Richard Pryor
Richard Pryor | |
---|---|
American politics | |
Spouse | Patricia Price
(m. 1960; div. 1961)Shelley R. Bonus
(m. 1967; div. 1969)Deborah McGuire
(m. 1977; div. 1978)Jennifer Lee
(m. 1981; div. 1982)
(m. 2001)Flynn Belaine
(m. 1986; div. 1987)
(m. 1990; div. 1991) |
Children | 7, including Rain |
Relative(s) | Ludacris (second cousin once removed) |
Website | richardpryor |
Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most important stand-up comedians of all time. Pryor won a
Pryor's body of work includes numerous
As an actor, he starred mainly in comedies. He gained acclaim for his collaborations with Gene Wilder, including the films Silver Streak (1976), Stir Crazy (1980), See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989), and Another You (1991). He also acted in films such as Uptown Saturday Night (1974), Blue Collar (1978), The Wiz (1978), California Suite (1978), Superman III (1983), Harlem Nights (1989), and Lost Highway (1997). He appeared as himself on Sesame Street and Saturday Night Live before hosting The Richard Pryor Show (1977), and Pryor's Place (1984).
Early life
Pryor was born on December 1, 1940, in
Pryor served in the
He was a member of Henry Brown Lodge No. 22 in Peoria, where he became a
Career
1963–1969: Early performances
In 1963, Pryor moved to New York City and began performing regularly in clubs alongside performers such as
He shook like he had malaria, he was so nervous. I couldn't bear to watch him shiver, so I put my arms around him there in the dark and rocked him like a baby until he calmed down. The next night was the same, and the next, and I rocked him each time.[10]
Inspired by
In September 1967, Pryor had what he described in his autobiography
In 1969, Pryor moved to Berkeley, California, where he immersed himself in the counterculture and met people like Huey P. Newton and Ishmael Reed.[12]
1970–1979: Breakthrough and acclaim
In the 1970s, Pryor wrote for television shows such as
Pryor signed with the comedy-oriented independent record label
During the legal battle, Stax briefly closed its doors. At this time, Pryor returned to
Pryor's 1976 release
In 1975, Pryor was a guest host on the
1980–1989: Established career
In 1980, Pryor became the first Black actor to earn a million dollars for a single film when he was hired to star in
Before the freebasing incident, Pryor was about to start filming Mel Brooks' History of the World, Part I (1981), but was replaced at the last minute by Gregory Hines.[25][26] Likewise, Pryor was scheduled for an appearance on The Muppet Show at that time, which forced the producers to cast their British writer, Chris Langham, as the guest star for that episode instead.[27][28] After his "final performance", Pryor did not stay away from stand-up comedy for long. Within a year, he filmed and released a new concert film and accompanying album, Richard Pryor: Here and Now (1983), which he directed himself. He wrote and directed a fictionalized account of his life, Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling, which was inspired by the 1980 freebasing incident.[29]
In 1983 Pryor signed a five-year contract with Columbia Pictures for $40 million and he started his own production company, Indigo Productions.[30][31] Softer, more formulaic films followed, including Superman III (1983), which earned Pryor $4 million, Brewster's Millions (1985), Moving (1988), and See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989). The only film project from this period that recalled his rough roots was Pryor's semiautobiographic debut as a writer-director, Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling, which was not a major success. Pryor was also originally considered for the role of Billy Ray Valentine on Trading Places (1983), before Eddie Murphy won the part.[32][33][34] Despite his reputation for constantly using profanity on and off camera, Pryor briefly hosted a children's show on CBS called Pryor's Place (1984). Like Sesame Street (where Pryor appeared in a few oft-repeated segments), Pryor's Place featured a cast of puppets (animated by Sid and Marty Krofft), hanging out and having fun in a friendly inner-city environment along with several children and characters portrayed by Pryor himself. Its theme song was performed by Ray Parker Jr.[35] Pryor's Place frequently dealt with more sobering issues than Sesame Street. It was cancelled shortly after its debut.[36]
Pryor co-hosted the Academy Awards twice - the 49th Academy Awards in 1977 with Warren Beatty, Ellen Burstyn, and Jane Fonda and again at the 55th Academy Awards in 1983 alongside Liza Minnelli, Dudley Moore, and Walter Matthau. He was also nominated for an Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series on the television series Chicago Hope. Network censors had warned Pryor about his profanity for the Academy Awards, and after a slip early in the program, a five-second delay was instituted when returning from a commercial break. Pryor is one of only three Saturday Night Live hosts to be subjected to a five-second delay (along with Sam Kinison in 1986 and Andrew Dice Clay in 1990).[37][38]
