Comedian Ricky Gervais has thanked Hollywood celebs for coming to his defence after Monday's Golden Globes performance earned him a dressing down from the show's organisers.
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Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Phillip Berk said the British star had "definitely crossed the line" with his jokes, including one about having to help Berk "off the toilet and pop his teeth in", which left members of the A-list audience visibly squirming in their seats.
"He definitely crossed the line. And some of the things were totally unacceptable,'' Berk told The Hollywood Reporter.
"But that's Ricky. Any of the references to individuals is certainly not something the Hollywood Foreign Press condones. I had absolutely no idea what Ricky was going to say so anything I heard was at the same time you heard it."
After some savage reviews of his hosting gig - his second in a row at the Globes - Gervais took to his personal blog to defend his material and deny rumours he was gagged by organisers during the second half of the ceremony.
"I enjoyed the Globes more this year. I think I had better gags. More along the lines of the Mel Gibson one last year," Gervais posted, alongside a topless picture of himself posing in gold underwear given to him by TV comedian Ellen De Generes.
"Obviously the rumour that the organisers stopped me going out on stage for an hour is rubbish. I did every link I was scheduled to do. The reason why the gaps were uneven is because when I got the rundown I was allowed to choose who I presented to. I obviously chose the spots that I had the best gags for. They couldn't move around the order but I could move around however I wanted.
"All the same conspiracy theories as last year too ... 'So and so was offended' ... 'hasn't been invited back yet' ... exactly the same as last time. 'Paul McCartney was furious' ... no he wasn't. And nor was Tim Allen and Tom Hanks. I was drinking with them after.
"Why do people have to embellish? They're allowed to say they hated it. They're allowed to say they didn't find it funny, that it was tasteless, over the top, or whatever. But why do they speculate and make stuff up?"
He also thanked "the twitterverse, the blogosphere, all the journos and the coolest stars for coming to my rescue" after numerous celebrities took to the internet to dismiss criticism he'd gone too far."It was heartwarming to realise I wasn't losing my mind. Some reactions nearly had me believing I'd gone too far too. Nearly," he wrote."Can't wait for the people who thought it was over the top to see my stand-up shows. F--- me, they will sh-- themselves."Even Hugh Hefner, whom Gervais called "the walking dead" in a gag about the ageing Playboy founder's love life, jumped to his defence yesterday."The Golden Globes was a blast," Hefner tweeted. "They made fun of everyone, including Crystal & me. A great night."Talk show host Larry King also came out in support, saying the Hollywood Foreign Press Association had got what it paid for.''The folks who put him on the Globes have no right to complain about Ricky Gervais," King tweeted."He does what he does. Why should it surprise them? You agree?' King posted yesterday.Some US media said Gervais had "crashed", was "merciless" and set a "corrosive tone", while others questioned if he should have been fired from the show over his material, including a gay joke about a "some well-known Scientologists", which drew gasps from the audience.
He introduced Robert Downey jnr by saying: "Many of you in this room probably know him best from such facilities as the Betty Ford Clinic and Los Angeles County Jail."
Gervais also took a swipe at Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp's film The Tourist, called Bruce Willis "Ashton Kutcher's dad" and explained that hit TV show Lost ended "when the fat one ate them all".But Lost creator Damon Lindelof saw the funny side."In case you forgot what made David Brent so brilliant, it's that he made us feel unsafe, uncomfortable and unable to look away," Lindelof tweeted yesterday."Bravo Ricky."Gossip website TMZ quoted Gervais as saying he did not want to host the Golden Globes again next year.
