Comedian Jerry Sadowitz defends getting his penis out during act that got him banned from Edinburgh Fringe Festival
Comedian Jerry Sadowitz has hit out at critics after being banned from the Edinburgh Fringe as a result of him 'getting his penis out on stage'.
Due to perform for two nights at the Pleasance, Sadowitz found out that his second show had been cancelled with 'immediate effect'.
An audience member claimed that the 60-year-old comedian got his penis out in front of the crowd during his performance - it is currently not known whether it was a prop or not.
Defending himself, Sadowitz released a statement on social media saying 'getting my dick out is for the purpose of the funny line which follows it'.
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He also hit out at the way his 'act is now being cheapened and simplified as unsafe, homophobic, misogynistic and racist'.
The comedian said 'while I don't always get it right', he insisted that 'the show is what it is, for those who enjoy it' and asked the Pleasance to apologise to the people who had wanted to see his second show.
— Jerry Sadowitz (@RealJSadowitz) August 14, 2022
Around 600 people had booked to see the comedian's first show on 12 August, with another 300 having paid to see him perform the next day (13 August).
In his statement, Sadowitz said he thought the show had gone 'pretty well' and that he'd 'left with no hint of anything going wrong'.
The comedian has performed at the Pleasance during the Edinburgh Festival several times in the past, and his show came with a warning that some audience members may find the content 'distressing'.
According to the BBC, the Pleasance said they received an 'unprecedented' amount of complaints from Sadowitz's audience and their own staff.
They also said that those who bought a ticket to the second show have been reimbursed for their cost of entry, though not for travel and accommodation.
They released a statement explaining their decision to cancel Sadowitz's second show, explaining that they received an 'unprecedented' amount of complaints which left them feeling as though they had a 'duty' to do something.
It said: "We became immediately aware of content that was considered, among other things, extreme in its racism, sexism, homophobia and misogyny.
"We will not associate with content which attacks people's dignity and the language used on stage was, in our view, completely unacceptable."
"We received an unprecedented number of complaints that could not be ignored and we had a duty to respond."
The Pleasance said in this particular instance they felt as though 'this line was crossed on this occasion'.
Joe Harker