YES I CAN SAY THAT!
When They Come for the Comedians
We Are All in Trouble
by Judy Gold
In Yes I Can Say That, comedy veteran Judy Gold argues that “no one has the right to tell comics what they can or cannot joke about…. Laughter is a unifier. It’s the best medicine. It’s also the most palatable way to bring up seditious, subversive topics.” For Gold, nothing is more insidious than enforcing silence and repressing jokes—the job of a comedian is to expose society’s demons, and confront them head-on, no prisoners allowed. In ten impassioned polemics, she frames comedy as a tool of empowerment, a way to reclaim hateful rhetoric and battle the democracy-crushing plight of censorship.
Uninhibited and bold, Gold is as skilled at making readers laugh as she is at exposing uncomfortable truths about our culture and society. In this era of partisan politics and gaping inequalities, Yes I Can Say That is the refreshingly candid, wickedly funny and deliciously blunt manifesto we need.
Everybody’s Talking About Judy's Book
Yes, I Can Say That:
When They Come for the Comedians We Are All in Trouble
Publishers Weekly
July 2020
Dey Street • ISBN 978-0-06-295375-9 • Ebook – 978-0-06-295377-3
Comedian Gold addresses censorship, freedom of speech, and telling jokes in the social media age in this amusing, f-bomb–filled book. The author has a clear message for those engaged in cancel culture: “stop taking yourself so seriously.” Gold—a six-foot-two Jewish lesbian from New Jersey—writes about being bullied as a kid in the 1970s, an experience that sharpened her sense of humor, then discusses comedy today, during a time of heightened sensitivity in which she argues the “so-called progressive left” is silencing comedians: “people have begun to allow themselves to get triggered any time a marginalized person or group is even mentioned in a comedy bit.” Gold highlights comedians who fought against censors (George Carlin, Richard Pryor) and entertainingly honors “brash, outspoken” female comics such as Jean Carroll and Joan Rivers, who spoke candidly about motherhood and marriage in their comedy. Gold knocks Trump (“People like Trump take jokes about themselves as attacks”) and tells people to avoid “knee-jerk” responses on social media: “Stop reacting to every ping on your phone. Read a fucking book.” Gold’s defense of comedy, filled with great jokes and stories of censored comics, is a reminder that freedom of speech is no laughing matter.
New & Noteworthy Audiobooks…
New York Times
August 4, 2020
Recent AudioBooks of Note
YES, I CAN SAY THAT: When They Come for the Comedians, We Are All in Trouble, by Judy Gold, read by the author. (HarperAudio.) The veteran humorist defends comedy and its creators, from Samantha Bee to Nimesh Patel to Michelle Wolf, against all who would censor them.
‘Yes, I Can Say That’: Comedian Judy Gold Talks Free Speech
Hadassah Magazine • Top 15 Books of 2020
December 2020
Curt Schleier
In Yes, I Can Say That, leading funny woman Judy Gold explains why she chose comedy, a profession that allows her to say pretty much whatever she wants: “By the time I was 13 years old, I was already six feet tall,” she writes. “Being an uncoordinated six-foot-tall eighth grader was not what every adolescent Jewish girl in New Jersey dreamed of in 1975. I was taller than the rabbi presiding over my bat mitzvah.” Being a comic was a career, she adds, “where the goal is to elicit laughter on your terms”—and not because of who you are or the way you look.
The First Amendment is No Joke
Judy Gold Defends the Right to Laugh
Provincetown Magazine
October 7, 2020
Gold has a unique vantage point on the pulse of America by knowing what makes them laugh. And in recent years it seems not much—not because Gold’s material isn’t funny, but comedy itself appears under attack. Telling a joke, or the resurfacing of a joke from years ago, can end a career.
This break in the nation’s funny bone is why she wrote Yes, I Can Say That: When They Come for the Comedians, We Are All in Trouble, a spirited defense of the art form of comedy and its necessary role speaking truth to power, holding a mirror to society, and uniting people by a shared love of laughing at the foibles and vulnerabilities of being human.
