Dave Chappelle used to bring his mother with him to nightclubs
when he first began performing stand-up comedy, and not just for
moral support. At the time, he was only 14-years-old.
Getting such an early start has helped place Chappelle, now 28,
on a very short list of young comedians who have achieved success
in stand-up as respected actors and writers. Luckily Mrs. Chappelle
had the foresight to see there were worse places where her son
could have spent his teens than comedy clubs.
“That was when crack was out in Washington D.C., so of all
the bad things I could have been doing, I think my mom was like,
well he just wants to tell jokes,” Chappelle said.
With roles in big-budget films like “You’ve Got
Mail” and “Con Air” under his belt, as well as
having written, produced, and starred in college cult-favorite
“Half Baked,” Chappelle returns to his roots this week
as he starts out on the road with his “Dave Chappelle is
Blackzilla” tour. The comedian will also appear in Ackerman
Grand Ballroom today at noon as a part of the Campus Events Speaker
series.
Recently Chappelle has added yet another credit to his resume as
the creator and star of his own sketch comedy series which recently
had its debut on Comedy Central. Creatively titled
“Chappelle’s Show,” the series features skits,
phony advertisements and musical acts that stem from the
comedian’s unique brand of humor.
Given that his comedic bow and arrow often unabashedly take aim
at race, it is perhaps understandable why after a long string of
failed television series like ABC’s short-lived
“Buddies,” Chappelle has finally found a home on basic
cable.
“On network TV you don’t have much freedom because
the audience is so large and you have to keep everything nice and
generic. This is a comedy network, and they’re at a place
corporately where they’re willing to take these kinds of
chances. (This show) is kind of a celebration of my freedom,”
said Chappelle.
One recently-aired skit that exemplifies this spirit
of liberation from watered-down jokes has Chappelle playing
the role of Kunta Kinte from the revered mini-series
“Roots.” Instead of the strong-willed slave with a
brave soul originated by “Reading Rainbow” veteran
LeVar Burton, Chappelle lapses into expletives and practical jokes
between takes that turn the notion of serious filmmaking on its
head.
Having come out of the gate with strong ratings, Chappelle may
be helming a successful TV show for some time to come. No matter
what the show’s fate will be, the actor said he will continue
to tour with his comedy act for the opportunity to interact with
audiences. In particular, he feeds off of the youthful energy of
college campuses and believes that young people’s opinions
are crucial to comedy and all other important endeavors.
“I think younger people are more thoughtful than
they’re ever given credit for in popular culture. Any major
change in society usually comes from young people. I mean what
would the Civil Rights movement have been without young people?
Martin Luther King and two other dudes?” he said.
Chappelle scoffs at the notion that any previous generations
somehow reached an ultimate level of achievement.
“I mean those that call themselves the “˜greatest
generation,’ it’s like, were you really? With crack and
AIDS and all that, they make themselves sound so grand, and they
try to make us sound like we’re irresponsible. Then you look
at how many twenty-somethings got rich off the dot-coms, these
Reagan babies ain’t (fooling) around. I’ll bet you
there’s more young millionaires when we grew up than when
they grew up,” Chappelle said.
Chappelle will perform his show from the “Dave Chappelle
is Blackzilla” tour today at 8 p.m. at the Wiltern Theater.
Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.