One of the most hilarious comedy skits of all time was comedian Dave Chappelle’s “True Hollywood Stories.”
Remember those sketches? They aired in the early 2000s on Chappelle’s Show, the iconic Comedy Central franchise that set a new standard for sketch comedy. “True Hollywood Stories” detailed the hard-living escapades of legendary soul-funk musician Rick James, whose love of cocaine – and his highly combustible relationship with brothers Charlie Murphy and Eddie Murphy – provided the inspiration for some of Chappelle’s most hilarious skits.
Don’t believe us? Click here …
“Cocaine is a helluva drug,” James repeatedly said in the clips.
That’s true … cocaine IS a helluva drug, especially if it’s laced with something.
Just ask South Carolina political scion John McGill – the handsome, successful 38-year-old son of former lieutenant governor (and 2018 gubernatorial candidate) Yancey McGill.
Two months ago, the younger McGill – who many believe was being groomed to follow in his father’s footsteps in Palmetto politics – was at the center of two bizarre incidents in his gated Columbia, S.C. neighborhood that resulted in SWAT units being dispatched to his residence. In each of these incidents – which occurred within sixteen hours of each other – McGill believed his home was under attack. In the second incident, he discharged one of his weapons inside the residence in response to this perceived attack.
Both times, though, police searched McGill’s home and reviewed his security footage – finding no evidence of an attempted home invasion.
What happened?
Well, to put it bluntly McGill was “tripping balls,” as the expression goes. Seriously … he thought his home was being besieged by ninjas. Or snipers. Or maybe was it sniper ninjas? We can’t remember … but whatever McGill thought he saw, it simply didn’t happen.
In our original story, we quoted a friend of McGill’s who told us his hallucinations were caused by a “terrible reaction” to a drug he had taken. The friend identified the drug, but at the time we weren’t immediately able to independently confirm the substance.
We have since been able to do that, and can now share the quote that was provided to us on a background, not for attribution basis.
“The drug he thought he was taking, cocaine, was taken on purpose,” McGill’s friend told us. “The other drugs laced in with it were not known at the time and he had a terrible reaction.”
What were the other drugs?
It’s not immediately clear … and there is some debate as to exactly how McGill obtained these narcotics.
Accordingly, we are waiting to address those circumstances until further information becomes available. When will that be? Well, as we noted in our original coverage there are reportedly multiple stories tucked away in dramatic court papers involving McGill and his wife, 33-year-old business consultant Jenny McGill.
One source who has seen the documents – which were placed under seal last month by S.C. family court judge Monet Pincus – told us they have the potential to “fill newspapers all over the state for months.”
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Jenny McGill has remained silent on all of this … until now.
And what she described as “much consideration, thought and prayer,” she has issued her first public statement on the drama swirling around her family.
“As a mother, the privacy and safety of my three young children and family is my number one priority,” McGill said. “This is a deeply private and extremely personal matter. At this time, rather than public conversation, I would ask for prayers and empathy. My children and I will continue to find comfort in our faith. As was wisely proclaimed in Proverbs 3:5-6, we may not always understand, but we trust our Lord and Savior to guide us through difficult times.”
Beyond this statement, McGill told us she had “no further comment” at this time.
Reached on a business trip to North Carolina, John McGill told us he remained unavailable to discuss the matter due to the pending legal proceedings.
“I appreciate the opportunity to comment but I have been advised due to the court proceedings to refer all such requests to my attorney,” he told us. “I appreciate everyone’s prayers and support, though, and I look forward to the truth of all of this coming out at the appropriate time.”
McGill has been keeping a low profile since our story ran earlier this week, although he was reportedly spotted earlier this week dining at Tazaki’s in Columbia, S.C. with local insurance executive Kim DuBose Felder – one of his neighbors in the Kings Grant community.
As we said in our original report, the McGill saga is “downright Shakespearian. And toxic. And combustible. And careening rudderless toward the public view.”
So … will it kill John McGill’s political career? We shall see …
“His father’s decision – a year or so ago – to switch parties, that surprised people,” one Midlands, S.C. political consultant told us. “Most perceived it as being more about John than it was about Yancey, setting the stage for him to run in GOP primaries down the road.”
Yancey McGill – who spent a quarter century in the S.C. Senate prior to “ascending” to lieutenant governor in 2014 – was a lifelong Democrat until 2016, when he switched parties to run for governor as a “Republican.”
Stay tuned … we’ll have more information in future reports.
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