So, reporters recently had some fun with the fact that presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump said that he was courting Mike Tyson, former heavyweight boxing champ and convicted rapist, to come to the GOP convention. This despite the fact that Trump has hinted at Bill Clinton being a rapist (which he has been accused of being repeatedly).
The headlines write themselves!
Etc.
Now, lord knows I'm not above hitting human dumpster fire Donald Trump for being a politically tone deaf dolt who doesn't care about alienating 50 percent of the population because he thinks that "telling it how it is" will get him elected. That being said, I would have an easier time getting worked up about this if, you know, the Democrat-backing entertainment industry hadn't spent the last decade or so rehabilitating Mike Tyson's image from "scary rapist and ear-biting lunatic" into "funny strong guy with a lisp."
The effort began in earnest in The Hangover, in which Tyson had a head-turning guest appearance as himself, and has continued apace since: a one-man show on Broadway, a cartoon satirizing the Scooby Doo Mysteries in the Adult Swim lineup, guest spots in all sorts of movies, regular appearances on TV talk shows, etc., etc. It's fair to say that Tyson is a modern day redemption story.
And that's fine! I'm glad that people are able to get their lives back together after spiraling out of control. We've gone from "The Tyson Zone"—Bill Simmons' famous phrase for a celebrity who could be caught doing literally anything and it wouldn't surprise you—to Mike Tyson, cuddly guy. Sure, I do find it somewhat odd that this sort of forgiveness isn't doled out equally in Hollywood. Remember when Mel Gibson, fresh off his DUIs and racially charged rants, was supposed to get a similarly redemptive, wacky starring role in The Hangover 2 and Zach Galifianakis decided that this was offensive to his delicate moral sensibilities? But hey, we can't all be forgiven like brutal, crazy rapists.
And let's be totally clear: Mike Tyson is still kind of nuts. I get scared just watching this interview:
It's not just that he clearly lacks self-control, dropping f-bombs on live TV. Look at the way he gets twitchy after being challenged. Look at the way his eyes start to dart around. His challenge to the reporter: "I don't care, what are you going to do about it?" The way he clearly starts breathing more heavily, as if he's a bull getting ready to charge.
Anyway. Donald Trump is a fool for inviting Mike Tyson to the RNC. But he's no more a fool than basically the entirety of the entertainment industry.