‘Yes, I Can Say That’ is Judy Gold’s take on freedom of speech
Provincetown Banner • Book Review
August 26, 2020
She has written a funny and compelling new book – “Yes, I Can Say That” – which details her musings about freedom of speech from the perspective of the comic. In the book’s forward, she writes, “It’s terrifying out there right now for stand-ups.” The fear of backlash – and inciting microaggression from the audience members by uttering a politically incorrect joke that offends – is always present in the mind of the standup before, during and after a performance, she says.
Judy Gold Stands Up for Comedy in Her Book ‘Yes, I Can Say That’
The Jewish Journal
July 20, 2020
Comedian Judy Gold doesn’t hesitate to speak her mind. In her new book “Yes, I Can Say That,” the veteran stand-up, actress and Emmy-winning writer-producer (“The Rosie O’Donnell Show”) weighs in on serious topics including free speech, censorship and cyberbullying, while paying tribute to her Jewish (and other) comedy heroes by telling some of their best jokes — and her own.
Judy's Talking
About Her Book
Interviews
Comedian Judy Gold Stands up For Comedy • Forbes • May 26, 2022
After Attacks, Comedians Wonder if People Can Still Take a Joke • New York Times • May 12, 2022
Will Smith’s Oscars slap, felt by comedians beyond Chris Rock • AP News • March 31, 2022
Comedians Weigh in on Implications of Will Smith Oscar Slap • Forbes • March 30, 2022
On Point With: Judy Gold • Thotyssey • October 30, 2020
Consider the source: Jews, comedy and the First Amendment • STL Jewish Light • October 27, 2020
Nothing Is Off Limits, As Long As It’s Funny: Judy Gold Is A Comedy Icon • GOMAG • October 7, 2020
Listen & Watch
Yes I can say that! Comedian hits back at cancel culture
Sunday Extra • 13 Minutes
August 13, 2022
ABC Radio International
Veteran stand-up comedian Judy Gold, who has won two Emmys for writing and producing The Rosie O’Donnell Show, has written a searing and hilarious defence of free speech for comedians, particularly stand-up comedians, titled Yes I Can Say That!
Newsday Live Author Series: A chat with Judy Gold
Newsday Live • 45 Minutes
August 6, 2020
Judy Gold in conversation with Mark Chiusano
Join us and Long Island LitFest for this Newsday Live Author Series virtual event, featuring insights on new books and talented writers. Newsday Columnist and Editorial Writer Mark Chiusano hosts an in-depth discussion and extensive Q&A with award-winning comedian Judy Gold, about her new book “Yes, I Can Say That,” her comedy career and more.
Requires email registration to view
L!ve Talks Los Angeles
49 Minutes
August 5, 2020
Judy Gold in conversation with Margaret Cho
MARGARET CHO is an accomplished performer in all formats including the worlds of film, television, books, music and theatre. Never one to shy away from a difficult or ‘taboo’ topic, her socially aware brand of stand-up comedy has made her both a thought leader as well as a teacher to those with open minds and open hearts. Equally as important as her creative side is the causes she is passionate about.
The Today Show
5 Minutes
July 31, 2020
Judy Gold in conversation with Hoda and Jenna
Comedian Judy Gold tells Hoda and Jenna about her new book, “Yes, I Can Say That.” She also shares an update on her time in quarantine, talks about performing on a flatbed truck in Queens, New York, and give her hilarious takes on relatable issues people are facing while staying home.
About Judy
JUDY GOLD is an American standup comedian, actress, television writer, and producer. She won two Daytime Emmy Awards for her work as a writer and producer on The Rosie O’Donnell Show, and has starred in comedy specials on HBO, Comedy Central, and Logo. She has also written and starred in two critically acclaimed, Off-Broadway hit shows: The Judy Show―My Life as a Sitcom and 25 Questions for a Jewish Mother. She is currently the host of the hit podcast Kill Me Now.
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