posted
I don't know if anyone was following the Dave Chapelle story. Dave was in the middle of filming the third season of his show when he took off for Africa and never came back. Comedy Central has been trying to mark time until he was ready to resume work, but there's been some stories today that they're finally ready to give up on it.
Personally, I'm ambivalent about the show. On one hand, Dave (or his comedy, at least) is often the most blatant example of racism I've seen on television this decade. Very few of his sketches aren't about stereotypical views of black vs. white, and several of them have honestly offended me. On the other hand, at his best moments he's produced some of the only truly funny and original sketch comedy I've seen since Kids In the Hall, or the first few seasons of Mad TV. And from my experience he's making the only sketch comedy that's having any impact on pop culture.
Just wondering if anyone else cares, and if so, in a positive or negative way.
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posted
Which is sad, because I kinda liked Mencia's standup special. It was Very political, but he didn't get as bad or gross as I see him now on his new show.
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I loved the Mencia standup special. Most of it was about various races, but he was very evenhanded, not to mention hilarious.
A lot of the monologues in his new show have also been very funny. Especially on the first episode. But so far most of his sketch comedy (with the exception of the news commentaries, which are more monologue than sketch) have been pretty lame.
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posted
I hadn't heard about this. I think he is a little over the top at times, but he is also pretty funny. I would be interested if someone knew what he is doing in Africa.
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quote:Very few of his sketches aren't about stereotypical views of black vs. white, and several of them have honestly offended me.
Apparantly Dave does this to skewer those stereotypes, in both directions. The story I read was that he was doing a sketch like this and a white guy in the audience was laughing so much that Dave thought he might be laughing because of the stereotypes - i.e., as having his views of blacks confirmed. This made Dave question his whole methodology.
As for "off to Africa," I believe he checked himself into a hospital there.
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posted
One of the funniest sketches I saw was the one with the blind black man who thinks he is an extremely racist white man.
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I had heard he had some kind of nervous breakdown, especially after the renewal deal became very high-priced and the pressure to produce something amazing seemed too much. The problem was that none of his close friends knew exactly where he went for a while, and the Africa thing was a rumor.
Has it been confirmed he is indeed there in a hospital? Here is a recent article on the subject:
posted
That's too bad that the show is going off the air becuase it was one of my favorites. Oh well, I will always have the DVD's to keep me entertained.
posted
Yeah it was confirmed that he went to Africa, I saw an interview with him about it in one of those guys magazines, might have been esquire.
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quote: The story I read was that he was doing a sketch like this and a white guy in the audience was laughing so much that Dave thought he might be laughing because of the stereotypes - i.e., as having his views of blacks confirmed. This made Dave question his whole methodology.
Because a white guy couldn't possibly get it in the intended parody of stereotypes sense and think it was funny for the same reasons Dave did?
Actually, I can see why he might want to take a second look at the message of his comedy. There were some skits that seemed to be glorifying the stereotypes more than skewering them. That's the problem with sending a message through satire, the people who need to hear the message most won't get it.
Was Mencia the guy whose comedy central special ended with him saying "White people don't have the freedom of speech that I do. If you don't believe me, try telling my jokes at work tomorrow." ? I don't remember that comedian's name, but the descriptions of Mencia's special seem to match with the one I'm thinking of.
posted
I am bumbed out about The Chappelle Show ending. I heard that the episodes that they finished will be available on DVD.
The Mind of Mencia is often funny, but he does push it a bit hard. I hate it when he uses the term "beaner" since I have had that word used towards me more than once, and it hurts. I'll never understand how the black community was able to embrace the word "nigga" as slang given the history of the word's use. Even some segments of the homosexual community use "queer" to refer to one another. I have had it explained to me as a group's claiming ownership of the term to destroy the hateful connotations, but I really don't get it.
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quote:Because a white guy couldn't possibly get it in the intended parody of stereotypes sense and think it was funny for the same reasons Dave did?
No, I think it was something about the guy's particular reaction. I haven't heard an account from Dave - it was a columnist reporting on what a friend of Dave's had said. But it was to the point in the skit where he's pushed past what's supposed to be funny - where a little discomfort was supposed to be felt - and the guy was still laughing.
I'm not so sure that it's the thought of one guy laughing that did it, but the sudden realization that people may be using the show to reinforce their own stereotypes that got to him. In other words, even if this guy didn't have a racist reaction, the laughing made Dave face the possibility that his humor was being seen that way.
posted
Ron and I have been renting his show on DVD, and we watched the ones with "Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories" this week.
I laughed so hard I think I hurt something. Getting smacked down at basketball by Prince and The Revolution? Brilliant.
Some of the show has been hit or miss, but much of it was funny. Racially charged, but funny. Like the Races having a "Draft" so one race could claim bragging rights for a mixed race athlete or public figure? Uncomfortable, but hilarious.
