The Texas Tiger Chronicles

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Tribute to Richard Pryor - The Icon of Sociopolitical CommenTerry

Mood: Magical. I have a pimple that has arisen on the center of my forehead making me look like a magical black unicorn. Singing Olivia Newtown-John "Do you believe that we are magic?"
Mode: Dark blue jeans w/ a retro beige and black fitted cowboy shirt with black cowboy boots
Munchies: Scambled eggs with Cheese topped with bacon and sausage, served with a side of french toast
Motif: Honoring your legends and their impact



I had two favorite movies as a child. Two movies I could watch endlessly and never feel listless, bored or removed. One of them was Annie, because my parents made me live A Hard Knock Life and eat cold mush in the winter and hot mush in the summer. But I always knew the sun would come out and my real parents, who were these super wealthy white folks, would one day swoop down and come resuce me from my black family and take me back to the life of luxury and priviledge to which I am deserving. That stilll has not happened but if Mr. Steve Wynn is reading this blog from the comfort of his luxury suite in one of his spacious Las Vegas hotels, PLEASE COME GET ME DADDY!

And the second movie I loved might have been a total box-office failure but it was a success in my heart by the name of The Toy. It starred Richard Pryor, Jackie Gleason and some lil red head boy who did not do as good of a job with that role as I would have done. I was born to be a spoiled rich kid. But that's neither here nor there.

Do you remember that movie? Well I am not gonna explain it to you, but it was one of my favorites. And another Richard gem was Stir Crazy with Gene WIlder.



You know Richard and Gene were a great comedy team. They also made Silver Streak and See No Evil Hear no Evil. But I think the prison comedy Stir Crazy was their crowning moment and was much better than Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy in Life.

I remember sneaking in my daddy's albums when he was gone and listening to Richard Pryor's Is It Something I said? The album starts off with a eulogy in which Richard takes to the pulpit and says, "We are gathered here today to mourn the passing of one Leroy James. In other words, the nigger dead."

Richard literally pionered the use of the n-word. For all these pseudo-enlightened Afircan Americans who say they have reclaimed the word and turned it into something diferent cause it's now Nigga vs. Nigger, they have Mr. Pryor to thank for raising this debate of semantics and linguistics. Cause he put it on wax and now folks that were not Black could here us use the word amongst ourselves. But Richard used the word as a political critique of the Black male experience and the greater experience of Blacks in America at that time. Somehow I don't think Nelly and 50-cent (and I am going to say it, Dave Chapelle) use the word as a method of critique, which for me is the only time it is acceptable. Now I know a lot of you Blacks love Dave Chapelle as much as you love that child-raping two stepper R. Kelly, but his use of the N--word on his show was not always handled intellectually (let's be honest) and often he used it for shock value as opposed to using it to hold a mirror up to the face of the viewer to see the hypocrisy in the use of the word.

SIDEBAR: Did you know that Richard grew up middle class. His family had a little change. And do you know why they had paper? His grandma ran a brothel. She was a pimp. He had seen so much by the time he was 13. He was as worldly and advanced as all those little girls who used to let R.Kelly pee on them and rape them for $100 and a box of tennis shoes. I wish Judge Judy was handling his case. Or Judge Mabeline cause I am sure should would order him into counseling and to get a vasectomy.

But back to Mr. Pryor. And do you remember his NBC TV show? He had a TV show on NBC in the late 70s that only lasted 4 episodes. The network was scared sh*tless and the censors were in an uproar. What impressed me was Pryor's eye for talent. People like Sandra Bernhard (my favorite), Paul Mooney (another favorite), Marsha Warfield (Night Court), John Witherspoon (Friday, and other various ghetto movies), Robin Williams (yes...THE Robin Williams) and Tim Reid (Jackee's Back, Hollywood Shuffle) ALL got their start on this show. Had it survivied, I am sure it would have become as large a cultural force as Saturday Night Live. But you know in this lil country of ours we can't talk about race, sex and other important issues.

One thing his wife said about his life is that we should use him as an example of self-truth It took him a long time to find acceptance as a comedian because he was working in White America and did not want to be like Bill Cosby, he wanted to be himself. She says he was authentic to himself and we can all get something from that.

Do you know the sound of your own voice? Are you true to it?

Here's what some other people had to say about Richard:

"By expressing his heart, anger and joy, Richard Pryor tookcomedy to its highest form." - comedian Steve Martin. ---

"Richard Pryor was one of the true pioneers of his art form. Hewas the Charlie Parker of comedy, a master of telling the truththat influenced every comedian that came after him. Our friendshipwent back to his days as a young comedian at Cafe Wha in New York,and although I will miss him like a brother, the legacy that heleaves will forever be with us." - music producer Quincy Jones. ---

"He was the single most seminal, comedic influence in the last50 years. It was so appropriate that he received the inaugural MarkTwain prize, as they both did the same thing. Mark Twain showed uswhat it was like on the frontier and living on the Mississippi andwhat it was like living at the turn of the century, and RichardPryor showed us what it was like to live in the inner city. Hisconcepts are so hysterically funny and unique." - comedian BobNewhart. ---

"I wish that every new and young comedian would understand whatRichard was about and not confuse his genius with his languageusage." - comedian Bill Cosby. ---

And now for today's News and Headlines

Pioneering Comedian Richard Pryor Dies
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Richard Pryor startled audiences with hisfoul-mouthed routines, but his universal and frequently personalinsights propelled him into one of Hollywood's biggest stars. Thepioneering comedian, whose audacious style influenced generationsof standup artists, died Saturday of a heart attack at age 65, said his business manager, Karen Finch. He had been ill for years withmultiple sclerosis, a degenerative disease of the nervous system. 1968

Presidential Upstart McCarthy Dies
WASHINGTON (AP) - Former Minnesota Sen. Eugene J. McCarthy,whose insurgent campaign toppled a sitting president in 1968 andforced the Democratic Party to take seriously his message againstthe Vietnam War, died Saturday. He was 89. McCarthy died in hissleep at assisted living home in the Georgetown neighborhood wherehe had lived for the past few years, said his son, Michael.

