Z STAFF
Steve Rannazzi got a slice of good news in the wake of his 9/11 lie admission … Comedy Central aired his special.
The network hedged after Steve disclosed he was not in one of the twin towers during the attack … a story he propagated in vivid detail for years.
The special — “Breaking Dad” — aired Saturday night.
“The League” star wasn’t as lucky with his lucrative Buffalo Wild Wings commercial, which was yanked off the air after he fessed up.
We still can’t believe that someone would lie about this!
The League star Steve Rannazzisi was busted recently over a tall tale he’s been telling for years that he escaped from the second tower of the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks.
We were pretty disgusted when we heard it was all just a lie.
Related: Adrian Grenier Under Fire After Posting Then Deleting Controversial 9/11 Message!
But Pete Davidson, who recently joined the cast of Saturday Night Live, took special offense as he had lost his firefighter father on 9/11.
After hearing about the dishonesty, he tweeted sarcastically at Steve:
It’s ok @SteveRannazzisi people make mistakes … Can’t wait to meet my dad for lunch later
— Pete Davidson (@petedavidson) September 16, 2015
Steve clearly didn’t get the sarcasm because he responded:
To which Pete replied:
I think you missed the point … https://t.co/Fk9imfD6ut
— Pete Davidson (@petedavidson) September 16, 2015
Steve must have figured it out because he then quickly deleted his tweet.
But the most interesting thing was what happened afterward, not in the public eye — because a bit later Pete tweeted:
All kidding aside this @SteveRannazzisi story sucks because he’s actually a funny comic and I love The League. It’s fucked up
— Pete Davidson (@petedavidson) September 16, 2015
Take it easy on @SteveRannazzisi … He reached out to me and is truly sorry. We all sometimes lie and exaggerate a story to seem cooler …
— Pete Davidson (@petedavidson) September 16, 2015
..Unfortunately this is a very touchy topic n very near n dear 2 peoples hearts.Its years later but he apologized n owned up 2 it like a man
— Pete Davidson (@petedavidson) September 16, 2015
Pete must have believed in the sincerity of Steve’s apology to turn around like that.
Here’s how Steve apologized to the public on Twitter:
it is to the victims of 9/11 and to the people that love them–and the people that love me–that I ask for forgiveness.
— Stephen Rannazzisi (@SteveRannazzisi) September 16, 2015
It was profoundly disrespectful to those who perished and those who lost loved ones. The stupidity and guilt I have felt for many years has
— Stephen Rannazzisi (@SteveRannazzisi) September 16, 2015
not abated. It was an early taste of having a public persona, and I made a terrible mistake.
— Stephen Rannazzisi (@SteveRannazzisi) September 16, 2015
Can YOU forgive Steve like Pete apparently has??
Z STAFF
“The League” star Steve Rannazzisi has pulled a Brian Williams … he’s been lying for years about narrowly escaping from the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
Rannazzisi was forced to admit he made the whole story up after the New York Times put the heat on him. Rannazzisi now says, “I don’t know why I said this. This was inexcusable. I am truly, truly sorry.”
Rannazzisi’s tale was that he was working for Merrill Lynch on the 54th floor of the south tower when the first plane struck the north tower. He said he escaped before the second plane hit. He says it was a life-changing moment and decided to pursue his dream … a career in Hollywood.
The comedian is featured in commercials for the restaurant chain Buffalo Wild Wings. The company told the Times they’re re-evaluating their relationship with him. As for “The League” … it’s a moot point — the show is in its last season.
Steve Rannazzisi is best known for his role as Kevin MacArthur on the FXX sitcom The League.
After today, however, he might be better known as the character actor who never got work again after the world learned that he lied about nearly dying in the 9/11 attacks for an astonishing 14 years.
Over the course of his career, Rannazzisi has frequently told reporters that he had been working for Merrill Lynch in an office in the Twin Towers on the day of the attacks, and his narrow escape inspired him to move to Los Angeles to pursue acting.
“I was there and then the first tower got hit and we were like jostled all over the place,” he said, recalling the attacks in detail in a 2009 interview.
He claimed to have fled the building just minutes before the second plane struck.
Earlier this week, The New York Times confronted Rannazissi about the various holes in his story (Merrill Lynch never employed Rannazzisi or had an office in the World Trade Center), and yesterday, the actor finally admitted that he’d made it all up.
“I was not at the Trade Center on that day,” the actor said in a statement issued by his publicist. “I don’t know why I said this. This was inexcusable. I am truly, truly sorry.”
Rannazzisi has declined requests for interviews, but his statement offers a weak explanation for his actions:
“For many years, more than anything, I have wished that, with silence, I could somehow erase a story told by an immature young man,” the statement reads. “It only made me more ashamed. How could I tell my children to be honest when I hadn’t come clean about this?”
Many have pointed out that, far from “a story told by an immature young man,” the incident has become a major part of Rannazzisi’s public persona, and he has publicly recounted the tale as recently as 2012.
The actor’s inexplicable fabrication brings to mind Brian Williams lies about his involvement in the Iraq War, which he was forced to apologize for earlier this year.
It remains to be seen if the consequences for Rannazzisi will be as severe. The League is currently airing its final season, but it’s likely that the actor will be fired from his job as a spokesman for Buffalo Wild Wings.
