Paul Mooney,  Born August 4, 1941

Paul Mooney was born in Louisiana, but spent most of his young life growing up in Oakland, California.  At a young age, Mooney ran away from home and decided to join the Charles Gody Circus; while stories that involve joining the circus usually don’t end too well, Mooney would go on to become the first African-American ringmaster in the history of the Big Top.  It was here that Mooney began writing jokes and observations, which he would incorporate into the circus’s opening act.  This material also helped him land his first job as a professional writer for another up-and-coming comedian - a man by the name of Richard Pryor.  Mooney wrote most of the routines for Pryor when he hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live on December 13, 1975, including a skit that many fans and critics claim is the funniest in the show’s history – “Racist Word Association“.  Mooney would go on to collaborate with Pryor on several different endeavors over the next decade.  Most notably, he was a co-writer on three of Pryor’s albums (Is It Something I Said?, Bicentennial Nigger, and Live on the Sunset Strip), and the head writer on The Richard Pryor Show.  NBC only ran four episodes of this series before it was cancelled, which was likely due to the many critics and viewers at that time who believed it was too controversial for network TV; but during that short time, he also provided several cast members with their first taste of show business – names like as Marsha Warfield, Robin Williams, Sandra Bernhard, and John Witherspoon.

Paul Mooney’s brilliance as a comedic writer continued to show through his work on shows like Sanford and Son and Good Times, but he struggled to gain recognition as a legitimate stand-up act.  He did, however, manage to land a few small parts in films like Which Way is Up?, Bustin’ Loose, Hollywood Shuffle, and played the role of singer/songwriter Sam Cooke in the 1978 biopic The Buddy Holly Story.  In 1990, Mooney was hired by the Wayans’ brothers to be a writer for their new sketch comedy program, In Living Color.  In the first year of the show, Mooney created one of my favorite characters from the series’s run, Homey the Clown, as well as Black Like You featuring the brothers Tom and Tom.  Mooney began to come into his own after the release of his first two comedy albums – “Race” in 1993, and ”Master Piece” in 1994.  Mooney’s comedy continued to be cutting edge and controversial by its very nature; his views on race relations, white culture, and US history have made many people uncomfortable – but the truth is not always a popular thing.  When asked about his comedic style, Mooney said, “I always drop history. It’s knowledge. There’s always a message in my comedy and you may not get it that night – it’s like time bombs. It’ll get you a week later. You’ll understand.”

Mooney’s most recognizable work to date is probably his appearances on Comedy Central’s Chappelle’s Show from 2003-06.  He initially performed in the sketches “Mooney at the Movies” and “Ask a Black Dude”, but later replaced those with a recurring character who was the African-American equivalent to Nostradamus, Negrodamus.  In these sketches, Mooney would ad-lib answers from fake audience members about some of life’s great mysteries – he was once asked, “Why is President Bush so sure Iraq has weapons of mass destruction?”  The wise soothsayer simply replied, “Because he has the receipt.”  While working on the show, he released his first comedy DVD, titled “Analyzing White America” – his second DVD, “Know Your History: Jesus is Black…So Was Cleopatra”, was released in 2006.  Mooney has since appeared in a 2009 documentary produced by Chris Rock Productions titled Good Hair, and he continues to tour across the U.S. doing his stand-up act.  While more than a few critics have used words like “militant” and ”racist” to describe Paul Mooney, I prefer terms like “truthful”, “unapologetic”, “free thinker”, and most importantly, a ”world class hater”. 

Mooney talks about UFO’s, acting, schools, and animals:

Mooney’s first appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman:

More Paul Mooney videos on YouTube

I had a chance see this comedian in concert a couple of years ago, and it was the second funniest stand-up act I have ever seen – only behind Dave Chappelle.  His self-deprecating style and an overall distaste for family life also makes him a perfect fit for the Hater Hall of Fame:

Born September 12, 1967

Louis Szekely (pronounced se’-ke) was born in Washington D.C., but his parents moved to Mexico City shortly thereafter.  He lived there until he was five years old, and then moved with his family to Framingham, Massachusetts.  Louis wanted to be a comedian early in life, but said he wasn’t good because “I was only 17-years old and I had a lot to learn about life in general. But I just kept on trying…I had nothing else I was good at.”  His first performance was in 1984 at an open mic night in Boston, Massachusetts; things didn’t go so well, considering all his ”material” only translated into two minutes of actual stage time.  After this perceived failure, C.K. did not step foot on another comedy stage for two years.

In 1989 Louis moved to New York, and his career began to take a turn for the better; he appeared on shows like Evening at the Improv, Comic Strip Live, and Star Search - but lost to some guy named Steve McGrew.  Four years later he was hired as a writer on The Conan O’Brien Show, and worked there for a couple of years; he came up with “The Staring Contest” bit, and was actually the first comedian to appear on the show.  He also worked as a writer on the Late Show with David Letterman, the Dana Carvey Show, and was hired as the head writer/producer for the Chris Rock Show in 1996 – where he he won an Emmy for his work in 1998.

He began the new millenium by writing and producing his first feature length film, Pootie Tang.  The movie was panned by critics, but has developed a sizable cult following since its release - myself included.  His success and reputation as a must see comedian also continued to grow; this led to his first comedy CD in 2001 (“Louis CK: Live in Houston”) and accolades in several entertainment-based publications - like Variety, Entertainment Weekly, & the Hollywood Reporter.  He wrote, produced, and starred in a HBO sitcom pilot in 2005, and a year later “Lucky Louie” went on the air.  Sadly, it was cancelled after only one season, despite a rise in ratings each week and several great reviews.  He bounced back with his first hour long stand-up special in 2006, “Louis CK: Shameless”, and began selling out shows across the country while on tour.  Here are some videos that demonstrate why this comedian was a first ballot selection for The Hall: 

(None of these videos are safe for work)

2008 performance, “Chewed Up”

Today seems like a good time to share just a few of my favorite episodes from a great comedy series, Curb Your Enthusiasm.  The show was created by Seinfeld writer and co-creator Larry David, who also plays himself in the lead role. 

“Thor”: Season 2, Episode 2

“Krazee Eyez Killa”: Season 3, Episode 8

“The Car Pool Lane”: Season 4, Episode 6