Conservative 'Last Man Standing' Star Tim Allen Compares Hollywood to Nazi Germany
Tim Allen, conservative actor and star of the recently canceled television series "Last Man Standing," compared Hollywood to Nazi Germany due to what he says is an intolerant liberal bias.
In an interview with Jimmy Kimmel last Friday, Allen explained that "you've gotta be real careful" in Hollywood when espousing a conservative viewpoint.
"You get beat up if you don't believe what everybody believes. This is like '30s Germany," said Allen, as reported by Deadline Hollywood.
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"I don't know what happened. If you're not part of the group, 'You know what we believe is right,' I go, 'Well, I might have a problem with that.' I'm a comedian, I like going on both sides."
Famous for having the lead role in the 1990s series "Home Improvement," Allen's comments come not long after his latest television program was canceled after six seasons.
Last week, ABC announced that they canceled "Last Man Standing" though it was a steady performer in the ratings. The program was generally viewed as having a conservative message to its content.
While other, more liberal shows were also discontinued by ABC, many looked at the refusal to grant "Last Man Standing" a seventh season as suspicious and possibly an attack on conservatives.
"If comedy 'remains a priority' for the network, as it said on Tuesday's call, why would it cancel its second-highest-rated comedy series?" asked Breitbart.com.
"Is there any other show in history that has not only retained its audience but has beaten most other comedies of its type that has been cancelled as abruptly? Ever?"
Others, however, including one column on The Daily Banter, argue that the decision to cancel Allen's show had nothing to do with politics and everything to do with good business practices.
"According to 'Vox,' the show was getting increasingly expensive with each season, and it was popular with audience members over 50, which isn't the most profitable advertising demographic," read the column.
"On top of that, ABC's recent acquisition of 'American Idol' blew a sizable hole through their programming budget and schedule forcing them to axe several other shows as well."
ABC Entertainment President Channing Dungey said they had to make "tough calls" and "cancel shows that we'd otherwise love to stay on the air."
"'Last Man Standing' was a challenging one for me because it was a steady performer in the ratings. But once we made the decision not to continue with comedies on Friday, that was where we landed," he said.
Several online petitions were created demanding that the show be returned for a seventh season, including one on change.org that as of Monday afternoon has over 380,000 signatories.
"I will no longer be watching any ABC shows. I have canceled the DVR settings for the other ABC shows that I regularly watch. If you want to help try to save Last Man Standing, I encourage you to do the same," reads the petition.
"Even if you are not willing to boycott the network, but still want to save the show, please sign this petition and share it. If you do plan to boycott ABC, please say so when you sign. Let them hear our voices."