Pryor developed a reputation for being demanding and disrespectful on film sets, and for making selfish and difficult requests. In his autobiography Kiss Me Like a Stranger, co-star Gene Wilder says that Pryor was frequently late to the set during filming of Stir Crazy, and that he demanded, among other things, a helicopter to fly him to and from set because he was the star. Pryor was accused of using allegations of on-set racism to force the hand of film producers into giving him more money:
One day during our lunch hour in the last week of filming, the craft service man handed out slices of watermelon to each of us. Richard, the whole camera crew, and I sat together in a big sound studio eating a number of watermelon slices, talking and joking. As a gag, some members of the crew used a piece of watermelon as a Frisbee, and tossed it back and forth to each other. One piece of watermelon landed at Richard's feet. He got up and went home. Filming stopped. The next day, Richard announced that he knew very well what the significance of watermelon was. He said that he was quitting show business and would not return to this film. The day after that, Richard walked in, all smiles. I wasn't privy to all the negotiations that went on between Columbia and Richard's lawyers, but the camera operator who had thrown that errant piece of watermelon had been fired that day. I assume now that Richard was using drugs during Stir Crazy.[39]
Pryor appeared in Harlem Nights (1989), a comedy-drama crime film starring three generations of Black comedians (Pryor, Eddie Murphy, and Redd Foxx).[40][41][42]
1990–2004: Later years and final works
In his later years starting in the mid-1990s, Pryor used a power-operated mobility scooter due to multiple sclerosis (MS).[43] He often said that MS stood for "More Shit".[44] He appears on the scooter in his last film appearance, a small role in David Lynch's Lost Highway (1997) playing an auto-repair garage manager named Arnie.[45]
In December 1999, Pryor appeared in the cold open of an episode of The Norm Show entitled "Norm vs. The Boxer". He played Mr. Johnson, an elderly man in a wheelchair who has lost the rights to in-home nursing when he kept attacking the nurses before attacking Norm himself. This was his last television appearance.[46]
In 2002, Pryor and Jennifer Lee Pryor, his wife and manager, won legal rights to all the Laff material, which amounted to almost 40 hours of reel-to-reel analog tape. After going through the tapes and getting Richard's blessing, Jennifer Lee Pryor gave Rhino Records access to the tapes in 2004. These tapes, including the entire Craps (After Hours) album, form the basis of the February 1, 2005, double-CD release
Influences
Pryor's influences included Charlie Chaplin, Jackie Gleason,[48] Red Skelton, Abbott and Costello, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Jack Benny, Bob Hope,[49] Woody Allen,[50] Dick Gregory, Bill Cosby,[51] Redd Foxx,[52] and Lenny Bruce.[53]
Personal life
Pryor met actress Pam Grier through comedian Freddie Prinze. They began dating when they were both cast in Greased Lightning (1977).[54] Grier helped Pryor learn to read and tried to help him with his drug addiction.[55] Pryor married another woman while dating Grier.[24]
Pryor dated actress Margot Kidder during the filming of Some Kind of Hero (1982). Kidder stated that she "fell in love with Pryor in two seconds flat" after they first met.[56]
Marriages and family
Pryor was married seven times to five women:[7][8][11]
- Patricia Price, to whom he was married 1960–1961.[57]
- Shelley Bonus, to whom he was married 1967–1969.[57]
- Deborah McGuire, an aspiring model and actress whom he married on September 22, 1977. They dated on and off for four years prior to their marriage.[58] They separated in January 1978, and their divorce was finalized in August 1978.[59][60]
- Jennifer Lee, an actress and interior designer whom Pryor had hired to decorate his home.[61][62] They married in August 1981, and divorced in October 1982 due to his drug addiction. They remarried on June 29, 2001, and remained married until Pryor's death in 2005.[24]
- Flynn Belaine, an aspiring actress whom he married in October 1986. They met when Pryor was performing in Washington, D.C., in 1984.[63] Two months after they married, Pryor filed for divorce, but withdrew the petition the same day. A week later he filed for divorce again.[64] Their divorce was finalized in July 1987. They remarried on April 1, 1990, but divorced again in July 1991.
