I always have thought the actor Robert DeNiro was more clever than what he demonstrated last night.

The one-time “Raging Bull” trooped to the microphone at the Tony Awards show and offered a pithy, profane “salute” to Donald J. Trump. I won’t repeat it here. The network cut the sound off as DeNiro blurted out an f-bomb before saying the president’s name.

OK, let me stipulate a couple of things here.

One is that I have thought what DeNiro said out loud many times since Trump was elected president. I might even have said it a time or two. Then again, I never have stood in front of millions of viewers around the world who tuned in to watch an awards show meant to salute theater performances.

The reaction of the theater crowd was so very predictable. They stood and cheered. I didn’t join them while watching the event in real time Sunday night. For starters, I didn’t know what DeNiro actually said until later in the evening.

The second point I want to make is that many of us could have predicted that someone would have delivered such an ultimate snark-filled epithet during the ceremony. The arts community’s feelings toward the president are well-known, thoroughly chronicled. ”

I guess I’m disappointed it came from an actor whose work I’ve enjoyed for years, perhaps dating back to “Godfather II” when he portrayed a young Vito Corleone.

Whatever. I share DeNiro’s sentiment. The forum and the manner he used to deliver it seemed so very boring. And, to be honest, it wasn’t terribly creative.