You’ve probably heard about Duane Dog Chapman’s controversy over using the N-word in a recorded phone conversation with his son Tucker. He went on FoxNews’ Hannity & Colmes on Nov. 6 to break his silence. Dog is one funny guy and here are my 3 favorite parts of his interview.
On whether or not he’s a brother:
I thought that I was cool enough in the black world to be able to use that word as a brother to a brother. I’m not. I didn’t really know until three or four days ago what that meant to black people.
Of course, I know the story, and I know America’s story. But I never realized that that’s like stabbing a black person in the heart. I would never do that to any kind of person. I’ve always taken pride to be the white guy that can talk to the black people, that can refer to them truly as a brother from a different mother.
On the meaning behind his son’s name:
so it was kind of like Tucker was born. His mother’s water broke. We couldn’t make it to the doctor. I pulled Tucker out, and I thought he was dead. He was all blue. And I laid him to the side.
I kept pulling, and of course, the placenta was there and thought, oh no, she has twins and this one is deformed. And there was ambulances calling, and the ambulance driver walked in and said, “Good job, father, but you didn’t cut the cord.”
So when he cut the cord, Tucker started peeing all over my face — and I was, again — and he said, “Great job,” and Tucker took a breath of life. So I rode in the ambulance with Tucker, and on the birth certificate it says “delivered by father.”
I was in prison in Texas Department of Corrections. I named Tucker, Tucker D. Chapman, TDC. Because in my life I had to have to something take over that TDC, Tucker — Texas Department of Corrections.
So I thought, this is the son that I will have, that I will be a good guy for and never go back to prison. I couldn’t name him “prison.” But it was kind of like naming — there’s a song with Johnny Cash, name your boy Sue. It was kind of like that, I was in back then when he was born.
And so, I did — I failed Tucker because he went to prison, the bottom line.
Lastly and the funniest, on where he wants to be buried:
I went to see George Washington. And when I went there — his old house…
In Mount Vernon, correct. And so, they said, “Well, we want to show you, Dog, where we buried the slaves.” And I’m like, OK, right, I know that sounds morbid, but I wanted to see that.
So I went up and they pulled over. And I was on this little golf cart, because I’m — was the celebrity. And I got up and I said — he said, OK, there’s where it is at. And there was this blank hill. Right? And there were no markers at all, right?
And I said to him, “What do you mean?” I said, “This is where” — and he said, “There’s five family buried there. There’s buried there, there’s buried there.”
And I said, “Well, where’s their grave markers at?”
And he said — you know, he said, “We buried them with their feet towards the Potomac.” And he said it kind of — and I was like, hey, brother, you know, watch what you talk, you know, what are you saying? Because I was getting a little aggravated that he was talking stink like that.
He said, “No, Dog.” He said, “The black people back then, when they died, they wanted their feet buried towards the Potomac so they could walk over the river, when they passed away, back to Africa.”
And I thought, oh my God, there’s not a marker in there. There’s not a marker on the grave.
I have a hard problem, being some part Native American — being a Christian: do you get burned, do you get cremated, do you get — let the sharks eat you? How do you die?
I told the Lord, and I — two Catholic ladies own that property. So I’ve already made phone calls.
HANNITY: What are you going to do?
D. CHAPMAN: I’m going to be buried right in that center.
HANNITY: You made a deal to do that?
D. CHAPMAN: I’m making a deal. She told me, “Dog, absolutely.” I want to know at least what is some of their first names. And I want to be buried right where they’re at, because I will never be forgiven as I’m alive. And you and I know that.
Full transcript