Children
Pryor had seven children with six different women:[65][8][66][67]
- Renee Pryor, born July 20, 1957; mother, Pryor's girlfriend named Susan, when Pryor was 16.
- Richard Pryor Jr., born April 10, 1962; mother, Pryor's first wife, Patricia Price.
- Elizabeth Anne, born April 24, 1967; mother, Pryor's girlfriend, Maxine Anderson.
- Rain Pryor, born July 16, 1969; mother, Pryor's second wife, Shelley Bonus.
- Steven, born November 14, 1984; mother, Flynn Belaine, who later became Pryor's fifth wife.
- Franklin, born April 29, 1987; mother, Pryor's girlfriend, Geraldine Mason.
- Kelsey, born October 25, 1987; mother, Pryor's fifth wife, Flynn Belaine.
Sexuality
Nine years after Pryor's death, in 2014, the biographical book Becoming Richard Pryor by Scott Saul stated that Pryor "acknowledged his bisexuality";[68][69] and, in 2018, Quincy Jones and Pryor's widow Jennifer Lee stated that Pryor had a sexual relationship with actor Marlon Brando, and that Pryor was open with his friends about his bisexuality and the fact that he slept with men.[70][71] Pryor's daughter Rain later disputed the claim,[72] to which Lee stated that Rain was in denial about her father's bisexuality.[73]
Lee later told the Hollywood entertainment television series TMZ on TV that, "it was the '70s! Drugs were still good... If you did enough cocaine, you'd fuck a radiator and send it flowers in the morning."[74][75]
In his autobiography Pryor Convictions, Pryor talked about having a two-week relationship with Mitrasha, a trans woman, which he called "two weeks of being gay".[76]
In his first special, Live & Smokin', Pryor discusses performing fellatio. He also said in the special, and in 1977 at a gay rights show at the Hollywood Bowl, "I have sucked a dick."[77]
Substance abuse
Some sources (including Pryor himself) say that late in the evening of June 9, 1980, Pryor poured 151-proof
Pryor's widow Jennifer Lee recalled when he began freebasing cocaine: "After two weeks of watching him getting addicted to this stuff I moved out. It was clear the drug had moved in and it had become his lover and everything. I did not exist."[24]
Health problems
In November 1977, after many years of heavy smoking and drinking, Pryor had a mild heart attack at age 36.
In late 2004, his sister said he had lost his voice as a result of his multiple sclerosis. However, on January 9, 2005, Pryor's wife, Jennifer Lee, rebutted this statement in a post on Pryor's official website, citing Richard as saying: "I'm sick of hearing this shit about me not talking ... not true ... I have good days, bad days ... but I still am a talkin' motherfucker!"[86]
Death
On the morning of December 10, 2005, Pryor had a third heart attack at his house in Los Angeles. After his wife's failed attempts to resuscitate him, he was taken to a local Westside hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 7:58 a.m. PST. His widow Jennifer was quoted as saying, "At the end, there was a smile on his face."[31]
He was
Legacy
Awards and honors
In 1998, Pryor won the first Mark Twain Prize for American Humor from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.[95][96] According to former Kennedy Center President Lawrence J. Wilker, Pryor was selected as the first recipient of the Prize because:[97]
as a stand-up comic, writer, and actor, he struck a chord, and a nerve, with America, forcing it to look at large social questions of race and the more tragicomic aspects of the human condition. Though uncompromising in his wit, Pryor, like Twain, projects a generosity of spirit that unites us. They were both trenchant social critics who spoke the truth, however outrageous.
Like every other thing in his confounding, complicated life, Pryor would tackle MS—and his declining health until his death in 2005—head-on, spinning it into jokes both uncomfortable and honest. "If you tell the truth," he writes, "it's going to be funny."
