On Sunday, standing outside the Helium comedy club in Philadelphia, 28-year-old Colleen Campbell went on a drunk tirade directed first at the club and then at the police. The (now former) PHL 17 reporter was apparently upset about being thrown out for "loud whispering." Police had asked her to walk away. Instead she attempted to spit at a club employee and was subsequently arrested. She then claimed she hadn’t spit on the man, but of course she was caught on camera. The extremely profane video was captured by comedian Wil Sylvince. (Nevertheless, I did enjoy hearing bits of her Philly accent, as when Campbell says "laugh" and "audience" around the 0:20 mark.)
Needless to say, Campbell is horrified by her actions and has little or no recollection of the events. "Everything was foggy," she told Philadelphia magazine. "I do remember coming in to Helium. I do remember getting into an altercation there, but I don’t remember what it was about. I only had two drinks at Helium." On her now-shuttered Facebook page, Campbell claimed to have had one drink. But as she elaborated to Philadelphia, "I was working at Devil’s Den. I bartend there. And then we went to Cantina for a margarita, and I had two shots. But that was an hour before. Then we went to Helium, waited in line, got our drinks. I don’t even remember going out to the lobby. I do remember getting into the cop car."
So besides being an on-air personality, Campbell also tended bar—and may have been drinking while bartending. It happens, though it’s frowned upon to be liquored up "behind the mahogany" while serving customers, especially when it’s during the day. Even if the shift wasn’t busy, there are better things for Campbell to have done as a responsible barkeep. In The Joy of Mixology, bartending legend Gary Regan suggests in times of quiet, to "polish bottles" and not polish off bottles. What not to do? "Read a newspaper or book; sit on the backbar or on a bar stool (I’ve seen it done); make phone calls; drink."
As drinks historian and mixologist Derek Brown put it, "Bartenders shouldn't drink during their shift, banktellers shouldn't drink during their shift, grocery clerks shouldn't drink during their shift, cops shouldn't drink during their shift. Pretty much no one should drink while working. All and all, people should drink during their leisure time. That's the best way to enjoy a drink anyway." Brown, who owns multiple bars in D.C. including Eat the Rich and Southern Efficiency, concedes that "every now and then bartenders might take a shot with a guest. I get it. It just shouldn't be frequent or enough shots to scream expletives at a police officer."
"The bartender is one of the most dignified, law abiding, and ascetic of men," wrote H.L. Mencken. "His work demands a clear head and a steady hand; he must have sound and fluent conversation; he cannot be drunken or dirty…." In other words, not someone who says "Lick my [expletive]. How about that, you f—ing piece of s—t?" and "Smell my shoe, bitch."
Campbell was apparently concerned she may have been drugged—how else to explain her belligerent behavior on the street? Because those multiple drinks and shots couldn’t have possibly caused her to hurl those insults at law enforcement, could they? Without knowing what chemicals were in Campbell’s system, I am going to agree with her theory. Someone did put something in her drink. And that something was alcohol.
This post was updated to include comment from Derek Brown.