Howard and Kevin’s One-Sided Feud

Photo: PRN / PR Photos

Early in the show, Howard said he wasn’t sure what filmmaker Kevin’s Smith’s problem was.

Howard said Kevin’s publicist used to call a lot to book him on the show, but Howard thought that Kevin–like any other guest–should only come by once in a while. And he said so on-air: “I said, ‘Gee, Kevin’s publicist is calling a lot’….and he took it as a big insult that I would announce this.”

But Kevin was never banned from the show: “He’s the one who stopped coming on our show.” Howard said Kevin actually called last week and said he was ready to come back–but was only available this Wednesday. Breuer was already booked, so Gary turned him down. Howard said it wasn’t personal: “I’m not in a feud with Kevin. I don’t know Kevin all that well.”

Howard said he wasn’t sure he’d have Kevin on anyway: “I don’t think it’s all that interesting to the audience that Kevin hasn’t been on the show in some years because he decided not to come on. And quite frankly, I don’t even know what he’s up to. I’m not aware of him all that much.”

Howard also said he heard Kevin was going around saying Howard was a bully: “How did I bully this guy?”

Howard played a clip of Kevin talking about his ‘feud’ with Howard on the Joy Behar Show. After Joy asked, Kevin said he’d been hurt by Howard’s comment about his annoying publicist: “That broke my heart.”

Gary read from Jason’s transcript, saying Howard also had said: “Kevin is no M. Night Shyamalan.”

Howard laughed: “Actually, now he is.”