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quote:Originally posted by Enigmatic: [QUOTE] Was Mencia the guy whose comedy central special ended with him saying "White people don't have the freedom of speech that I do. If you don't believe me, try telling my jokes at work tomorrow." ? I don't remember that comedian's name, but the descriptions of Mencia's special seem to match with the one I'm thinking of.
--Enigmatic
The very same. I thought the conclusion of his special was brilliant.
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posted
What's funny is that if you watch the actual interviews of Charlie Murphy and Rick James, that stuff really happened. Or at least, the kernal was true. But then was edited (and recreated) for hilarity.
Posts: 1346 | Registered: Jun 1999
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quote:Originally posted by Olivet: Ron and I have been renting his show on DVD, and we watched the ones with "Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories" this week.
I laughed so hard I think I hurt something. Getting smacked down at basketball by Prince and The Revolution? Brilliant.
Some of the show has been hit or miss, but much of it was funny. Racially charged, but funny. Like the Races having a "Draft" so one race could claim bragging rights for a mixed race athlete or public figure? Uncomfortable, but hilarious.
Can't wait to see what you think of Charlie Murphy and his days with Rick James . Though to be honest, I loved Prince, and the new guy (forgot the name) who kept playing grab---. Hysterical.
The blind, African-American KKK Grand Wizard Schtict was classic. So was the Real World from an African-American perspective. COuld go on and on. Am not a big fan of people drawing lines in comedy and being easily offended, if Chappelle offends, perhaps Full House, Small Wonder and Everybody Loves Raymond is a bit more safe. I want comedians testing, stretching, pushing and breaking through comedic boundries, and lines, I don't want them terrified of them. There'd be no SNL, no Johnny Carson, no Richord Pryor, no (early) Eddie Murphy, no Lucille Ball no Jack Benny, no Groucho Marx, no George Carlin, no Lenny Brucce, no Kids in the Hall, no Seinfeld, no Bill Hicks, no nothing of consequence if people weren't testing and breaking boundries.
Sorry about ranting, I just can't see why people draw lines in comedy, drawing lines only hurts the cause, if a comedian goes too far, and in a direction that has no artistic merit, they'll go the way of Andrew Dice Clay, into obscurity.
quote:Am not a big fan of people drawing lines in comedy and being easily offended, if Chappelle offends, perhaps Full House, Small Wonder and Everybody Loves Raymond is a bit more safe. I want comedians testing, stretching, pushing and breaking through comedic boundries, and lines, I don't want them terrified of them.
I couldn't agree more, graywolfe.
I don't see the appeal of Bill Hicks. A friend of mine is very into his stuff, but I've never seen a bit by him that didn't make me think he was really stupid (in the sense of literally lacking brain power). His delivery is good, but the jokes just aren't clever.
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posted
There's a lot of room between being easily offended and being unoffendable. And both extremes are fairly frightening.
This isn't about being broad-minded. If you say that there's nothing anyone could do artistically that has the possibility of offending you, you're either fooling yourself or you're a very scary person. I'm not talking about stoning anyone who makes me uncomfortable, but if there is a line to be crossed, there's nothing wrong with keeping an eye on it.
Not talking about Chapelle here necessarily. Just speaking in generalizations.
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quote:Originally posted by Speed: There's a lot of room between being easily offended and being unoffendable. And both extremes are fairly frightening.
This isn't about being broad-minded. If you say that there's nothing anyone could do artistically that has the possibility of offending you, you're either fooling yourself or you're a very scary person. I'm not talking about stoning anyone who makes me uncomfortable, but if there is a line to be crossed, there's nothing wrong with keeping an eye on it.
Not talking about Chapelle here necessarily. Just speaking in generalizations.
I can be offended like anyone else, although it is pretty difficult to offend me I'll admit. I tend to be offended by things that strike me as patently racist, sexist, and homophobic, but im fairly broadminded when it comes to interpreting things, trying to pay attention to the intentions of the individual who may be offending people, but the worst sin, at least to Oscar Wilde, was being boring, and I almost agree with him in regards to that (in a similar vein, I'd rather people hate me, than be indifferent to m.
That's a whole lot of "I's" there, isn't it? . Anyway, I just have a major peeve issue when it comes to people pulling out the offended card out with regards to comedy, and perhaps hitch my cranky pants on a bit too tight whenever I come across the word in relation to comedy. The worst sin in comedy is being unfunny, and there is far too much of that already, I say "Bravo" to any comic or comedic writer willing to stretch boundries, especially in these times where the awful "Return of the eighties sweater comic" never seems to far away.
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. Though to be honest, I loved Prince, and the new guy (forgot the name) who kept playing grab---. Hysterical.![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
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