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Kathy Griffin criticises list of highest earning comedians in 2018: 'No women'

Forbes's ranking of the 10 highest earning comedians for 2018 is made up exclusively of men

Clémence Michallon
New York
Friday 21 December 2018 18:24 GMT
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Kathy Griffin returns to TV in Kellyanne Conway parody role

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The 10 best paid comedians of the year are all men – a fact that doesn't sit well with Kathy Griffin.

She criticised the all-male shortlist, unveiled by Forbes earlier this week, writing simply: "No women."

Jerry Seinfeld came in first place, having earned $57.5m over the past 12 months according to the publication. This does not come as a surprise, since Seinfeld has occupied the top spot every year since the ranking was first compiled in 2006 – except in 2016 when Kevin Hart passed him.

Hart, who recently gave up his Oscars hosting gig after being criticised for homophobic tweets he sent out in the past, is a close second with reported earnings of $57m.

Dave Chappelle follows in third place, having cashed in $35m according to Forbes.

Chris Rock, Ricky Gervais (the only British name on the otherwise all-American list), Gabriel Iglesias, Terry Fator, and Jim Gaffigan follow.

Jeff Dunham and Sebastian Maniscalco occupy the ninth and 10th position respectively.

Amy Schumer became the first woman to ever make the list last year, when her Netflix special and tour increased her earnings.

This year, however, she did not meet the "$15m cutoff" set by Forbes, according to the magazine.

Louis CK, who admitted in November last year that accusations of sexual misconduct made against him were true, also fell out of the list this year.

Griffin was sacked by CNN in March 2017 after posing in a photo while holding a fake bloody head that resembled that of Donald Trump.

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The comedian, who apologised and said she "went too far" with the image, went back on tour in 2018, performing at New York City's Carnegie Hall among other venues.

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