Hollywood is Part of America
And Los Angeles is a place where real people live.
The big news out of Southern California has reminded me of how many members of my extended family don’t know much about the state of California. An earthquake anywhere in California will have my phone blowing up with messages from back east. My family members aren’t the only ones with a limited understanding of the geography of California. When I lived in San Francisco, my friends and I would often mock the tourists wearing shorts in the middle of what they thought was “the summer” in the Bay Area. People outside of the state often think that California is another word for Los Angeles.
While the east coast of America comprises fourteen states, the west coast is basically California. (I know that technically Oregon and Washington are on the west coast, but just technically.) California is A LOT. It’s almost like by the time the “WESTWARD, HO!” made it all the way out west, they were too tired to keep carving up states. We have all heard the statistic about how California has the fifth largest economy in the world. The state is so large that in Tupac’s classic song “California Love,” Tupac lists a bunch of cities and he doesn’t even mention any cities north of Sacramento. AND THAT’S LIKE A THIRD OF THE STATE. Humboldt County got no love, and I’m quite sure that a lot of what Tupac was smoking in his life was a product of Humboldt County.
The fact that Rhode Island and California have the same number of senators—even though California has 37 times the population of Rhode Island—lets you know that “American democracy” was always more words-on-paper than real life.
California does a lot for America and the world. It produces over a third of America’s vegetables and three quarters of America’s fruits and nuts. The industry of Hollywood is an economic engine that exports American culture across the world. It’s not a perfect machine—I’m sure somebody enjoyed Stephen Baldwin in Biodome—but you can’t deny Hollywood’s impact and economic value.
That’s why it is such a bummer to see how people are talking about Los Angeles right now as fires devastate the area. The narrative of Hollywood as a rich liberal den of inequity and DEI initiatives intentionally distracts from the fact that Hollywood is just a neighborhood in Los Angeles. Most of LA is just regular people going to work and school and living their lives and never interacting with the industry of Hollywood. Yes, many people do work for the industry or for businesses that exist and thrive because of the industry, but they ain’t Tom Cruise or Tom Hanks or even Thomas the Tank Engine. They are working people with bills who are often independent contractors, waiting for the next gig. (Hollywood has been relying on gig workers since way before Uber and Instacart were a thing.) While Hollywood is just a neighborhood in Los Angeles (and not even a particularly big one), the idea of Hollywood is huge. One of the first things that you notice when you go to LA is that the city of Los Angeles is huge, too. When I think about Los Angeles, I don’t even think about Hollywood, I think about strip malls, donut shops, and helicopters… and traffic. Lots and lots of traffic.
So many folks are actively taking pleasure in distracting us all from all the human suffering. Take, for example GOP operative and CNN contributor Scott Jennings. Scott is mostly a suit, five dollars worth of a haircut, and a southern accent that is a substitute for true human kindness. He is regularly on CNN as the so-called reasonable Republican, but, as always happens with those types, he can’t keep up the ruse, and eventually spoils like milk.
Scott was on CNN earlier this week. As CNN was playing footage of fire destroying people’s lives, he blamed the fire on DEI. What an absolute, unmitigated, full-throated asshole of truly epic proportions. The idea that DEI initiatives are responsible for any part of the fires in Southern California is equal parts evil and ridiculous. California has had such a problem with fires over the last ten years that we actually have a term for it: fire season. Fire season is getting longer and longer thanks to climate change. Fire season is also doing more and more damage because many humans like to live in California among the bone dry desert and the beautiful, kindling-filled trees. Those of us who actually give a shit about California know that we have had several devastating fires that have nearly destroyed towns, and DEI had nothing to do with it. I know because we did an entire episode of United Shades of America about those fires. (Watch it on MAX.) I didn’t blame the white male fire fighters for not stopping them because, unlike Scott Jennings, I’m not an asshole.
Many folks, including our first felon-elect Donald Trump, are using this fire as a chance to divide us and mock the victims. I don’t celebrate anybody’s misfortune after a natural disaster in this country, precisely because I’m not an absolute, unmitigated, full-throated asshole of truly epic proportions. I don’t care who you voted for. I hope your home isn’t burned down by a wildfire, or hit by a tornado, hurricane, or plague of locusts, because again… NOT AN ASSHOLE! I even disagree with the lefty Internet troll who made fun of actor James Woods when Woods tweeted that his house had burned down. I really don’t like James Woods. I even wrote about how much I dislike James Woods in my book, The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell.
I dislike James Woods for WHO HE IS, not because he once owned a nice house in California. He was great in the films John Q. and Casino. (I do wonder why he is so good at playing assholes though. Hmmm???) I sincerely hope that he—and everyone else who has been affected by the fires—can recover.
