Career Dave Chappelle

1 career

1.1 career
1.2 2003–2006: chappelle s show

1.2.1 season 3 turbulence


1.3 dave chappelle s block party
1.4 2006–2013: infrequent stand-up , tv appearances
1.5 2013–present: career resurgence

career
early career

chappelle moved new york city pursue career comedian. performed @ harlem s famed apollo theater in front of infamous amateur night audience, booed off stage. chappelle described experience moment gave him courage continue show business aspirations. made name himself on new york comedy circuit, performing in city s parks. whoopi goldberg nicknamed him kid . @ 19, made film debut ahchoo in mel brooks robin hood: men in tights. appeared on star search 3 times lost on competing comedian lester barrie; dave later joked irony of him subsequently becoming more successful barrie. same year, chappelle offered role of benjamin buford bubba blue in forrest gump. concerned character demeaning , movie bomb, turned down part. parodied film in 1997 short bowl of pork, dim-witted black man responsible rodney king beating, la riots , oj simpson being accused of murder. chappelle played supporting role in doug liman film, getting in in 1994. @ age 19, opening act r&b soul singer aretha franklin.

he attracted attention of tv network executives , developed numerous pilots, none picked development series. in 1995, made guest appearance on episode of abc s popular sitcom home improvement. storyline had chappelle , real-life friend , comedian jim breuer ask tim taylor advice on girlfriends. characters single outing in episode proved popular abc decided give them own spin-off sitcom titled buddies. however, after taping pilot episode, jim breuer fired , replaced actor christopher gartin. buddies premiered in march 1996 disappointing ratings, , show canceled after 5 episodes out of 13 had been produced.

after failure of buddies, chappelle starred in pilot. according chappelle, network uncomfortable african-american cast , wanted white actors added. chappelle resisted , subsequently accused network of racism. shortly afterwards, chappelle s father died, , chappelle, returning ohio, considered leaving entertainment business.

he later appeared nightclub comedian in 1996 comedy nutty professor starring eddie murphy, 1 of major comedic influences. movie grossed $129 million on budget of $54 million. had minor role in 1997 s con air made $26 million after production costs. @ beginning of 1998, did stand-up performance hbo comedy half-hour. same year, appeared in pilots , pens lost, 1998 episode of larry sanders show s sixth season, in , executives of show s unnamed television network satirized treatment scriptwriters , show creators subjected, executives knee-jerk tendencies toward racial stereotypes.

he , neal brennan co-wrote 1998 cult stoner film half baked, chappelle s first starring role, group of marijuana-smoking friends trying other friend out of jail. made money @ box office , remains classic so-called stoner film, genre includes cheech , chong films more recent fare judd apatow s pineapple express. in december 1998, chappelle appeared tom hanks character s friend , confidant in ve got mail. $65 million movie made $116 million @ box office. in 1999, appeared in martin lawrence film blue streak, made $117 million @ box office.

in 2000, chappelle recorded first hour-long hbo special, dave chappelle: killin them softly, in washington, dc. followed appearance conspiracy brother in 2002 racial satire undercover brother.

2003–2006: chappelle s show

in 2003, chappelle debuted own weekly sketch comedy show on comedy central called chappelle s show. show parodied many aspects of american culture, including racial stereotypes, politics , pop culture. along comedy skits, show featured musical performances hip-hop , soul artists. promoted work of other black comedians well, notably paul mooney , charlie murphy.

due show s popularity, comedy central s new parent company viacom reportedly offered chappelle $55 million contract (giving chappelle share of dvd sales) continue production of chappelle s show 2 more years, while allowing him side projects. chappelle has said sketches not favorite form of comedy, , show s format short films.

in june 2004, based on popularity of rick james sketch, announced chappelle in talks portray james in biopic paramount pictures, owned viacom. james s estate disagreed proposed comical tone of film , put halt talks.

that same month, chappelle recorded second comedy special, time airing on showtime, dave chappelle: s worth, @ san francisco s fillmore auditorium, idols, including lenny bruce, george carlin, richard pryor, , robin williams, had performed.

season 3 turbulence

in june 2004 stand-up performance in sacramento, california, chappelle walked off stage after berating audience shouting m rick james, bitch! had become catchphrase popular rick james sketch. after few minutes, chappelle returned , resumed saying, show ruining life. stated disliked working 20 hours day , popularity of show making difficult him continue stand-up career, important thing him. told audience:

season 3 scheduled begin airing on may 31, 2005, earlier in may, chappelle stunned fans , entertainment industry when abruptly left during production , took trip south africa. chappelle said unhappy direction show had taken, , expressed in interview time need reflection in face of tremendous stress:

immediately following chappelle s departure, tabloids , repeatedly speculated chappelle s exit driven drug addiction or mental health issue, rather ethical or personal concerns chappelle claimed.

the break comedy central meant rift longtime collaborator neal brennan walking away $50 million contract.

dave chappelle s block party

the site of dave chappelle s block party in brooklyn.

chappelle star , producer of michel gondry-directed documentary dave chappelle s block party, chronicles him hosting free concert in clinton hill neighborhood of brooklyn on september 18, 2004. several musical artists, including kanye west, roots, erykah badu, mos def, dead prez , jill scott, featured in movie both performing in concert , in conversation off-stage. brought yellow springs residents brooklyn @ own expense. highlight of event temporary reunion of 1990s hip-hop group fugees.

chappelle toured several cities in february , march 2006 promote film under name block party all-stars featuring dave chappelle . universal pictures genre division, rogue pictures, released film in u.s. on march 3, 2006. success, grossing total of $11.7 million on $3 million budget.

