richard pryor

Richard Pryor in 1986 Born December 1, 1940(1940-12-01)

Peoria, Illinois, U.S. Died December 10, 2005 (aged 65)

Encino, California, U.S. Medium Stand-up comedian, film, television Nationality American Years active 1963–1999 Genres Satire, Observational comedy, Black comedy, Improvisational comedy, Character comedy Subject(s) racism, race relations, American politics, African-American culture, human sexuality, self-deprecation, everyday life, recreational drug use Influences Jack Benny, Lenny Bruce,[1] Bill Cosby, Dick Gregory, Redd Foxx, Paul Mooney Influenced Martin Lawrence, Dave Chappelle,[2] Chris Rock,[3] Eddie Murphy,[3] Whoopi Goldberg,[4] Bill Hicks,[5] Robin Williams,[4] George Lopez,[6] Lewis Black,[7] Colin Quinn,[8] Bernie Mac,[3] Louis C.K.,[9] Patton Oswalt,[10] Artie Lange,[11]Jim Norton [12] Spouse Patricia Price

(1960–1961)

Shelley R. Bonus

(1968–1969)

Deborah McGuire

(1977–1978)

Jennifer Lee

(1981–1982)

Flynn Belaine

(1986–1987)

Flynn Belaine

(1990–1991)

Jennifer Lee

(2001–2005) Notable works and roles That Nigger's Crazy

Bicentennial Nigger

Himself in Richard Pryor: Live in Concert and Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip

Zeke Brown in Blue Collar

Harry Monroe in Stir Crazy

Gus Gorman in Superman III Website RichardPryor.com Emmy Awards Writing in Variety or Music

1974 Lily Grammy Awards Best Comedy Album

1975 That Nigger's Crazy

1976 ...Is It Something I Said?

1977 Bicentennial Nigger

1982 Rev. Du Rite

1983 Live on the Sunset Strip American Comedy Awards Lifetime Achievement Award in Comedy 1993

Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor III (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an African-American comedian, actor and writer.

Pryor was a storyteller known for unflinching examinations of racism and customs in modern life, and was well-known for his frequent use of colorful, vulgar and profane language and racial epithets. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations. He is widely regarded as one of the most important stand-up comedians of all time: Jerry Seinfeld called Pryor "The Picasso of our profession";[13] Whoopi Goldberg cited him as her biggest influence, stating "The major influence was Richard - I want to say those things he's saying."[citation needed] Bob Newhart has called Pryor "the seminal comedian of the last 50 years."[14]

His body of work includes such concert movies and recordings as Richard Pryor: Live and Smokin' (1971), That Nigger's Crazy (1974), ...Is It Something I Said? (1975), Bicentennial Nigger (1976), Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979), Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982) and Richard Pryor: Here and Now (1983). He also starred in numerous films as an actor, usually in comedies such as Silver Streak, but occasionally in dramatic roles, such as Paul Schrader's film Blue Collar and epic roles like Gus Gorman from Superman III (1983). He also collaborated on many projects with actor Gene Wilder.