinous / Moderator

Antinous / Moderator — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 22:03:00 +0000

I’m not sure than anyone in San Francisco could tell you whom the alphabetical streets in the Avenues are named after. Francisco de Ulloa or Antonio de Ulloa? I DON’T KNOW!!!

By: EH

EH — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 21:27:00 +0000

I actually deleted a second sentence where I attempted to account for all the things nerds would bring up as if I was likely to say “Lenny Bruce, who’s that?”

By: Timothy Krause

Timothy Krause — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 19:08:00 +0000

For those of us wondering what Wilder’s reaction might be, I’ll just leave this here.

So sad.

By: Brainspore

Brainspore — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 18:47:00 +0000

He is indeed. Just semi-retired.

By: cub

cub — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 18:06:00 +0000

…and that’s why it should be Gilda’s Club!

bravissima/o!

By: Professor59

Professor59 — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 17:10:00 +0000

In other news, Megan’s Law will be renamed each time a new kid goes missing, and Einstein’s Theory of Relativity will be henceforth known as Bieber’s.

By: blueelm

blueelm — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 17:01:00 +0000

Well it would be nice if they’d change the name on the Rhodes Scholarship, actually.

Most people, when encountering an organization like that just *know* that it is named after some one who did something. Perhaps it is a cultural difference, but to those who are accustomed to it there seems to be no point in changing it in one place but not in ALL places.

You might consider, for instance, that here in the US South it is so common that a vast majority of streets, highways, and schools are named after various public figures the very people using them may not even be able to identify.

By: Jeff Berg

Jeff Berg — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:43:00 +0000

Err. Gene Wilder is still alive, isn’t he?

By: chgoliz

chgoliz — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:18:00 +0000

Brilliant. Oh, the irony. Never saw that before….thanks for sharing.

By: chgoliz

chgoliz — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:06:00 +0000

What’s all this I hear about supporting cancer? Maybe I’m old fashioned, but in my day we didn’t support cancer….we fought it tooth and nail. What’s wrong with you young people nowadays, that you actually support a deadly disease? Don’t you have something better to support, like….

Wait, what’s that you say? It’s supporting PEOPLE WHO HAVE cancer, not cancer? Oh, well, in that case….

Never mind.

By: chgoliz

chgoliz — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:02:00 +0000

What a wonderful idea. There’s even scientific proof that laughter really is the best medicine.

By: April Fletchall

April Fletchall — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:53:00 +0000

This makes me very sad. Once again, humans, you’ve failed to see the bigger picture. This wasn’t just some club that was formed to help cancer patients, it was an institute that was made to honor the memory of a great woman. I wish Gene was still alive, as he would definitely fight this and win. Whoever decided to push the name change should be ashamed of themselves, because you have completely dishonored the woman who is the sole reason this organization exists.

By: Boundegar

Boundegar — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:53:00 +0000

I heard there’s a bill in Congress to replace them all with Reagan and assorted Bushes.

By: Boundegar

Boundegar — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:51:00 +0000

Like Lenny Bruce, for example.

…what?

By: Boundegar

Boundegar — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:50:00 +0000

Betcha that’s wrong. Betcha they get a slice of the profits.

By: Christopher

Christopher — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:20:00 +0000

This decision is completely understandable. The kids were being frightened away by the crazy looking woman with the wild hair.

By: cub

cub — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 13:32:00 +0000

i love it when the shorthand for supporting people with a disease becomes ‘supporting cancer’ or ‘supporting MS’– and so on.

seems like a perfect Littela bit.

By: cub

cub — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 13:29:00 +0000

i’d like to donate $5.00 to the Greg Weber Club for Creating a Fucking Appreciation Society for Gilda Radner so Greg Doesn’t Pop His Cork.

is there a website?

in the words of some dead comedienne, “it’s not a gang, it’s a club.”

By: cub

cub — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 13:13:00 +0000

EXACTLY.

it seems like this little press release is just a desperate bid for publicity, even if it makes them look stupid.

By: Carl Johnson

Carl Johnson — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 12:43:00 +0000

Does cancer really need a support community? It seems to do fine just on its own. Seriously: the new name is the most unwelcoming name for a support group EVER.

By: Nell Anvoid

Nell Anvoid — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 11:56:00 +0000

Well…yeah…but…you seem a little wound up over the whole thing.

Just saying…

By: EH

EH — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 11:12:00 +0000

Well yes, because that’s when pretty much everything that is considered funny nowadays was invented.

By: Colleen Mondor

Colleen Mondor — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 07:51:00 +0000

The name matters because the organization would not exist without Gilda Radner. From the Gilda’s Club Seattle website:

“Gilda’s Club is named in honor of Gilda Radner, who, when describing the emotional and social support she received when she had cancer, called for such places of participation,
education, hope and friendship to be made available for people with cancer and their families and friends everywhere. The New York flagship facility, with its International Training Center, opened in June of 1995″

It was not a casual decision to put her name on the organization – she is the reason for the organization. That should matter to the people who run it and her story would only inspire those who come to them for help.

By: Greg Weber

Greg Weber — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 07:40:00 +0000

Jesus Christ. What’s more important: immortalizing Gilda, or helping people with cancer? In the ultimate scheme of things, is changing the name of this nonprofit organization really that big a deal? Carcinogenic residue of the Me generation. If you want to keep her memory alive, go form a fucking appreciation society.

By: nachoproblem

nachoproblem — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 07:03:00 +0000

It’s really taken off since it was renamed to “The No Particular Famous Comedian By Any Means Foundation.” I mean granted, the name is a bit of a mouthful, but it really hits home for a lot of youngsters nowadays.

Shut up. Go to sleep.

(This message is sponsored by the Bill Hicks Fund For An Expanded Reality.)

By: MythicalMe

MythicalMe — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 06:25:00 +0000

My $20 bills are green and have a picture of Queen Elizabeth.

By: Bruce Arthurs

Bruce Arthurs — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 06:08:00 +0000

We’ll never forget what’s-her-name.