Isaac Hayes' Son Says Someone Else Made His Dad Quit South Park

1CK1S
1CK1S Members Posts: 27,471 ✭✭✭✭✭
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Back in 2006, singer and actor Isaac Hayes abruptly quit South Park, where he had voiced the character Chef for a decade. Hayes, an active Scientologist, was apparently upset about the episode “Trapped In The Closet,” which makes fun of the cultish religion he followed. But it sounds like his departure wasn’t entirely up to him.

Trapped In The Closet aired in November, 2005. In March of 2006, Hayes sent out a statement announcing his plans to leave South Park. The statement, which seemed absurd at the time, attacked the show for failing to respect and honor the “religious beliefs of others.”

“As a civil rights activist of the past 40 years, I cannot support a show that disrespects those beliefs and practices,” the statement said.

It was preposterous, of course—the show had already gone after Christianity, Judaism, and Islam with aplomb—and South Park immediately responded by airing an episode about Chef joining a cult and dying. (Instead of getting a new voice actor for Chef, creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone just reused a bunch of Hayes’ old lines.) It marked a sad end to Hayes’ excellent run on the show. He died in 2008.

As it turns out, Hayes might have not made the decision on his own. Yesterday, The Hollywood Reporter published visit this link a great oral history of South Park, and in it, there’s an interesting revelation from Isaac Hayes’ son:
Hayes III: Isaac Hayes did not quit South Park; someone quit South Park for him. What happened was that in January 2006 my dad had a stroke and lost the ability to speak. He really didn’t have that much comprehension, and he had to relearn to play the piano and a lot of different things. He was in no position to resign under his own knowledge. At the time, everybody around my father was involved in Scientology — his assistants, the core group of people. So someone quit South Park on Isaac Hayes’ behalf. We don’t know who.

Stone: We sort of figured out the whole picture a bit later, but that’s totally what happened.
Hayes III: My father was not that big of a hypocrite to be part of a show that would constantly poke fun at African-American people, Jewish people, ? people — and only quit when it comes to Scientology. He wouldn’t be that hypocritical.

Stone: It really sucked, the whole thing. This statement put out that he was quitting, it kind of called us bigots.

Parker: But we knew in our hearts there was something way more rotten going on.

Such is the power of Scientology. Go read visit this link the full THR oral history if you’re into the show—it’s a fun one. Meanwhile, the new season of South Park started last night, and it’s already a tangled web of ridiculous plots. Gotta get those member berries.


Comments

  • Splackavelli
    Splackavelli Members Posts: 18,806 ✭✭✭✭✭
    damn, but they could have found a more respectable way to send chef off than how they did.
  • Lurkristocrat
    Lurkristocrat Members Posts: 8,378 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Wow i didnt even know he followed scientology smh, come on bruh.
  • The Lonious Monk
    The Lonious Monk Members Posts: 26,258 ✭✭✭✭✭
    damn, but they could have found a more respectable way to send chef off than how they did.

    They were probably ? at him, but even though they took some major shots at him in the episode, it was pretty clear they were upset on losing that connection with him.
  • VIBE
    VIBE Members Posts: 54,384 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Scientology doesn't ? around, they're an evil ass cult.

    But LMAO @ every race, culture, country and religion being a target for humor being ok to him but not Scientology. I'll bet his members forced him to quit.
  • CeLLaR-DooR
    CeLLaR-DooR Members Posts: 18,880 ✭✭✭✭✭
    VIBE wrote: »
    Scientology doesn't ? around, they're an evil ass cult.

    But LMAO @ every race, culture, country and religion being a target for humor being ok to him but not Scientology. I'll bet his members forced him to quit.
    Broddie wrote: »
    VIBE wrote: »
    Scientology doesn't ? around, they're an evil ass cult.

    But LMAO @ every race, culture, country and religion being a target for humor being ok to him but not Scientology. I'll bet his members forced him to quit.

    So you just gonna post in the thread without even reading the opening post?

  • Lou Cypher
    Lou Cypher Members Posts: 52,521 ✭✭✭✭✭
    VIBE wrote: »
    Scientology doesn't ? around, they're an evil ass cult.

    But LMAO @ every race, culture, country and religion being a target for humor being ok to him but not Scientology. I'll bet his members forced him to quit.
    Broddie wrote: »
    VIBE wrote: »
    Scientology doesn't ? around, they're an evil ass cult.

    But LMAO @ every race, culture, country and religion being a target for humor being ok to him but not Scientology. I'll bet his members forced him to quit.

    So you just gonna post in the thread without even reading the opening post?

  • Lurkristocrat
    Lurkristocrat Members Posts: 8,378 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Lou_Cypher wrote: »
    VIBE wrote: »
    Scientology doesn't ? around, they're an evil ass cult.

    But LMAO @ every race, culture, country and religion being a target for humor being ok to him but not Scientology. I'll bet his members forced him to quit.
    Broddie wrote: »
    VIBE wrote: »
    Scientology doesn't ? around, they're an evil ass cult.

    But LMAO @ every race, culture, country and religion being a target for humor being ok to him but not Scientology. I'll bet his members forced him to quit.

    So you just gonna post in the thread without even reading the opening post?

    Scust
  • Max.
    Max. Members Posts: 33,009 ✭✭✭✭✭
  • Ghostdenithegawd
    Ghostdenithegawd Members Posts: 16,231 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Max. wrote: »
    Who gives a ?

    People who like south park and is sacred Hayes which is a lot of people dam ?


    But

    One of them sciontology weirdos handed me a flier the other day I thought it was for a normal church ? was mad weird the way he tried to invite us "yes yes come to our survive tomorrow it's very goooood"


    I looked at that ? balled it up and kicked it