On September 6, 1989, MTV made the baffling decision to let X-rated comedian Andrew Dice Clay do stand-up at that year’s Video Music Awards. In his three-minute set, which preceded a performance by Cher, Clay recited some of his iconic dirty nursery rhymes, along with a few new ones—despite having assured network executives that he would keep things clean.
“Jack Sprat could eat no fat, his wife could eat no lean,” Clay said at one point, “So Jack ignored her flabby tits and licked her a—hole clean.” You can watch the full NSFW segment right here:
According to Clay, it was a friend of his who got in his ear about doing something memorable that night. Clay hadn’t initially planned to say anything too crazy, but Dick Clark, who was one of the producers of the show, rubbed him the wrong way by trying to give him instructions, and Clay decided to let loose once he took the stage. Clark reportedly got so angry about the stunt that he actually tried to rush Clay in the middle of his set. Arsenio Hall had to physically restrain Clark to prevent him from getting into an on-air altercation with Clay.
MTV Reportedly Banned Andrew Dice Clay for Life After This VMA Set
Just after Clay’s segment concluded, MTV Vice President Barry Kluger read a prepared statement to the press, expressing “extreme regret” for what happened. “As you know, our show is a live performance, and we had assurances, repeatedly, that his material would be in line with our programming standards, which naturally preclude profanity and obscenity,” Kluger told reporters. “Andrew Dice Clay did not do this in rehearsal, and we were very surprised by it,” he insisted.
The incident ultimately resulted in Clay receiving a lifetime ban from the network. However, the ban lasted only three short years. By the time the 1992 VMAs came around, Clay was back in the network’s good graces, making light of the earlier controversy in a sketch with David Spade. You can check out Clay’s not-so-triumphant return to MTV in the video below.
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