November 2, 2021, 6:45 am
In case it wasn’t already perfectly clear that the conservatives laser-focused on piling on Alec Baldwin were doing so out of spite rather than actual concern regarding film set safety, Halloween provided another opportunity to figure out the truth.
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Former Real Housewives of Orange County star Kelly Dodd and her husband Rick Leventhal, a former Fox News reporter, dressed up for a costume party and shared the pics to Instagram.
“Kelly celebrated her Native American heritage & I celebrated the great American film actor Alec Baldwin,” Leventhal captioned the photo, which showed him dressed in western gear and had both of them holding guns.
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Baldwin was shooting a western when the gun he was holding allegedly went off accidentally, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.
Despite mounting evidence that a breakdown of safety procedures was to blame, conservatives have continued to point the finger at Baldwin since he was holding the gun at the time of the shooting. His unflattering impressions of Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live and his long history of pushing for strong gun control in the United States seem to be the main reason for drawing ire.
But mocking a very recent event that actually killed somebody was seen as in incredibly poor taste by many who observed the couple’s costume.
“Trying with all they have to stay relevant! In poor taste but they know that,” wrote one commenter on Instagram.
“I am a conservative and usually support you and Kelly but this is poor taste…” said another. “I’m sure you wouldn’t be dressing up like that if it were your daughter that had been shot.”
“It was not his fault and a family lost their mother and wife. So disrespectful,” read a third.
Leventhal has pushed back against the criticism, telling Page Six that he wasn’t “trying to offend anyone, except Alec Baldwin,” calling him a “jerk” who “deserves all the heat he’s getting.”
“If Baldwin is anti-gun why is he waving them around in movies and pointing them at people and pulling the trigger?” he asked. “Focus your anger at him and the hypocrisy of that industry.”
While the argument can definitely be made that Hollywood is far too pro-gun in its films, conservatives have long had a hard time grasping that wanting better gun control doesn’t equate to being anti-gun or believing no one should ever use guns for any reason.
That having been said, it’s unlikely Leventhal’s costume was intended to provoke deep thought or do anything other than mock Baldwin, and in doing so, yes, mocking Hutchins’ death as well.
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People also took issue with Dodd’s Native American costume, although she tried to claim she was paying tribute to her heritage.
*First Published: November 2, 2021, 6:45 am
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