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Underground
Chicago: |
THE
KITCHENComedians remember Richard Pryor
| B Cole | Tony Sculfield | Sheree Luckett |
| Tre Luv | Leslie Jones | Torris Brown |
| Damali Ayo | Willie Brown and Woody |
Comedian B Cole
Richard Pryor has been a great influence on me, not just w/ me as a comic
but as a person. He taught me how to make fun of myself during great tragic
moments, if it was being poor growing up or having problems during the times
I was married. He helped me have a sense of humor on all aspects of life and
I'm very proud to say that Richard has always lived in me as a professional comedian.
I am also proud that I had the opportunity to show him how much he lived in
me when he sat in the audience during my performance at the Comedy Store on
Sunset BLVD. in Los Angeles back in 1998. R.I.P Richard (The Godfather
of Comedy)
Comedian Tony Sculfield
Richard Pryor was indeed the true King Of Comedy!!
Comedian
Torris Brown
Rich not only kicked down doors but he also created doors and challenges
for up coming comic. He showed all comedians not to be afraid to be themselves
and enjoy there life's problem. He told stories not JOKES. The
greatest prophet of funny to ever walk the earth. He allowed me to believe in
me and not fear my pain. FUNNY IS FUNNY. Richard you're my "MOTHERFUCKER".
Comedian Sheree Luckett
Richard represented all that I am in this comedy game, I feel myself
as well as every comic in the business owes the great one for using his talent
and changing the whole face of comedy as it was known. I love, miss and will
always appreciate him.
Comedian
Tre Luv
Richard made comedy what it is today. None of us would have
probably even thought about touching a mic had it not been for him. There would
be no Deff Comedy jam, BET's comic view and even them white folks acknowledged
on Comedy Centrals 100 greatest comics of all time him as number one.
I took the news as if it were a close family member. I cried like a baby. The
closest I did a film called "My Big Phat Hip Hop Family,"
where I played the son of Renaldo Rey and he put me up on the struggle
that he and Richard went through at a time when a Nigga was nothing and had to
sacrifice so much to be seen and or given a chance by witty and Rick
persevered to be what he has become in 2 words "The Greatest."
Damali Ayo, author of How to Rent a Negro.
More than anything Richard Pryor embodies the vulnerability and courage it takes to be yourself on stage. more than any other comedian I've watched, Pryor only assumed one identity- himself. there was little if any boundary between him and his audience. and it takes a huge amount of chutzpah to be that open, that available with hundreds of people. he was generous beyond words. I don't think people generally see him this way, but he really exposed himself for the sake of bringing the audience on a journey with him.
Pryor also taught me a few things. first- how to interact with your audience. he was fearless in that area. he knew how to make the audience's slightest twitch part of his routine. he also never feared a heckler- he knew that the mic gave him the ultimate control and he wielded this with grace disguised as clowning. second- he taught me
not to be afraid of the way things are. Pryor was dedicated to the present reality- whatever it was at the moment, and he brought that fully to his audience. he's been criticized for his use of the word "nigger" but for him, it was a real part of his world- and because he was representing his world to his audience it belonged in his act. he
didn't over think the implications.
He knew that he was part of a
process of learning and growth and he filled his role in that to the
fullest. i have no doubt that if our culture had an equally damaging
word to describe whites, that it would have had equal usage in Pryor's work. in many ways he showed us a discrepancy in language.
There has always been a phenomenon of audience members imitating
their favorite comedian's acts. Pryor put the word nigger in the
mouths of his audience, and they decided what to do with it. and they
showed us that they loved it. I wish him such peace now. It was a hard road.
Willie Brown and Woody
Richard Pryor was the original article. There is no other like him and
there will never be. He was unique and honest with his delivery. Although he
may have used profanity it was done tastefully and in context with what he was
saying. Pryor helped to ease racial tensions with his quick witted, character
filled humor. He made a nation laugh deep down in their gut, even when we
really weren't even suppose to be listening to him.
Comedian Leslie Jones
The only sentence I can think of for Richard
Pryor is. "He is the Alpha and the Omega of Comedy." No one would
have ever really experience real comedy unless he came along. Thanks for
everything Richard.
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