UPDATE AT END OF POST: Olbermann responds with a vulgarity.
At the end of Friday's "Countdown," Keith Olbermann announced what will be considered good news to all the folks at MSNBC that despise him.
"I`m Keith Olbermann, taking a couple of weeks vacation off now. So we`ll see you whatever two weeks from today is."
This came just moments after he told his small number of viewers:
That`s "Countdown" for June 28th -- it`s not June 28th, is it? June 28th? It said June 28th up here. It`s July 16th, isn`t it? My goodness, I thought I was having another seizure.
Despite it likely not being a surprise to readers that Olbermann doesn't know what day it is, that's certainly a sign one needs some time off (video follows with transcript and commentary):
KEITH OLBERMANN, HOST: That`s "Countdown" for June 28th -- it`s not June 28th, is it? June 28th? It said June 28th up here. It`s July 16th, isn`t it? My goodness, I thought I was having another seizure. Portions written by James Thurber.
It`s 2,633rd day since President Bush declared mission accomplished in Iraq, the 2,222nd day since he declared victory in Afghanistan, and the 88th day of the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf.
Next, Rachel`s special report summarizing her trip to Afghanistan. I`m Keith Olbermann, taking a couple of weeks vacation off now. So we`ll see you whatever two weeks from today is. Good night and good luck.
It's only July, and Olbermann's taking another two weeks off?
This follows the three week leave of absence he took earlier in the year as he tended to his dying father.
Alas, as Steve Krakauer noted Saturday, it was a tough week for the "Countdown" host:
The vacation, which was announced for the first time on Twitter during Friday night's Countdown, comes after a turbulent week for Olbermann - and not because of anything he did. Since Tucker Carlson's purchase of KeithOlbermann.com and subsequent personal shots at the host during our podcast with him, Olbermann's only public comments have been mild and he has not addressed the issue on his show.
Oh. So he's going to run and hide for two weeks. Makes you wonder if he's going to be spending all that time in a bathtub:
Likely only his hairdresser and his psychiatrist know for sure.
Of course, we at NewsBusters sincerely wish Keith the best.
Although we always have a lot of fun noting the predictable missteps of his replacements -- Krakauer says it's going to be Lawrence O'Donnell -- there's really nobody we like lambasting more for his shoddy reporting on MSNBC than Olbermann.
After all, he makes it soooo easy.
*****Update: Shortly after this was posted, I comically asked on Twitter, "Does anyone think Olbermann will spend his entire 2 weeks off hiding in a bathtub?"
MSNBC's hottest property responded:
Wow. He must REALLY need a vacation.
Is this the best MSNBC's hottest property can do?
His employers at General Electric must be sooooo proud.
