Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian, actor, social critic, writer, and MC. Pryor was known for uncompromising examinations of racism and topical contemporary issues, which employed colorful vulgarities, and profanity, as well as racial epithets. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential stand-up comedians of his era: Jerry Seinfeld called Pryor "The Picasso of our profession";Bob Newhart has called Pryor "the seminal comedian of the last 50 years.". This legacy can be attributed, in part, to the unusual degree of intimacy Pryor brought to bear on his comedy. As Bill Cosby reportedly once said, "Richard Pryor drew the line between comedy and tragedy as thin as one could possibly paint it."
His body of work includes the concert movies and recordings Richard Pryor: Live & Smokin' (1971), That Nigger's Crazy (1974), ...Is It Something I Said? (1975), Bicentennial Nigger (1976), Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979), Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982), and Richard Pryor: Here and Now (1983). He also starred in numerous films as an actor, such as Superman III (1983) but was usually in comedies such as Silver Streak (1976), and occasionally in dramatic roles, such as Paul Schrader's film Blue Collar (1978). He collaborated on many projects with actor Gene Wilder. Another frequent collaborator was actor/comedian/writer Paul Mooney.
Plot
It's 1970's Hollywood and a future movie star was on the horizon and looking for his big break. His name is Robin Williams and he's an up and coming comic on the Los Angeles comedy circuit. While on the other end of town, producer Garry Marshall and partner Harvey Severson have developed a new show called Mork & Mindy, that's a spinoff to their previous hit show "Happy Days". It's in their meeting with Williams that they have found the ideal actor to play Mork. But as the show slowly turns into a hit, the story of what happened behind the camera unfolds as a young comic is suddenly handed everything he ever wanted very quickly, which affected his personal life as well as those in it. Set against the backdrop of Mork & Mindy, this is a story about a show's rise to number one, it's struggles on the production, and the rising star of Robin Williams.
Keywords: character-name-in-title, television-show
John Byner: [just before storming off set] I can't do this. This is a career killer.
Robin Williams: [during the cast party after cancellation, he has something quirky to say about everybody there; his wife Valerie is next] Ah Valerie, my wife. [immitating her thinking] Hmmm, let's see; him or electroshock? Uh, doctor?
Garry Marshall: [to Robin] You. Are going. To have. Your own! SERIES!
Harvey Severson: Wait a second, you're not going to ask me to write for them?::Garry Marshall: No, no, no, Harvey, friends, don't ask friends to write for Laverne and Shirley.
Ted: Can I call you Garry?::Garry Marshall: It would be the highlight of my day.
Garry Marshall: [forced to fire Conrad Janis and Elizabeht Kerr] What can I do? It's their network...::Elizabeth Kerr: They are such wieners!
Richard Pryor: Dry the pussy off when you're through!
Plot
It is very rare for a British comedian to be given a concert film all to themself but in 1989 Lenny Henry was given that honour. We start off with him been driven to the concert by Robbie Coltrane as the sort of taxi driver you don't want to get a lift from. Once inside he meets three of his comic heroes - Steve Martin, Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy (all played by Lenny) and then it's on with the stage show. He mixes stand up with appearances from some of his best known characters and there are a few amusing songs along the way.
Keywords: stand-up-comedy
Big comedy for a small planet.
Untamed. Uncensored. Unforgettable.
Plot
An athlete, a campus militant, a black model, and an American Indian are picked by a computer (shaped like a woman) to form a rock group called the Phynx and go on tour in Albania where American show biz people have been kidnapped by Communists. Some of the stars that the phony band rescues: Johnny Weissmuller and Maureen O'Sullivan (the most famous movie Tarzan and Jane), Leo Gorcey and Huntz Hall (the Bowery Boys), Ed Sullivan, James Brown, Colonel Sanders, Guy Lombardo, Andy Devine, Ruby Keeler, Edgar Bergen, Butterfly McQueen, Jay Silverheels (Tonto), Rudy Vallee, Xavier Cugat, Trini Lopez, Dick Clark, Richard Pryor, Harold "Oddjob" Sakata, George Jessel, and Rhona Barrett. Warner Bros. Studios thought it was so bad that they decided at the last minute not to release it!
Keywords: albania, castle, communist, computer, copenhagen-denmark, espionage, kidnapping, london-england, orgy, recording
Of all the American heroes who served their country in it's hour of need - only one had a great rock sound...