Iraqi Government Announces Election Curfew
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Iraq's government announced on Sundaystringent security measures for the upcoming parliamentaryelections, including the closure of all borders and airports, anextension of curfew hours and a ban on travel across provincialboundaries. The Interior Ministry said the measures would takeeffect Tuesday - two days ahead of the vote - and last until earlySaturday.

Iran Invites U.S. to Bid on Power Plant
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran on Sunday offered the United States ashare in building a new nuclear power plant in an apparent effortto curb U.S. opposition to its atomic program. "America can takepart in international bidding for the construction of Iran'snuclear power plant if they observe the basic standards andquality," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said at anews conference.

Explosions Rock Oil Depot North of London
HEMEL HEMPSTEAD, England (AP) - A series of explosions at one ofBritain's largest oil depots shook an area north of London Sunday,shattering windows and sending billowing clouds of smoke and flameshigh into the sky. Police said the blasts appeared to beaccidental. The oil depot is near an airport and some residentsreported hearing an aircraft flying low overhead shortly before thefirst explosion at around 6 a.m. But area police issued a statementsaying there was "nothing to suggest a plane was involved."

Reverse Thrusters Eyed in Midway Accident
CHICAGO (AP) - The reverse thrusters that should have slowed a Southwest Airlines jetliner before it slid off a runway and into abusy street didn't immediately kick in when the pilots tried todeploy them, federal investigators said Saturday after interviewingthe crew. The flight attendants said they could tell the Boeing 737wasn't slowing after it touched down in the snow Thursday evening,and the pilots said they applied the brakes manually as soon asthey realized something was wrong, said Robert Benzon, NationalTransportation Safety Board investigator in charge.

Katrina Deaths Lead to Real-Life 'CSI'
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - While hundreds drowned in Hurricane Katrina'sfilthy floodwaters, at least 21 people died more mysteriously. Fromunexplained gunshot wounds to stabbings and fatal blows to thehead, these unidentified victims are now the main characters in areal-life version of "CSI." Coroners are using science, creativethinking - and even a Crock-Pot - to try to answer the questionmany are asking: Who or what killed these 21 people? NYC School Shows How to Win Rat Race NEW YORK (AP) - City officials - hoping better educated footsoldiers can wage a smarter battle against an all-time high ratpopulation - have opened the Rodent Control Academy, an insitutionof higher learning about vermin that scurry around in low places.The city enlisted Bobby Corrigan to teach a decidedly creepycurriculum that strives to show city workers how to properly bait,trap and poison the rodents in ways that don't just drive an infestation down the block.

Country Music Stars Brooks, Yearwood Marry
CLAREMORE, Okla. (AP) - Country music stars Garth Brooks andTrisha Yearwood said "I do" on Saturday in a private ceremony attheir Oklahoma home. Brooks, an Oklahoma native, and Yearwoodexchanged vows before family members, said Nancy Seltzer, apublicist for the couple.

USC's Bush Runs Off With Heisman Trophy
NEW YORK (AP) - Reggie Bush took slow, deliberate steps to thepodium and began his Heisman Trophy acceptance speech with a hugesigh of relief and a hand over his heart. He may have been the onlyone in the packed room with any doubt about the outcome. Onceagain, the sensational Southern California tailback left thecompetition far, far behind. Bush was voted the nation's bestcollege football player in a landslide Saturday night over Texasquarterback Vince Young and USC quarterback Matt Leinart, lastyear's winner.

HOLLYWOOD'S nastiest divorce - the split between Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin - has become ridiculous. In the latest batch of court papers, Baldwin accuses Basinger of influencing their daughter, Ireland, with specially made chocolate bars that carry manipulative messages on their wrappers. One reads: "To my daughter Ireland, who gave me the strength, courage and tenacity to stand up for myself ... Mom." Baldwin claims, "The false message she continues to send our daughter is that she needs protection from her father."

WE salute New York Times movie critic Manohla Dargis for bravery. She gave a bad review to "Memoirs of a Geisha" even though Arthur Golden, who wrote the best-selling novel on which the movie is based, is the cousin of Arthur "Pinch" Sulzberger Jr., the paper's publisher. Sulzberger hosted a screening where he heaped praise on the book and the movie. But Dargis dismisses the book as "higher-end chick lit" and ridicules the picture as a "lavishly appointed melodrama" with "much clinching, panting and scheming" and a blatant bid for Oscars. Dargis slams "the ruinous decision" to have the three female leads "deliver their lines in vaguely British-sounding English that imparts an unnatural halting quality to much of the dialogue. The. Result. Is. That. Each. Word. Of Dialogue. Sounds. As. If. It. Were. Punctuated. By. A. Full. Stop ... "





I want to end today with a Haiku my friend Soled wrote for the child that Janet Jackson gave away so that she could focus on taking "Control." Janet has given so much to each of us. She passed up motherhood, lived a single life that was a lie, suffered through a nasty divorce and saw her career shot to hell at the hands of a frisky wigger. This is for you Janet. The icon. The lover. The woman. For the queen you are. For all of the sacrifices you made in your life so that we could all dance. A haiku for you:

Where oh where is she?
Janet's little unknown child
Maybe Neverland

Posted by Texas Tiger in NYC :: 3:10 AM :: 1 Comments:

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