In 2004, Pryor was voted number one on Comedy Central's list of the 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time.[2] In a 2005 British poll to find "The Comedian's Comedian", Pryor was voted the 10th-greatest comedy act ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders.[98]
Pryor was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.[99]
The animal rights organization
Artist Preston Jackson created a life-sized bronze statue in dedication to the beloved comedian and named it Richard Pryor: More than Just a Comedian. It was placed at the corner of State and Washington Streets in downtown Peoria, on May 1, 2015, close to the neighborhood in which he grew up with his mother. The unveiling was held Sunday, May 3, 2015.[102]
In a Netflix special released in May 2022, The Hall: Honoring the Greats of Stand-Up inducted Richard Pryor into the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, New York.[103]
Retrospectives
In 2002, a television documentary entitled The Funny Life of Richard Pryor depicted Pryor's life and career.[104] Broadcast in the UK as part of the Channel 4 series Kings of Black Comedy,[105][106] it was produced, directed and narrated by David Upshal[104] and featured rare clips from Pryor's 1960s stand-up appearances and films such as Silver Streak (1976), Blue Collar (1978), Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1978), and Stir Crazy (1980). Contributors included George Carlin, Dave Chappelle, Whoopi Goldberg, Ice-T, Paul Mooney, Joan Rivers, and Lily Tomlin. The show tracked down the two cops who had rescued Pryor from his "freebasing incident", former managers, and even school friends from Pryor's home town of Peoria, Illinois. In the US, the show went out as part of the Heroes of Black Comedy[107][108] series on Comedy Central, narrated by Don Cheadle.[109][110]
A television documentary, Richard Pryor: I Ain't Dead Yet,#*%$#@!! (2003) consisted of archival footage of Pryor's performances and testimonials from fellow comedians, including Dave Chappelle, Denis Leary, Chris Rock, and Wanda Sykes, on Pryor's influence on comedy.
On December 19, 2005, BET aired a Pryor special, titled The Funniest Man Dead or Alive. It included commentary from fellow comedians, and insight into his upbringing.[111]
A retrospective of Pryor's film work, concentrating on the 1970s, titled A Pryor Engagement, opened at Brooklyn Academy of Music Cinemas for a two-week run in February 2013.[112] Several prolific comedians who have claimed Pryor as an influence include George Carlin, Dave Attell, Martin Lawrence, Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Colin Quinn, Patrice O'Neal, Bill Hicks, Jerry Seinfeld, Jon Stewart, Bill Burr, Joey Diaz, Eddie Murphy, Louis C.K., and Eddie Izzard.[citation needed]
On May 31, 2013,
On March 12, 2019, Paramount Network debuted the documentary I Am Richard Pryor, directed by Jesse James Miller. The film included appearances by Sandra Bernhard, Lily Tomlin, Mike Epps, Howie Mandel, and Pryor's ex-wife, Jennifer Lee Pryor, among others. Jennifer Lee served as an executive producer on the film.[115]
Portrayals
In the episode "Taxes and Death or Get Him to the Sunset Strip"
A planned biopic, entitled Richard Pryor: Is It Something I Said?, was being produced by Chris Rock and Adam Sandler.[117] The film would have starred Marlon Wayans as the young Pryor.[118] Other actors previously attached include Mike Epps and Eddie Murphy. The film would have been directed by Bill Condon and was still in development with no release date, as of February 2013.[119]
The biopic remained in limbo, and went through several producers until it was announced in January 2014 that it was being backed by The Weinstein Company with Lee Daniels as director.[120] It was further announced, in August 2014, that the biopic will have Oprah Winfrey as producer and will star Mike Epps as Pryor.[121]
He is portrayed by Brandon Ford Green in Season 1 Episode 4 "Sugar and Spice" of Showtime's I'm Dying Up Here.[citation needed]
In the Epic Rap Battles of History episode George Carlin vs. Richard Pryor, Pryor was portrayed by American rapper Zeale.[122]
Filmography
Films
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1967 | The Busy Body | Lt. Whitaker | Film debut |
1968 | Wild in the Streets | Stanley X | |
1969 | Uncle Tom's Fairy Tales | Unknown | Also producer and writer; uncompleted/unreleased |
1970 | Carter's Army | Pvt. Jonathan Crunk | |
1970 | The Phynx | Richard Pryor (cameo) | |
1971 | You've Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You'll Lose That Beat | Wino | |
1971 | Live & Smokin' | Richard Pryor | Stand-up film; also writer |
1971 | Dynamite Chicken | Richard Pryor | |
1972 | Lady Sings the Blues | Piano Man | |
1973 | The Mack | Slim | |
