No joke: Comedian admits making up story about working in World Trade Centre on 9/11

TV network Comedy Central said it is reevaluating what to do about comedian Steve Rannazzisi’s planned stand-up special this weekend after the he apologised for lying about working in New York’s World Trade Centre when terrorists attacked on September 11, 2001.

Rannazzisi said he didn’t know why he told the story, which he called “a mistake that I deeply regret and for which apologies may still not be enough.”

The comedian appears in the FXX series “The League.” One of his first Hollywood roles was on Ashton Kutcher’s MTV show, “Punk’d.” Sports fans may know him from a Buffalo Wild Wings commercial. The Comedy Central special titled, “Breaking Dad,” and said to feature stories about fatherhood, is scheduled for Saturday at 11pm EDT.

“We just learned about his last night,” said Comedy Central spokesman Steve Albani. “We are very disappointed to hear about Steve’s misrepresentations and are currently determining how we will move forward.”

His falsehood was first reported in a story published Wednesday in The New York Times.

Rannazzisi told a detailed story about working for Merrill Lynch on September 11 in a podcast hosted by Marc Maron. The comedian said he felt jostled when the tower next to him was struck and he escaped to the street, despite hearing loudspeaker messages urging people to stay put. He said he walked to his home across the Brooklyn Bridge after rejecting a cab driver’s request for US$500 to be driven there.