NEWSTed Danson Will 'Apologize' the Rest of His Life for 'Arrogant' Blackface Performance at Whoopi Goldberg Roast
Ted Danson spoke out a controversial blackface performance at a roast honoring Whoopi Goldberg in 1993.
June 3 2026, Published 5:02 p.m. ET
More than three decades later, Ted Danson is still expressing regret over his controversial blackface performance at a 1993 roast honoring Whoopi Goldberg.
“I have no problem talking about this, but I need to and want to apologize for the rest of my life,” Danson, 79, said during an appearance on the “Who’s With Me? With W. Kamau Bell” podcast on Wednesday, June 3.
Ted Danson spoke about a controversial moment during a 1993 roast honoring Whoopi Goldberg.
Ted Danson and Whoopi Goldberg Couldn't Get Out of the Roast
Ted Danson and Whoopi Goldberg's relationship was ending at the time of the 1993 roast.
Danson explained that at the time, his romantic relationship with Goldberg, 70, was ending, but they were booked for a roast at the Friars Club that they couldn’t get out of. Years later, those Friars Club performances would be broadcast on Comedy Central.
"So my brain was going, 'Okay, here is one of the most outrageous, funny, Black women in the world at that point. I'm supposed to be roasting her. And I'm not a standup. I can't run with the bulls---, I'm an actor," the Cheers star recalled, choosing to do a “performance theater” method instead.
Critics Hated Ted Danson's Blackface Performance
Ted Danson called his blackface performance 'arrogant.'
After reviewing various tapes from other comedians, he determined, "Well, if I were Black, I could say all these outrageous things," and settled on doing blackface.
"Yeah, I know it's bold, but I can pull this off and that was so arrogant and stupid on my part," he recounted. "So off I go, using all this horrendous language ... Within twenty seconds, I was like I stuck my finger in a light socket."
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Ted Danson and Whoopi Goldberg's Relationship Was Put Under the Microscope
Ted Danson claimed his performance paved way for the media to be cruel to their relationship.
Danson claimed that 80 percent of the "packed house" hated his performance, with the press being cruel to him and Goldberg as a mixed-race couple.
"It's couldn't be because they liked each other or saw something in each other. . . . It had to be just pure s--, that's the only reason for a relationship like this," he recalled of the media attention.
Danson ended the conversation by apologizing to Goldberg for having to "defend" him over the years.
"The last thing she probably wants to do is have [to] be put in this position again," he continued.
Whoopi Goldberg Defended Ted Danson After Scandal
Whoopi Goldberg has publicly defended Ted Danson in a statement to the 'New York Times' in 1993.
Goldberg publicly defended Danson at the time, explaining that the situation "has caused great hurt to a man who doesn't deserve it” in a 1993 interview with the New York Times.