1973 | Some Call It Loving | Jeff | |
1973 | Hit! | Mike Willmer | |
1973 | Wattstax | Richard Pryor / Host | |
1974 | Blazing Saddles | Co-writer | |
1974 | Uptown Saturday Night | Sharp Eye Washington | |
1975 | Adiós Amigo | Sam Spade | |
1976 | The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings | Charlie Snow, All-Star (RF) | |
1976 | Car Wash | Daddy Rich | |
1976 | Silver Streak | Grover T. Muldoon | |
1977 | Greased Lightning | Wendell Scott | |
1977 | Which Way Is Up? | Leroy Jones / Rufus Jones / Reverend Lenox Thomas | |
1978 | Blue Collar | Zeke Brown | |
1978 | The Wiz | Herman Smith (The Wiz) | |
1978 | California Suite | Dr. Chauncey Gump | |
1979 | Richard Pryor: Live in Concert | Richard Pryor | Stand-up film; also writer |
1979 | The Muppet Movie | Balloon Vendor (cameo) | |
1980 | Wholly Moses! | Pharaoh | |
1980 | In God We Tru$t | G.O.D. | |
1980 | Stir Crazy | Harold "Harry" Monroe | |
1981 | Bustin' Loose | Joe Braxton | Also producer and writer (story) |
1982 | Some Kind of Hero | Eddie Keller | |
1982 | Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip | Richard Pryor | Stand-up film; also producer and writer |
1982 | The Toy | Jack Brown | |
1983 | Superman III | August "Gus" Gorman | |
1983 | Richard Pryor: Here and Now | Richard Pryor | Stand-up film; also director and writer |
1985 | Brewster's Millions | Montgomery Brewster | |
1986 | Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling | Jo Jo Dancer | Also director, producer and writer |
1987 | Critical Condition | Kevin Lenahan / Dr. Eddie Slattery | |
1988 | Moving | Arlo Pear | |
1989 | See No Evil, Hear No Evil | Wallace "Wally" Karue | |
1989 | Harlem Nights | Sugar Ray | |
1991 | Another You | Eddie Dash | |
1991 | The Three Muscatels | Narrator / Wino / Bartender | |
1996 | Mad Dog Time | Jimmy the Grave Digger | |
1997 | Lost Highway | Arnie | Final film role |
2007 | Superbad | Himself | Archival footage |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1966 | The Wild Wild West | Villar | Episode: "The Night of the Eccentrics" |
1967 | ABC Stage 67 | Undertaker | Episode: "A Time for Laughter: A Look at Negro Humor in America" |
1968 | Let's Go | Unknown role | Episode: "Psychedelic Vancouver" |
1969 | The Young Lawyers | Otis Tucker | Episode: "The Young Lawyers" |
1971 | The Partridge Family | A.E. Simon | Episode: "Soul Club" |
1972 | Mod Squad | Cat Griffin | Episode: "The Connection" |
1975 | Saturday Night Live | Himself/host | Episode: "Richard Pryor / Gil Scott-Heron" |
1975–1978 | Sesame Street | Himself | 4 episodes |
1977 | The Richard Pryor Special? | Himself / The Reverend James L. White / Idi Amin Dada / Shoeshine Man / Willie | TV special |
1977 | The Richard Pryor Show | Himself / Various roles | 4 episodes |
1984 | Pryor's Place | Himself | 10 episodes |
1984 | Billy Joel: Keeping the Faith | Man Reading Newspaper | Video short |
1993 | Martin | Himself | Episode: "The Break Up: Part 1" |
1995 | Chicago Hope | Joe Springer | Episode: "Stand" |
1996 | Malcolm & Eddie | Uncle Bucky | Episode: "Do the K.C. Hustle" |
1999 | The Norm Show | Mr. Johnson | Episode: "Norm vs. the Boxer" |
Discography
Albums
Year | Title | Label | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1968 | Richard Pryor | Dove/Reprise Records | Reissued 2021 by Omnivore Recordings, 2023 Stand Up! Records |
1971 | Craps (After Hours) | Laff Records | Reissued 1993 by Loose Cannon/Island. Reissued 2021 by Omnivore Recordings, 2023 Stand Up! Records |
1974 | That Nigger's Crazy | Partee/Stax | Reissued 1975 by Reprise Records |
1975 | ...Is It Something I Said? | Reprise Records | Reissued 1991 on CD by Warner Bros. Records
|
1976 | Are You Serious ??? | Laff Records | |
1976 | Rev. Du Rite | Laff Records | |
1976 | Holy Smoke! | Laff Records | |
1976 | Bicentennial Nigger | Warner Bros. Records |
Reissued 1989 on CD by Warner Bros. Records |
1976 | Insane | Laff Records | |
1976 | L.A. Jail | Tiger Lily Records | |
1977 | Who Me? I'm Not Him | Laff Records | |
1977 | Richard Pryor Live | World Sound Records | |
1978 | The Wizard of Comedy | Laff Records | |
1978 | Black Ben The Blacksmith | Laff Records | |
1978 | Wanted: Live in Concert | Warner Bros. Records |
Double-LP set |
1979 | Outrageous | Laff Records | |
1982 | Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip | Warner Bros. Records |
|
1982 | Supernigger | Laff Records | |
1983 | Richard Pryor: Here and Now | Warner Bros. Records |
|
1983 | Richard Pryor Live! | Phoenix/Audiofidelity | Picture disc |
1983 | Blackjack | Laff Records | Re-release of Craps (After Hours) with different cover art[123] |
2021 | Live at the Comedy Store, 1973 | Omnivore Recordings | Reissued 2023 Shout! Factory )
|
Compilations
- 1973: Pryor Goes Foxx Hunting (Laff.)
