Celebrities are very conscious of their looks, especially as they get older. I guess it was a super touchy topic for comedian and AGT judge Howie Mandel. When he appeared on the March 23 episode of Live with Kelly and Mark, Kelly Ripa complimented him on looking great. Mandel apparently bristled during the uneasy moment. He read into it that what she really insinuated was that he looks great for his age. Sort of a back-handed form of praise - at least to Mandel. To him, it was akin to saying, as he put it, "You're smart for a stupid person." Ouch!
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Kelly Ripa Attempted To Make Amends
Ripa then tried very hard to clean it up. Nevertheless, she was flailing to hold back the tide. Per People, she clarified, "We're not saying you look great for 70. We're saying you look great - and I don't believe you're 70."
But Mandel nevertheless seemed irked. In the days that have passed, he evidently thought better of his peevish reaction. Ripa's comment was perhaps meant to be a harmless pleasantry. However, it was interpreted differently. Mandel eventually explained that he was just being humorous.
He Posted a Video on Instagram Apologizing to Kelly Ripa
Howie Mandel posted his video on Instagram on March 28. Recorded on the beach, his voice occasionally competed with the crashing waves behind him. The longtime comedian spoke haltingly and seemed ill-at-ease. Sometimes Mandel looked like he was trying not to get too emotional. What he conveyed was that his remarks to Kelly Ripa were meant in jest. At the end of the video, Mandel agreed with her that he looks good.
He started off uncertainly. "I have been debating for 48 hours whether I should make this post or not. And I don't know if I'm doing the right thing, philosophically." He went on, "I don't believe that somebody ... who's a comedian needs to apologize for a joke. It is a joke. It is meant as a joke, and it's not meant to offend ... In all my years, 50 years in the business, I haven't ever publicly kind of apologized for [a joke]. It's hard for me."
Mandel Acknowledged That She Has Been Kind to Him Over the Years
Mandel kept going. He admitted that sometimes a funny remark can get taken the wrong way. "But this is for Kelly Ripa, who, in the past, has been incredibly supportive. Not only have I been a guest on her show, but I have co-hosted with her, and I've known her for years ... When I go out there, I just try to be entertaining and funny, and sometimes, as a comedian, things don't land the way you mean them to land."
He mentioned, "But after a lot of thought and self-reflection, I do look great for my age! I really do ... I look fantastic, and I just have to embrace the fact that I look this good."
