When Michael 'Kramer' Richards was caught on tape by the TMZ guys swearing and calling two black men 'niggers', the whole world was shocked. Many outstanding figures were quick to blame the comedian, refusing to condone such a public display of obviously racist feelings.

Later on, Richards apologized, not once but on several occasions. He went on Letterman's, he went to church, he sought professional help, he hired a crisis expert. Nothing was too out of hand to repair the goodie-goodie image he had sullied for ever with his uncalled for outburst.

Still, many refused to believe that he was 'not a racist' and that those ugly remarks stemmed from repressed anger and not from unspoken prejudices. Oscar-winning actor (and now singer)Jamie Foxx was among the many who cast the first stone: he vouched to kick Richards' ass if he ever came face to face with him.

Others, like Queen Latifah, were more reserved, stating only that he is a man one feels the need to 'pray for', just as if he was already a lost cause. But not Mel Gibson, the only one who actually said that he feels sorry for the former television star. The big time actor and director, familiar with being an outcast and openly criticized, spoke for the first time about KKKramer.

Gibson said that, when he saw the footage shot at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles and heard Richards utter the n-word, he immediately felt he should send him a note to let him know he is not alone. Then, he changed his mind about the letter, but not about his feelings towards him.

'I feel really badly for the guy. He was obviously in a state of stress. You don't need to be inebriated to be bent out of shape. But my heart went out to the guy.', Gibson said, speaking out of experience, probably. Many still haven't forgotten about his antisemitic rant he went on while he was being arrested for DUI this summer.

The 'Braveheart' star added that the scandal can't possibly last for a very long time. 'They'll probably torture him for a while and then let him go. I like him.', he explained. Does that mean that Richards will now have a place to work? Maybe in one of Gibson's future films? Now, that's something to think about...