Chris Rock isn't the only comedian assaulted on stage in the past week. The other man is gay.

[Behind the Aegis]

When actor Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock over the weekend for making a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith during the Academy Awards, the violence reverberated around the world. As social media debated whether or not Smith was justified, comedians warned that Smith’s outburst would make them targets on stage.

LGBTQ ally Kathy Griffin went viral for her tweet castigating Smith and warning of the message it sends, but comedian Sampson McCormick can look at it another way. He was also attacked on stage by an audience member, but McCormick, a gay man, bashed back. And then he finished his set.

Sampson, the first LGBTQ comic to perform at a Smithsonian institution, was performing at Win-River Resort & Casino in Redding, California when an audience member took offense and came up swinging.

When a woman in the audience started heckling him, McCormick gave it right back, asking her, “How many teeth do you have?”

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[Walleye]

1. Smith is a screen actor, he has to have lines written for him. He couldn't think of a clever answer

So he smacked him. Use your words, man

[unblock]

2. You could say that of many actors, but not of will smith.

He's also a rapper and lyricist. He's capable of improvising in a fast metered rhyme.

The dynamic that led him to use violence had nothing to do with any inability to use words as an alternative.

He simply *chose* to use violence instead of words.

[Walleye]

3. Well I'm even more disappointed in him considering that.

[FreeState]

9. He also has made similar jokes about alopecia in the past

he has no moral high ground there. Thats probably why he couldn't think of what to say because he knows the video is out there.

[Walleye]

11. It just gets worse. I'm very close to being fed up with this whole story

[Elessar Zappa]

4. Will Smith actually is very witty.

Doesn’t excuse his violence.

[Walleye]

5. So he has no excuse whatever. He was violent because of love? I hate that

[Skittles]

15. actually, it is toxic masculinity

and it stinks

[uponit7771]

17. +1,

[dem4decades]

6. Witty? Thin skinned asshole maybe.

[TheRealNorth]

7. When the woman started heckling the comedian....

She became fair game and no has right to be upset when they get "burned".

[mahina]

8. Holy cats

That’s some kind of a low. Good on him for hitting back and carrying on w his set.

[Evergreen Emerald]

10. Would those who are supporting Smith approve of this assault as well?

After all, he was offended.

[Duncan Grant]

12. "And that's how we do it" -- Duncan Grant

Jeez, that’s ugly even when I say it.

Edit: Glad that no one was seriously hurt. Security did their job. Self-defense was the appropriate response.

[murpheeslaw]

13. And a little dig from the reporter

“man was escorted out along with his girlfriend/sister”

[LexVegas]

14. These psychos are running up on stage and attacking performers.

It's a fucking show!

[uponit7771]

16. American comics are BRUTAL and that's a good thing. The wrong thing to do is to screw with ...

... US comic community