Daniel Tosh Apologizes for Rape Jokes

"All the out of context misquotes aside, I'd like to sincerely apologize," the comedian tweets

Comic Daniel Tosh has apologized for rape jokes he directed at a female audience member during a stand-up show at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles.

After a blog post about Friday's performance went viral on Tumblr, Tosh tweeted, "All the out of context misquotes aside, I'd like to sincerely apologize."

"The point I was making before I was heckled is there are awful things in the world but you can still make jokes about them. โ€ช#deadbabies," he added. 

The Tumblr post, written by audience member's friend, detailed her version of the story. According to the blog, the Comedy Central comedian said "some very generalizing, declarative statements about rape jokes always being funny." In response, the writer's friend yelled, โ€œActually, rape jokes are never funny!โ€

The host of "Tosh.0" then retaliated with a joke. The Tumblr post claimed that Tosh said, โ€œWouldnโ€™t it be funny if that girl got raped by like, 5 guys right now? Like right now? What if a bunch of guys just raped her."

The audience member and her friend immediately left the show, receiving two complimentary Laughing Factory tickets after complaining to the manager, according to the blogger's account.

A spokesperson for The Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network expressed her outrage to E! News. "When will this 'funny man' realize that rape jokes aren't funny? By suggesting that an audience member deserved to be gang raped, Tosh took his shtick to a new low. Applause is due to the woman who had the guts to vocalize what many in the room were thinking," she said.

Tosh's defenders included Jamie Masada, the owner of the Laugh Factory. "I understand where she is coming from, but Daniel Tosh did not attack this young lady," Masada told E! " I feel bad for her and I apologize to her. If you are a member of the audience and you start dishing out something to a comic and try to be funny, you better be able to take it."

Tosh also had comedian Louis C.K. on his side. โ€œYour show makes me laugh every time I watch it. And you have pretty eyes,โ€ he tweeted.

Selected Reading: E! News, Cookies for Breakfast Tumblr

Contact Us