Well, it was no laughing matter.
Pete Holmes doesn’t care who you — or your parents — are: do not interrupt his comedy set.
The Lexington native won’t tolerate audience members whispering during his comedy sets — not even Malia Obama.
The stand-up comedian had an unexpected encounter with former President Barack Obama’s daughter, Malia Obama while performing at the Comedy Studio in Somerville, Massachusetts. During his appearance on “Conan,” Holmes shared his side of the story, revealing that he had no idea who Malia was until after the performance.
The star and creator of HBOs “Crashing” then cussed out Malia Obama during his show. According to Holmes, he noticed two women in the front row whispering and laughing in a way that was disrespectful to the performers on stage. One of the women was former President Barack Obama’s eldest daughter, now in her third year at Harvard University, who has been making the scene in the Cambridge area— which Holmes didn’t know. Frustrated with their behavior, Holmes decided to confront them during his set.
“I just go, ‘What’s going on? I can see you. Please stop,'” Holmes said. “Then I get a little more like, ‘Shut up. Look at my face. I’m here to help.’ But you know, you push Petey too far. I’m like, ‘Please, shut the f*** up.'”
When Malia and her friend continued to ignore him, Holmes took it a step further and covered them with a curtain, thinking it would be a harmless prank that would get a big laugh from the audience. However, things didn’t go as planned.
“I thought this would get a big laugh. Nothing. The whole audience turns on me,” he explained.
It wasn’t until after the show that Holmes learned who he had just confronted. “After the show, I find out it was Obama’s daughter. It was Malia! And her hot friend!” he said. “She looked great. Terrible comedy audience. That’s a true story.”
While some may find Holmes’ behavior towards Malia Obama inappropriate, others may sympathize with his frustration towards disrespectful audience members. Nonetheless, the incident serves as a reminder that even famous individuals can face the same social etiquette issues as anyone else.
Holmes, who was raised as an evangelical Christian, cut his teeth at the Comedy Studio before gaining prominence on Comedy Central and in the voice-over industry. The Gordon College alum is the host of the “You Made It Weird” podcast and penned the memoir, “Comedy Sex God,” in 2015.
Watch the video below for more details:
Sources: AWM, Bostonglobe, People