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Chris Rock Could Have Been the First Super Bowl Halftime Show Standup Comic

Chris Rock Could Have Been the First Super Bowl Halftime Show Standup Comic

Chris Rock recently revealed to Howard Stern that, way back in 2004, the NFL approached him about doing something a little different—being the first Super Bowl Halftime Show standup comedian. That would have meant that, instead of, say, a vaguely notable Top 40 act or one of your dad’s favorite bands from 1966, one of America’s most incisive, gifted voices would have had the chance to skewer the entire country. It would have been good—Rock is one of the better standup comedians to ever drop the mic—but it didn’t happen. Rock turned it down, as he told Stern, because “There’s nothing for me to do on that show… I coulda sucked.” Well, maybe. But, then again, 2004 was the year we got the whole Justin Timberlake/Janet Jackson debacle, so it couldn’t have possibly been any worse. Next time, Mr. Rock, go ahead and give it some thought …

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