- Split LP with Redd Foxx, containing previously released tracks from Craps (After Hours)
- 1975: Down And Dirty (Laff.)
- Split LP with Redd Foxx, containing previously released tracks from Craps (After Hours)
- 1976: Richard Pryor Meets ... Richard & Willie And ... The SLA!! (Laff)
- Split LP with black ventriloquist act Richard And Willie, containing previously released tracks from Craps (After Hours)
- 1977: Richard Pryor's Greatest Hits (Warner Bros. Records)
- Contains tracks from Craps (After Hours), That Nigger's Crazy, and ... Is It Something I Said?, plus a previously unreleased track from 1975, "Ali".
- 1982: The Very Best of Richard Pryor (Laff.)
- 2000: Rhino)
- Box set collection containing all Warner Bros. albums plus a bonus disc of previously unissued material from 1973 to 1992.
- 2002: Rhino, 2002 in music)
- Highlights culled from the albums collected in the ... And It's Deep Too! box set.
- 2005: Rhino, 2005 in music)
- Pryor-authorized compilation of material released on Laff, including the entire Craps (After Hours) album.
- 2013: No Pryor Restraint: Life In Concert (7-CD, 2-DVD box set) (Shout! Factory)
- Box set containing concert films, albums and unreleased material from 1966 to 1992.
- A complimentary, limited-edition promo, entitled Live at The Comedy Store—October 1973 (Shout Factory PRO-00072 (6/13), was exclusively available to customers who pre-ordered from the company's web site.
Bibliography
- Pryor, Richard; Gold, Todd (1995). Pryor Convictions and Other Life Sentences. New York: Pantheon Books. OCLC 31660376. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
References
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Mr. Pryor announced in May that he had signed a five-year, $40 million production deal with Columbia Pictures and promised to open up opportunities for minorities at his Indigo Productions.
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Further reading
- Bailey, Jason (2015). Richard Pryor: American Id. Raleigh, NC: The Critical Press. OCLC 929499929.
- Balducci, Anthony (2018). Richard Pryor in Hollywood: The Narrative Films, 1967-1997. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. OCLC 1013167477.
- Brown, Cecil (2013). Pryor Lives! How Richard Pryor Became Richard Pryor: Or, Kiss My Rich, Happy Black Ass!: A Memoir. Scotts Valley, Cal.: CreateSpace. OCLC 896479605.
- Haskins, James (1984). Richard Pryor, a Man and His Madness: A Biography. New York: Beaufort Books. OCLC 474968281.
- Henry, David; Henry, Joe (2013). Furious Cool: Richard Pryor and the World That Made Him. Chapel Hill, NC: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill. OCLC 900929967. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
- Pryor, Rain; Crimmins, Cathy (2006). Jokes My Father Never Taught Me: Life, Love, and Loss with Richard Pryor. New York: HarperCollins. OCLC 865250887. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
- McCluskey, Audrey Thomas, ed. (2008). Richard Pryor: The Life and Legacy of a "Crazy" Black Man. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. OCLC 300041360. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
- Rovin, Jeff (1983). Richard Pryor: Black and Blue. London: Orbis. OCLC 668427103.
- Saul, Scott (2015). Becoming Richard Pryor. New York: Harper. OCLC 869267234. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
- Williams, John A.; Williams, Dennis A. (1991). If I Stop I'll Die: The Comedy and Tragedy of Richard Pryor. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press. OCLC 23463494.
External links
- Richard Pryor at IMDb
- Richard Pryor at Emmys.com
- Richard Pryor discography at Discogs
- Richard Pryor: Icon (video). PBS. November 23, 2014. Biographical special—includes full version.