Magic Johnson Reveals he wanted To Put The Paws On Howard Stern Over Race, AIDS Jokes
Magic Johnson is opening up about the time he wanted to sock Howard Stern for joking about his HIV-diagnosis during Johnson’s brief stint as a late night talk show host.
In a new interview with Variety, Johnson looked back on his hosting gig prior to the April 22 release of his docuseries “They Call Me Magic,” on Apple TV Plus that covers his life and career. Speaking about his 1998 show, “The Magic Hour” which was canceled after three months amid low ratings, the show’s producers invited Stern on the show as a guest, and it did not go well… at all. Johnson explained to Variety, “So many times, I wanted to say something and hit him at the same time — on air. I was mad when they booked him. But there’s nothing you can do. When people look for ratings, this is what happens.” He added, “It is what it is. I learned a lot from that. I’ve never put myself — or HIV and AIDS, or my race — in that position again, ever again.”
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During the old sit-down interview with Stern, Johnson asked him, “Why have you been talking about me so much, man?” Stern then explained his criticism before claiming that he was “Blackest Black man you’ll ever meet.” “I’m Blacker than you are, trust me,” Stern said. “And I’m telling you right now, when I lived in Roosevelt, Long Island, which is a Black ghetto, everybody talked like this,” Stern then shockingly said, “You had the life I wanted. These were white chicks? Black chicks? What do we got? What did you prefer? You would have sex with everybody? At least you had fun getting AIDS.”
Johnson and Stern have not spoken ever since that cringe moment.
Meanwhile, the former NBA star’s new docuseries, “They Call Me Magic, premieres on Apple TV Plus on April 22.
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