Post by Talon Karrde on Dec 13, 2005 1:34:48 GMT -5
From www.imdb.com:
"Comedy legend Richard Pryor died of a heart attack on Saturday, nine days after celebrating his 65th birthday. The funnyman's wife, Jennifer, has confirmed his passing, revealing she tried to resuscitate him at their home in Encino, California. Pryor had been fighting degenerative nervous system disease multiple sclerosis for the past 20 years. Fans began gathering at his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles soon after hearing the sad news yesterday. Pryor starred in a number of hit comedy movies like Stir Crazy, Brewster's Millions and Car Wash, but he really shone as a standup comedian, often poking fun at race issues and his own well-publicized drug problems. Pryor, who was married seven times and fathered seven children, grew up in a brothel in Illinois, run by his grandmother. He started his comedy career as a touring stand-up in the 1960s and quickly became a cult act. He won several Grammy Awards for his comedy albums and went on to influence many of today's top comedians. As well as his most obvious movie hits, listed above, Pryor also appeared in Superman III in 1983 and The Muppet Movie in 1979. He also starred in innovative musical documentary Wattstax."
I used to watch this comedian on television and in movies - Stir Crazy was one of my favorites, but not the only movie that I loved Pryor in. His acts were composed of personal experiences, such as racial discrimination, his burns suffered from a free-basing incident, his youth and more. Pryor's acts proved to be inspiration for other comedians such as Eddie Murphy and Chris Rock. Richard Pryor will be sorely missed as an icon in the comedy industry.
"Comedy legend Richard Pryor died of a heart attack on Saturday, nine days after celebrating his 65th birthday. The funnyman's wife, Jennifer, has confirmed his passing, revealing she tried to resuscitate him at their home in Encino, California. Pryor had been fighting degenerative nervous system disease multiple sclerosis for the past 20 years. Fans began gathering at his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles soon after hearing the sad news yesterday. Pryor starred in a number of hit comedy movies like Stir Crazy, Brewster's Millions and Car Wash, but he really shone as a standup comedian, often poking fun at race issues and his own well-publicized drug problems. Pryor, who was married seven times and fathered seven children, grew up in a brothel in Illinois, run by his grandmother. He started his comedy career as a touring stand-up in the 1960s and quickly became a cult act. He won several Grammy Awards for his comedy albums and went on to influence many of today's top comedians. As well as his most obvious movie hits, listed above, Pryor also appeared in Superman III in 1983 and The Muppet Movie in 1979. He also starred in innovative musical documentary Wattstax."
I used to watch this comedian on television and in movies - Stir Crazy was one of my favorites, but not the only movie that I loved Pryor in. His acts were composed of personal experiences, such as racial discrimination, his burns suffered from a free-basing incident, his youth and more. Pryor's acts proved to be inspiration for other comedians such as Eddie Murphy and Chris Rock. Richard Pryor will be sorely missed as an icon in the comedy industry.