Actor Aubrey Plaza dropped an F-bomb on live TV Saturday when she called into the “Lights, Camera, Take Action” telethon that aired on KTLA-TV Los Angeles and raised nearly $860,000 for the Motion Picture and Television Fund Home.
Plaza spoke excitedly in support of MPTF on speakerphone to actor Clark Gregg, who appeared live in KTLA’s Hollywood studio to serve as part of the telethon’s celebrity phone bank. KTLA’s longtime entertainment anchor Sam Rubin leaned his microphone into the conversation and asked Plaza about her role on HBO’s “The White Lotus” in its second season.
Plaza joked that the season would end with her killing off the other characters. “They’re all fucking dead,” Plaza said in jest. Earlier she also dropped a “don’t give a shit.” Rubin apologized to viewers minutes later, sheepishly suggesting that Plaza may not have realized she was on the air live. “We apologize a little for the language,” Rubin said.
FCC regulations designate the 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. hours as a “safe harbor” against broadcast radio and TV outlets airing any content defined as obscene, indecent or profane. As a broadcast station, KTLA could be vulnerable to viewer complaints and potential fines. However, the FCC has made exception in recent years for F-bombs defined as “fleeting expletives,” or brief expressions of salty language that is not the focal point of the speech but an embellishment. KTLA, a West Coast broadcast pioneer that is celebrating its 75th anniversary, is owned by Nexstar, the nation’s largest TV station group.
The 7-9 p.m. telethon, hosted by Yvette Nicole Brown and Tom Bergeron, generated a steady stream of donations from industry insiders. Nonetheless, the first-ever fundraising push aimed at the general public in Southern California was a surprise for the century-old organization that has long been a source of pride for the industry. MPTF has proudly embraced the motto “We take care of our own.” For decades its been embraced by studios, networks and creatives alike as a vehicle for channeing some of Hollywood’s outsize wealth into benefits for the greater good — in this case a retirement home and other benefits for career industryites at all levels.
“Letting them down is not an option,” Brown told viewers as she detailed her experiences of meeting with numerous MPTF residents at its Chatsworth campus over the years.
The special featured video appearances by such notables as Hugh Jackman, Bryan Cranston, Billy Porter, Jodie Foster, Jeff Bridges, Jason George, June Squibb, Keegan-Michael Key, Tony Goldwyn and more. Phil Rosenthal, creator/showrunner of “Everybody Loves Raymond” and host of Netflix’s foodie series “Somebody Feed Phil,” offered humorous segments that featured him touring the MPTF campus.
The special also featured clips of testimonials about the MPTF’s support for industry insiders in need at every level, including young families who face sudden health and income crises. Some of those clips were taken from the organization’s 100th anniversary celebration in June.
Actors Michael McKean and Annette O’Toole closed the show with a performance of “A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow,” the homage to early ’60s folk music boom that earned the pair an Oscar nomination for original song from 2003’s “A Mighty Wind.”
The MPTF last month began sounding the alarm about its post-COVID fundraising crisis that is threatening the viability of the organization and its health of its endowment. The extraordinary step of a mounting the MPTF’s first-ever telethon came as a wakeup call to the industry. MPTF president and CEO Bob Beitcher joined Bergeron told viewers toward the end of two-hour frame that the bulk of its work goes to support middle-income Hollywood.
“The message is getting out there. People understand this industry is not only about the people in front of the screen. It’s about all those hundreds of people on the set every day,” Beitcher said.
(Pictured: “Lights, Camera, Take Action” telethon hosts Tom Bergeron and Yvette Nicole Brown)