Let’s understand that the vast majority of people who are losing their houses and apartments are regular folks. They aren’t rich actors or studio heads. Altadena, a historically working class, Black community in Los Angeles County, has been hit especially hard. They need our help and support however we can give it. One thing is for sure, all of the folks impacted by this fire—even the rich ones—are going to have to fight to the death deposition with their insurance companies. That is, of course, only if their insurance company isn’t one of the companies that canceled thousands of Californians’ fire policies just a few months ago. 1600 homeowners’ policies were cancelled in Pacific Palisades, alone. What in the UnitedHealthCare is going on?
I, personally, know regular people who have had their homes destroyed by these fires. I also know a very successful person whose family home—the home they grew up in— burned down. Someone who has guided and shepherded my career lost his home. I’m sure there are even more people that I know, personally, who have lost their homes and I just haven’t heard about it yet.
I also know someone who lost their apartment in the fire. You may know her from my work. Victoria Valentino is a singer, actress, and ex-Playboy Magazine centerfold, back when Playboy Magazine was PLAYBOY MAGAZINE. She was the first survivor of Bill Cosby that I interviewed for my docuseries We Need To Talk About Cosby. I’ve told the story many times about how nervous I was on the day of Victoria’s interview. None of us on set were sure what to expect from a survivor. I wasn’t even sure I would know how to interview her. I wanted to make sure that she felt comfortable and safe.
Everyone on set was on pins and needles when she walked into the room. Well, Victoria was relaxed, warm, and effortlessly charming. Weirdly, she made all of us feel better. She was open-hearted and darkly sardonic, but ready for work. Our scheduled two-hour interview went well over three hours, and by the end I felt invigorated and clearer about my mission. She became the heart of the first episode. Her story is emotional, bracing, honest, and, most surprisingly, funny. I have never forgotten how much I learned from her that day.
Our showrunner, Katie King, shared that Victoria's apartment burned down. She is fine, but she lost everything. I’ve heard from so many people at this point that the hardest stuff to lose is the stuff you can’t replace, the physical memories from your life that mean nothing to anyone else. The photos that were taken before digital cameras. Ticket stubs from events. Handwritten letters. Seemingly random pieces of paper that were important to you that you can't even explain. Stuffed animals that can’t be replaced. Gifts from people that have no real monetary value, but are priceless to you. Victoria lost all that.
Victoria’s friend started a GoFundMe to help Victoria replace the things that can be replaced. I encourage you to spread the word and/or donate what you can to this kind warrior. Without the generous contribution of her time and her story, my work on that series is undone.
Trump, his administration, and his billion dollar babies are working overtime to pull us apart and define the narrative of this tragedy with lies that will end up killing people. This tragedy is an unfortunate test of how we all will respond to this and every other tragedy that happens over the next four years. Our country’s leadership is full of rich, greedy chumps who care more about their wallets than their fellow Americans. Do we let them lead us by our noses and destroy us, or do we turn our backs on them and turn towards each other?
Who’s with me? Seriously.
You’re With Me
I’m Going on Tour
The 2025 Stand-Up Comedy Tour
You asked for it. Or maybe you didn’t, but I’m about to go back on the road to do stand-up. After a 2024 run at The Berkeley Rep and an incredible show in Davis, California, I’m heading out on he road to do stand-up comedy in 2025. These hectic times demand some jokes, written hectically while I’m also trying to raise three kids.
Tickets are now on sale for the first leg of the tour. (The tour doesn’t stop here. I’ll announce more cities soon!)
It’s official! I’m a celebrity!
I was on Celebrity Jeopardy. It was a total thrill and a little bit surreal. Click this link to find out how I did on the show. You can also watch the episode on Hulu or on ABC on demand.
Here’s a question that many folks are making fun of me for not knowing. I think I handled it well.
And here is my response:
The ACLU podcast, At Liberty: Kids Edition.
The newest episode of the ACLU podcast turns the mic over to the kids. Kids say the righteous things! My cohost is my middle kid, Juno. It is adorable. Get it here or wherever you get your podcasts.
And here’s a picture of me and my mom!
We were lucky enough to be invited to a Warriors game by my friend, Pastor Michael McBride. My mom had never been to a game at the Chase Center in San Francisco. She is a huuuuuuge Warriors fan. Unfortunately for us, they lost BIG. But we had a great time. And yes, she brought a blanket with her. She’s always cold.😀🥶
I adore you, am inspired by you, and 100% with you!
100% with you! Thank you for your always excellent writing and analysis.