Death threats fly

The race row sweeping the American comedy circuit has become increasingly acrimonious.

Club owner Kevin Moran - who was said to be behind an anti-semitic email ­ claims he has received "hundreds" of death threats, including one saying that his baby daughter's dead body was going to be "skull-fucked", since the message became public.

He insists that the email sent from a shared computer in the club in Amarillo, Texas, to Los-Angeles based Doug Stanhope was not written by him, and that Stanhope has slandered him by distributing it.

Meanwhile, Stanhope, pictured, has received an email purportedly signed by Moran's brother Kelly - a comic - claiming it was he who wrote the offensive original.

The follow-up said: "I should have signed the e-mail Kelly Moran. Then maybe you would have taken it as a joke, you know, tongue in cheek.

"I am sorry if this Lenny Bruce/Richard Pryor/George Carlin type of shock humour on the e-mail was misinterpreted as a serious post."

However, a follow-up message, also signed by Kelly, said: "Kevin did not write it and we don't know who did."

And another, again purporting to be from Kelly, claimed: "You are dealing with honest to goodness badass shitkickers. They are wickedly pissed and they will track you down For your sake and safety please call me."

Stanhope said: "They keep coming, from one or the other. It's getting ridiculous. So maybe Kelly wrote it or maybe Kevin did and Kelly was trying to cover for him or maybe evil trolls broke into the club."

He added that he cannot be sure who the new emails are from, since it was the Morans' defence that anyone can log into the club's computer.

The original letter stated: "We want to deal directly with you we don't want to deal with the Jews or your little waste of cum manager.

"We want to deal with you and only you. No middle Heebs or c**ts. We want you to make all the money. We don't want you to share with dumpy little fucks... I guess that includes everybody that you work with. We hate them."

Club in race hate storm May 4, 2002

Published: 4 May 2002