2006–2013: infrequent stand-up , tv appearances

in june 2005, chappelle performed impromptu stand-up shows in los angeles. went on tour began in newport, kentucky, not far ohio home. made surprise appearance on hbo s def poetry, performed 2 poems, titled fuck ashton kutcher , how got lead on jeopardy!

in interview oprah winfrey aired on february 3, 2006, chappelle explained reasoning quitting chappelle s show. expressed contempt entertainment industry s tone-deafness toward black entertainers , audiences:

chappelle interviewed inside actors studio on december 18, 2005, @ pace university s michael schimmel center arts. show premiered on february 12, 2006. 4 days earlier, had introduced musical tribute sly stone @ 48th annual grammy awards.

chappelle said on inside actors studio death of father 7 years prior influenced decision go south africa. throwing himself work, had not taken chance mourn father s death. said rumors in drug or psychiatric treatment persuaded him stay in south africa. said,

chappelle in october 2007.

chappelle said felt of sketches socially irresponsible . singled out pixie sketch in pixies appear people , encourage them reinforce stereotypes of races. in sketch, chappelle wearing blackface , dressed character in minstrel show. according chappelle, during filming of sketch, white crew member laughing in way made him feel uncomfortable , made him question himself. chappelle said, first time felt not laughing me laughing @ me.

during these interviews, chappelle did not rule out returning chappelle s show finish started, promised not return without changes production, such better working environment. desired donate half of dvd sales charity. chappelle expressed disdain @ possibility of material unfinished third season being aired, saying bully move, , not return show if comedy central air unfinished material. on july 9, 2006, comedy central aired first episode of chappelle s show: lost episodes. after dvd release, chappelle interviewed anderson cooper on cnn , reiterated not return chappelle s show. uncensored dvd release of episodes made available on july 25.

the show still plays in syndication on several television networks, despite relatively small number of episodes compared american syndicated television programs.

chappelle has been known make impromptu , unannounced appearances @ comedy venues, , continues following post–chappelle s show return standup.

in april 2007, chappelle set stand-up endurance record @ laugh factory sunset strip comedy club, beating comedian dane cook s record of 3 hours , 50 minutes. in december of same year, chappelle broke own record time of 6 hours , 12 minutes. cook reclaimed record in january 2008, time of 7 hours. on november 19, 2009 chappelle performed @ laugh factory again, speculated attempt take record. however, disqualified according club owner after left stage 5 hours routine.

chappelle again appeared on inside actors studio and, in celebration of show s 200th episode, humorously interviewed show s usual host, james lipton. episode aired on november 11, 2008. appeared again on inside actors studio in 2013, 250th episode.

in august 2011, chappelle appeared @ comedy jam in san francisco.

2013–present: career resurgence

in august 2013, chappelle returned full-time touring stand-up, headliner when featured during oddball comedy & curiosity festival. sponsored funny or die, chappelle co-headlined comedy act flight of conchords.

during stop in hartford, chappelle walked off stage due heckling crowd lasted throughout entire performance. heckling raucous drowned out chappelle s voice on pa system , included chants of white power , line used in chappelle s show episode viewed wildly inappropriate , out-of-context other audience members later wrote event. few days later, follow on hartford incident, chappelle stopped in chicago performance comedy website comedyhype.com acquired , released audio of him being heard on stage responding heckling in hartford. chappelle referenced hartford incident, stating young, white, alcoholic[s] should blamed prior incident, hoped north korea bomb hartford, in future not stop in hartford gas, , summarizing feelings on situation saying, fuck hartford! however, in august 2014 chappelle returned hartford surprise appearance @ 2014 oddball festival , received multiple standing ovations during set.

in june 2014, chappelle made first major new york city appearance in eleven years, performing ten nights @ radio city music hall. chappelle promoted dates appearing on today show, tonight show , late night david letterman.

in 2015, chappelle appeared in spike lee film, chi-raq, first film role in 13 years.

on november 12, 2016, chappelle made hosting debut on saturday night live, tribe called quest musical guest. performance on snl received widespread acclaim critics , audiences alike. @ 69th primetime emmy awards, received emmy award outstanding guest actor in comedy series guest appearance on saturday night live.

on november 21, 2016, netflix revealed releasing 3 new stand-up comedy specials chappelle in 2017. chappelle paid $60 million part of deal, $20 million per special.

on march 21, 2017, netflix released 2 never-before-seen specials hail directly chappelle s personal comedy vault. these specials filmed @ austin city limits live in april 2015 , @ hollywood palladium in march 2016. specials marked comedian s first concert specials in 12 years. specials proved immediate success, netflix announced month later viewed comedy specials in netflix s history.