Larry the Cable Guy Says DirecTV Passed on Him as 'Too Controversial' While Hiring Edgier Names: 'There's a Lot of Hypocrisy in Corporate'
On the MeatEater Podcast the comedian said a satellite-TV ad with him was an obvious idea that companies shied away from over his Southern accent. He stressed he has nothing against Snoop Dogg.
Comedian Larry the Cable Guy says corporate America has a double standard on which entertainers are too controversial to advertise with, Fox News reports.
The idea. On "The MeatEater Podcast," Larry said he once saw a DirecTV commercial with another actor and thought, "why don't they get me?" He imagined the pitch: "Larry the Cable Guy is switching to DirecTV." The host agreed it "would have been genius." Larry said, "It would have been huge!"
The reason he was given. He said the thinking at the time was that he was "only really for one part of the country" because of his Southern accent, and that "sometimes he says things that are a little controversial."
His answer. He rejected that. He said he gets frustrated that other entertainers land corporate deals despite edgier material, and named Snoop Dogg, who has appeared in major campaigns including Super Bowl commercials. He was careful to add, "I got nothing against Snoop Dogg. God bless Snoop Dogg." Then he said: "There's a lot of hypocrisy in corporate, who they get and who they don't get. Look, I've had a good career. I ain't worried about it. But I'm just saying, that DirecTV pissed me off."
The complaint, in his words. "I love everybody, and I'm happy for everybody's career. I'm not mad at them, I'm upset at the corporations that would say 'you're too controversial,' but then they'll put somebody else that's even way more controversial."
The background. Fox notes Larry, whose real name is Daniel Whitney, built a national following on the Blue Collar Comedy Tour with Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Ron White. His "Git-R-Done" catchphrase helped launch a career in stand-up, comedy albums, movies and TV.
Note for readers: this is one comedian's account of what he believes companies thought. The report includes no response from DirecTV, and nothing in it confirms what the company actually decided or why. We read Fox's report, not the podcast.