Steve Harvey does not want you next to him, near him, interacting with him - nothing. The talk show host and entertainer has found himself in dramatic moments before, most of his own doing. That was the case again on Thursday when a memo he sent to his staff made the rounds on social media. Needless to say, anybody who would describe his demeanor as being "friendly" on the air would not feel the same way if they entered his dressing room.
The memo
The leaked memo was sent out by Harvey at the start of Season 5 of his television program. In it, he lists a series of rules that staff members must adhere to while working on the show.
The first three all pertain to his dressing room, which people are virtually prohibited from entering. Additionally, people can only see him if they make an appointment first - no unexpected guests. He also can't be approached when he is in the process of getting all dolled up for the program.
The rest of the memo seemed to be a rehashing of the same rules stated at some point earlier in the memo, really reinforcing the point. At the end of the memo, Harvey asks his staff members not to take offense to the memo, because it was simply enforcing an ability to be happy and improve his personal life. Apparently, he didn't ask his staff members not to leak the memo to the media, though.
Digging the drama
Those familiar with Steve Harvey know he somewhat thrives off of the controversy he creates. In January, he came under fire during his talk show for making disparaging remarks against Asian men. New York lawmakers and famous personality Eddie Huang were among those furious at Harvey. He also had to deal with backlash after meeting with President Donald Trump, despite his racist tendencies, defending his decision by claiming that the only way to resolve change was to be bedfellows with the people in power.
His most famous incident, of course, was reading the name of the wrong victor at the Miss Universe contest in 2015, a moment that still resonates a year and a half later. The mistake may have been an honest one, but even in his apology he was making mistakes, misspelling the name of the countries with contestants involved in the incident.
He hosted the pageant last year and will probably do again when the cycle comes back around. A quick suggestion for those working the next Miss Universe contest: don't approach Steve Harvey in his dressing room without being prepared to face his wrath.