Pathbreaking Comedian Richard Pryor Dies
 

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May he Rest in Peace!!!

LOS ANGELES - Richard Pryor, the caustic yet perceptive actor-comedian who lived dangerously close to the edge both on stage and off, has died, his ex-wife said Saturday. He was 65.

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Pryor died of a heart attack at his home in the San Fernando Valley sometime late Friday or early Saturday, Flyn Pryor said. He had been ill for years with multiple sclerosis, a degenerative disease of the nervous system.

The comedian was regarded early in his career as one of the most foul-mouthed comics in the business, but he gained a wide following for his expletive-filled but universal and frequently personal insights into modern life and race relations.

His audacious style influenced an array of stand-up artists, including Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall and Damon Wayans, as well as Robin Williams, David Letterman and others.

A series of hit comedies in the '70s and '80s, as well as filmed versions of his concert performances, helped make him Pryor one of the highest paid stars in Hollywood. He was one of the first black performers to have enough leverage to cut his own Hollywood deals. In 1983, he signed a $40 million, five-year contract with Columbia Pictures.

His films included "Stir Crazy," "Silver Streak," "Which Way Is Up?" and "Richard Pryor Live on the Sunset Strip."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051210/ap_en_mo/obit_pryor

How sad. I'm thinking of all the laughter and happiness he shared with so many during his lifetime. He was truly a legend. RIP Richard Pryor.

:( I was just coming to post this. Sitting with my mom and grandmother and came across it on Yahoo News. :(

Rest in peace!

:( Rest in Peace Richard

RIP to a very precise, intelligent comic
 

RIP. Man, I loved Richard Pryor. We still have his albums outside in our rec room. If I wasn't on my way out, I'd put one on the turntable and listen.:(

I think tonight Mom and me will watch The Toy. :) :(

I think Mr. 1228 and I will watch Stir Crazy when I get home later on tonight. We were both saddened by his passing

I'm just glad that he's nothing suffering anymore. May he RIP. There will be NO other like Richard Pryor.

He was and always will be the greatest. His comedic style inspired many........ R.I.P.
Much Love and Respect.

:(

Finally, he is at peace.

RIP Richard Pryor :(

I loved Richard Pryor. He wil definitely be missed.

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R.I.P. Richard Pryor :(

Every AA radio station in MD/DC area was playing excerpts from his shows and the radio stations had to bleep every other word. He was so funny. He will be missed. RIP Richard he was the orignial King of Comedy.

CELEBRITIES AND FAMILY MEMBERS REFLECT ON LIFE OF RICHARD PRYOR IN BET NEWS SPECIAL SALUTE
Comedian Dave Chappelle Breaks His Controversial Silence to Celebrate Pryor's Influence and Address Issues Around His Own Career

BET News Special 'Richard Pryor: The Funniest Man Dead or Alive' Premieres Tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT

Washington, DC (BlackNews.com) - Richard Pryor's ground-breaking, irreverent style of comedy created hysterical laughter laced with race, sex, drugs, adult language and controversy. Before his death last week at age 65, Pryor inspired multiple generations of comedians who have pushed the envelope of their art form in his image. BET will honor the memory of Pryor in a celebrity-filled BET News special Richard Pryor: The Funniest Man Dead or Alive premiering tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT with an encore showing at 11 p.m. ET/PT. BET News personality Jacque Reid hosts this poignant salute to the talented comedian and actor.

In a BET News exclusive, comedian Dave Chappelle breaks his controversial silence to honor Pryor's legacy, and to address speculation on the status of his own career in the aftermath of abruptly leaving his hit series on Comedy Central for a season. Chappelle's interview on his career will run during BET News interstitial news briefs and in longer form at http://www.bet.com/

On Richard Pryor: Funniest Man Dead or Alive, Chappelle joins fellow joke masters Chris Tucker, Dick Gregory, Wanda Sykes, Paul Mooney, Mike Epps, Tracey Morgan, Mo'Nique, Charlie Murphy, Alex Thomas, Steve Harvey and Saturday Night Live Executive Producer Lorne Michaels in paying homage to Pryor's greatness. Pryor's wife and caregiver Jennifer Lee Pryor, former wife Flynn Pryor, children Stephen Pryor and Kelsey Pryor and former bodyguard Rashon Khan will also share rare and personal anecdotes, along with special reflections by Rev. Jesse Jackson.

BET will further extend its salute to Pryor with a showing of one of the comedian's most critically-acclaimed films Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling, which premieres Thursday, December 22 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

The following are excerpts from comments about Pryor featured in Monday's BET News special:

Dave Chappelle: "The hardest thing to do is to stand up and talk in front of people. People equate that to death. It might be second only to death as far as fears of people. But he did it in a way that was so courageous and left himself so vulnerable that you couldn't not like a person like this."

Chris Tucker: "Richard Pryor was a big part of my life. He influenced me in a lot of ways. Growing up and watching him on TV as a little kid and then in the movies, he inspired me to do standup comedy and eventually do movies. I remember watching him in 'Stir Crazy.' And I couldn't wait to see him on the screen. When he was walking down in the prison scene saying "we bad," I used to go crazy. I said 'when I do movies,' I want to come on screen like that. I want to make sure the audience can't wait until I'm on screen."

Dick Gregory: "He told jokes but it came out of the Black experience. Even if he told about the White House, about the President, it would come out the way a black person talking in the tavern or in the bar. He did not try to relate to white folks from a white vernacular . . . He brought something to that venue. From his childhood. From growing up. It could have been from experiences of marriage. And he was frightened. He was so bashful and timid - until that light came on. But you watched him develop and develop from just a comic to a good comic and then that genius just exploded."

Jesse Jackson: "He would curse not because he had limited material but because it was a form of punctuation and it's the kind of stuff that people would cringe at in public and then go buy the record. It was the Redd Foxx tradition . . . He was on the edge and I can not tell you the risk he took as a comedian. All great comedians for the most part, take those risks pushing the envelope."


BET NEWS SPECIAL - RICHARD PRYOR: THE FUNNIEST MAN DEAD OR ALIVE

SCHEDULE: Monday, December 19 @ 7:30 p.m. & 11 p.m. ET/PT

HOSTS: Jacque Reid and Touré

BET EXECUTIVES IN CHARGE:
Reginald Hudlin, President of Entertainment
Nina Henderson Moore, Executive Vice President - News & Public Affairs

BET PRODUCERS:
Selwyn Hinds, Executive Producer
Nelson George, Consulting Producer
Dara Roach, Supervising Producer
P. Frank Williams, Producer
Abbie Kearse, Producer
Alisia Powell, Producer
Marylinn Minor, Senior Coordinating Producer


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I'm just now reading this, but hopefully it airs again.:)