There is such a thing as being way too sensitive, and thanks to this Jeff Garlin was nearly fired from The Goldbergs. The patriarch of the family was given a talking to by ABC Human Resources about his language on set in-between takes, which is kind of odd since an actor’s foul language doesn’t make it onto the show they’re filming. According to Daniel S. Levine of PopCulture, Jeff did apologize and got to keep his job after being threatened with termination. It’s a bit odd even if one could possibly explain it since there are young kids on set from time to time, but the language that people use on the set shouldn’t really be much of an issue since most those around the set are adults or are old enough that they understand what such words might mean and how to use them or when not to. In other words it sounds as though ABC is into policing the language of their people and not so into letting the actors expound a time or two when they’re not on screen. Of course depending on what kind of language he was using it could have been that it didn’t really need to happen. It’s hard to say without being there since really, language is language, it shouldn’t be that big of a deal.
Had Garlin been aggressive or made a nuisance of himself at any point then it might be easier to understand since at that point he would have been disruptive and could have easily been worth talking to. But asking him to refrain from speaking certain words seems kind of petty. The show hasn’t suffered from it likely, not like it would have suffered had Garlin actually been fired. In a big way it’s a bit asinine to threaten his job simply because he was using language that he felt comfortable using. There was no threat there apart from the Human Resources office and there certainly didn’t sound as though Garlin was being aggressive or in any way abusive. In fact it does sound as though as of late and throughout the last decade or so the atmosphere in many working spaces has become so tightly wound that people are being hemmed in on all sides and not given any leeway really when it comes to doing much of anything. While it’s obvious that no one wants to cause controversy on a set or offer up any reason why they might need to be let go, this is a bit ridiculous unless there’s more to the story that we’re not hearing. As per Lauren Sarner of New York Post, Garlin had this to say:
“Every time I stand up [on the set] I go, ‘Oh, my [female genitalia].’ Which is silly and stupid, I clearly don’t have [female genitalia]. And I said to them, ‘I understand if I worked at an insurance office and there’s a bunch of desks – that’s inappropriate. But in a comedic atmosphere it’s stupid. They said, ‘What if we fire you?’ and I said, ‘I’d love to have it announced Jeff Garlin got fired for saying [that].’ ”
He has a pretty good point, it would be kind of scandalous if the higher-ups decided to fire someone from a show that people love that has a very strong and noticeable role without so much as an explanation to the fans. You might actually see The Goldbergs take a massive hit in the ratings if such a thing did happen since simply taking a character out is sometimes a very touchy thing that a lot of people don’t want to see and will express outrage over when it happens. In this case it does feel as though fans would have been up in arms had Garlin been cut from the show, but after an apology things went back to normal as it would appear, though his language has likely improved between takes just to appease his corporate overlords that can’t handle anything stronger than ‘aw dangit’.
The issue of foul is one that a lot of people would no doubt willingly chime in on since it’s true that a person that goes around spouting profanity all the time is less fun to hang out with since it’s hard to have a serious or decent conversation with such a person when every other word is a swear word. But speaking in the manner you want to speak, even if it’s profanity-laced, shouldn’t really constitute firing someone just because they say something that another person doesn’t like. That other person can walk away, ask the offender politely to adjust their language, or simply ignore it. Foul language is by far and large something that is determined by one person or another and is subject to a great deal of bias, but unless it’s become a matter of verbal abuse it should never be a firing offense.
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