“A Murphy [Eddie Murphy] movie is like a Sidney Poitier comedy - he's that intensely good... He revolutionized acting. He's literally black Brando. Before Eddie Murphy, there were two schools of acting for a black actor: Either you played it LIKE THIS or youplayeditlahkdis. He was the first black guy in a movie to talk like I am talking right now. That did not exist for black actors before him.” FirstsTwoSchoolGuyActorsBlackActingTalkingComedyRight NowMurphyBrandoBlack Guys Author:Scott Raab
“All my work shares a kind of balance between black comedy and sad and despairing melancholy.” KindBlackComedyShareBalanceMelancholyBlack Comedy Author:Martin McDonagh
“Black Tragedy lets slip her grim disguise and shows you laughing lips and roguish eyes; but when, unmasked, gay Comedy appears, how wan her cheeks are, and what heavy tears!” ShowsEyeBlackLaughingComedyTearsGayTragedyLipsHeavySlipsCheeksDisguiseGrim Book:Poems Source: Poems
“When you see a culture where the intellectual architects of the invasion are not shamed for their behavior but rewarded within the mainstream media culture, black comedy, satire, absurdism is the only response.” CultureBlackComedyMediaBehaviorIntellectualResponseSatireArchitectMainstreamInvasionMainstream MediaBlack Comedy Author:John Cusack
“When a musical act performs, the black audience goes crazy for all the stuff, the album cuts, everything. White audiences, they're nice and all, but they're not going to lose it until they get the hits. Comedy is the same thing.” StuffBlackLosesWhiteAudienceComedyNiceCuttingCrazyMusicalAlbums Author:Chris Rock
“Eddie [Murphy] is an icon. He's one of the reason why I started doing comedy in the beginning. He opened a lot of doors for black people.” PeopleReasonBlackComedyDoorsReason WhyBlack PeopleIconsMurphy Author:Tracy Morgan
“Being black, Latino, or Asian is not a genre. Romantic comedies, thrillers, action - those are genres. I think there's a lot of people who want to have the conversation. I don't think people are afraid of it, I just think it's the time to have that conversation. Race is not a genre.” PeopleThinkingWantActionBlackRaceComedyConversationGenreAsianLatinoThrillers Author:Mara Brock Akil
“I went to a public high school and most of the comedy was coming from the black kids and the Asian kids and the Hispanic kids. And, the coolest kids to me where always the black kids. They were always fashion forward and they always dressed the coolest. They were always the best dancers, and just the coolest people.” PeopleKidsSchoolBlackComedyFashionHigh SchoolDancerAsianHispanic Author:Brett Ratner
“These days, the House Republicans actually give John Boehner a harder time than they give me. Which means orange really is the new black.” GivingMeanPoliticalHousePoliticsBlackPartyComedyRepublicanGive MeHarderThese DaysFree SpeechOrangePolitical PartiesPartisanship Author:Barack Obama
“What ignited the rocket that sent you up into the vast regions of comedy, and why? I would say, for me, that philosophical treatise about having black beginnings and wanting love to compensate for that, wanting audiences and wanting attention - I say, "Au contraire." Completely opposite. I want the continuation of my mother's incredible love and attention to me.” WantMotherBlackAttentionAudienceComedyOppositesPhilosophicalIncrediblesRegionsRocketsContinuation Author:Mel Brooks
“In college I was one of six males who auditioned for five male roles in a comedy play. I was the one rejected. At that moment I made up my mind never to place myself at the mercy of some pompous, goateed, black-turtleneck-shirted "should I yay him or nay him?" pantywaist ever again.” ShouldMindMadePlayMomentsBlackRolesFiveComedyCollegeSixMercyMalesThat MomentShould IRejectedPompousTurtlenecksYay Author:Emo Philips
“Black people have slavery. And white people have our own thing-stuff we went though that hurt us that we have to cope with. Like when they took our slaves away. That was really hard for us. So it's pretty even.” PeopleHardFunnyStuffBlackHurtWhiteComedySlaverySlaveBlack People Author:Louis C. K.
“Farrakhan got everybody together for the Million Man March and everything. But Farrakhan don't like the Jews. Which is bugged. I get my hair cut on Dekalb Avenue. I never been in a barbershop and heard a bunch of brothers talking about Jews. Black people don't hate Jews. Black people hate white people! We don't got time to dice white people up into little groups. I hate everybody! I don't care if you just got here. "Hey, I'm Romanian." "You Romanian cracker!"” PeopleIfsMenLittlesCareFunnyTogetherHateBlackWhiteTalkingMillionsComedyCuttingHeardGroupsBrotherHairI HateJewDon't CareBunchHeyI Don't CareMarchBlack PeopleAvenuesDiceDon't HateCrackersHair CutBarbershop Author:Chris Rock
“When I first started doing comedy, there was no such thing as a room that had black people and white people in it. That didn't exist.” PeopleFirstsBlackWhiteRoomsComedyBlack People Author:Trevor Noah
“I think back to back romantic comedies are good for black film.” ThinkingFilmBlackComedy Author:Taye Diggs
“There are advances in technology and enabling voices, but there are issues with the stories themselves. I think people of color are still not seen as human beings. They're still associated with types, with comedy, but we're in a crisis right now, with things like Black Lives Matter. We need films that address these issues.” PeopleThinkingNeedsHumansStillsMatterStoriesFilmBlackVoiceHuman BeingsTechnologyIssuesComedyColorTypeRight NowCrisisAddressesBlack Lives MatterEnablingBlack Lives Author:Charles Burnett
“Phunny Business is a breezy, vivid, funny, star-studded and delightful valentine to comedy, entrepreneurship and the All-American impulse to make something out of nothing. The story of comedy club owner/inveterate dreamer Raymond Lambert and his heroic quest to create a safe, productive place for black stand-up comedians to hone their craft and find their voices isn't just a great Chicago story and a great comedy story: it's a flat-out great story, lovingly and engagingly told.” StoriesStarsBlackVoiceComedySafeClubsCraftsEntrepreneurshipImpulseComedianProductiveOwnersFlatsChicagoDreamerHeroicQuestsValentineDelightfulVividStand Up ComedianComedy ClubsBreezyGreat Comedy Author:Nathan Rabin