Richard Pryor
Richard Pryor was one of the great legends of comedy in America, known for his use of vulgar language and for challenging social taboos and racial lines in show business. His fearless and painfully honest observations on the world as he saw it either had crowds in hysterics or hopping mad. A controversial performer, Pryor never let public scorn or criticism dissuade him from saying what he wanted to say, a fact that only made him ever more popular.
Born in 1940 in Peoria, Illinois, Pryor grew up in a brothel his grandmother owned, and his mother worked in. His father, Leroy Pryor, was a boxer and a bartender, and fought in World War II. Both his parents died in the late 1960s.
Richard Pryor began his comedy career following in the footsteps of other black comedians, such as Bill Cosby, and his first acts were mild and uncontroversial compared to the acts that he would eventually become famous for. After having what he later referred to as an ‘epiphany’ in 1967, he began working profanity into his act and pushing the limits on what society felt was acceptable. He made his first comedy recording with the Dove/Reprise label in 1968.
In 1969, Richard Pryor moved to Berkeley and became involved in the rebellious spirit that was sweeping through the streets of that city at the time. In 1970 he recorded his second comedy album with Laff Records, and in 1972 made his first movies appearance in a documentary called ‘Wattstax’. Pryor didn’t achieve large-scale success until the release of his third album, ‘That Nigger’s Crazy’, in 1974 with Stax Records. The album was his most controversial yet, and launched his reputation for being unafraid to push social limits.
After making a new deal with Reprise/Warner Brothers, Pryor released several more comedy albums in years to come, all of which were hugely successful. He also starred in a number of movies, teaming up with fellow comedians Gene Wilder, and Mel Brooks several times. Some of his most notable movies include ‘Lady Sings the Blues’, ‘The Mack’, ‘Silver Streak’, ‘Car Wash’, ‘The Toy’, ‘Superman III’, ‘Brewster’s Millions’, ‘Stir Crazy’, and ‘See No Evil, Hear No Evil’. He also helped write the Mel Brooks film Blazing Saddles, and was originally intended to star in it, but later lost the part to Cleavon Little.
In 1980, Richard Pryor attempted to commit suicide while under the influence of drugs by lighting himself on fire. He survived the incident without serious permanent injuries, though continued to struggle with drug and alcohol abuse until 1986, when he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Richard then gave up drugs and alcohol, citing that he’d been given MS as a sign from God to get clean.
Though he continued his comedy and acting career with success, his struggle with MS began the waning of his performance days. He made a cameo appearance in the David Lynch movie, ‘Lost Highway’ in 1997, and after that never returned to the big screen or performed live again. He died on December 10th, 2005 from a cardiac arrest.
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