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This Infamous Joke Got Jeff Ross Banned From Comedy Central Roasts for Years

The self-proclaimed Roastmaster General’s passionate plea for offensive jokes prevented him from appearing on the dais for a while in the early 2000s.

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The Comedy Central celebrity roasts have featured their fair share of offensive jokes over the years, but perhaps none were more legendary than the ones Gilbert Gottfried told at the 2001 roast of Hugh Hefner. Just a couple of weeks after 9/11, Gottfried got up onstage at the Friar’s Club in New York City and decided to address what was on everybody’s mind. “I have to catch a flight to California,” the comedian began. “I can’t get a direct flight. They said they have to stop at the Empire State Building first.” The crowd quickly turned on Gottfried, hissing and booing, with one person yelling out, “Too soon!”—which he took to mean that he didn’t pause long enough between the setup and........

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