Just call him Grandpa Wackadoodle.

Rev. Jeremiah Wright—a former pastor to Barack Obama who drew controversy to the president-elect’s campaign when short clips of his sermons circulated this year—said in a radio interview Monday that he and his family found escape from the death threats and “salivated” media hordes by keeping a sense of humor.

That meant Wright laughed when his granddaughter brought him a New York Times column that labeled him a “wackadoodle.” He and his wife joked about the nickname.