Dave Chappelle (born August 24th, 1973) is a comedian, screenwriter, television/film producer, and actor. In 2003, he became known for his popular sketch comedy television series, Chappelle's Show.
Chappelle moved to New York City to pursue a career as a comedian. He gathered the courage to perform at Harlem's famed Apollo Theater in front of the infamous "Amateur Night" audience. The performance resulted in him being booed off the stage. Chappelle has described the experience as the moment that gave him the courage to continue his show business aspirations. He quickly made a name for himself in the New York City comedy circuit, even performing in the city's parks. At the age of 20, Chappelle made his film debut as "Ahchoo" in Mel Brooks Robin Hood: Men in Tights. That same year, he had a small but showy role in the film Undercover Blues. On the strength of his performances in these films, Chappelle was offered the role of Bubba in Forrest Gump, which was in a pre-production stage. Not realizing the impact this future Academy Award winner for Best Picture would have, and concerned about what seemed to be a racially demeaning character, he turned down the part. He has since admitted to regretting the decision. Chappelle played another supporting movie role in 1994's little-seen Getting In. He attracted the attention of TV network executives with his guest appearance in an episode of ABC's highly rated sitcom Home Improvement. The storyline had Chappelle and real-life friend comedian Jim Breuer ask Tim Taylor for advice on their girlfriends. The characters' single outing in the episode proved so popular that ABC decided to give them their own spin-off sitcom titled Buddies. However, after taping a pilot episode, Jim Breuer was fired and replaced with actor Christopher Gartin. Buddies premiered in March 1996 to disappointing ratings. The show was cancelled after only four episodes out of thirteen that were produced. Nine years later, in May 2005, ten of the episodes were released on a single-disc DVD to capitalize on Chappelle's new-found fame.
He later appeared as the nightclub comedian in The Nutty Professor starring Eddie Murphy, one of his major comedic influences. He also had minor roles in Con Air and Martin Lawrence's Blue Streak. He co-wrote (with Neal Brennan) and starred in Half Baked, a cult film about a group of pot-smoking best friends trying to get their friend out of jail.
Chappelle appeared as himself in an episode of The Larry Sanders Show, in which he and the executives of the show's nameless television network satirized the treatment that scriptwriters and show creators were subject to, as well as the executives' knee-jerk stereotyping when it came to race. In 1998, he played a supporting role as Tom Hanks' character's friend and confidant in You've Got Mail.
In 2003, Chappelle debuted his own weekly sketch comedy show on Comedy Central called Chappelle's Show. The show parodied many aspects of American culture including racial stereotypes, politics and pop culture. Along with comedy skits, the show also featured musical performances by mostly hip-hop and soul artists. Chappelle's pointed social and political commentary quickly helped the show garner critical and commercial success as well as controversy. Richard Pryor, one of Chappelle's comedic influences, was a fan of the show and stated that he had "passed the torch" to Chappelle. He received two Emmy nominations for the show.
