Dave Chappelle

Dave Chappelle is the sort of gutsy comic performer who comes along every so often with both strong writing and strong improvisational skills. He blurs the line between playing a character and impersonation, with a commitment to his performance that is unflinchingly realistic, but buffered in excellent comedy writing.

The result is one of the finest satirists of our day, who reached fantastic success through his comic portrayals of society’s stereotypes and taboos. While he and Sacha Cohen mine similar territory for comic inspiration, “Chappelle’s Show” was grittier in execution. Chappelle had writing experience with the controversial “Dana Carvey Show” as well as the film Half Baked. His first film appearance was in 1993’s Robin Hood, Men in Tights, and his stage career stretches back to when he was 14.

His format-bending “Chappelle’s Show” was aired by Comedy Central and was often objected to by—or running ahead of—the censors. Sketches filled with sharp observation and biting criticism offset the vulgarity of the series, and his rants on topics such as crack addiction hilariously expressed sophisticated viewpoints, which made the crack addiction allegations of 2005 all the more surprising and saddening to fans. His departure from the Comedy Central show in the midst of a massive contract, critical acclaim, and commercial success that was putting his show above “The Simpsons” in DVD sales came as a surprise to everyone.

Since that time, Dave Chappelle has refuted the allegations, explaining that his trip to Africa was necessary for personal reasons, including the loss of his father. Chappelle has appeared in good health, returning to standup comedy, and most fans are willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. He resides in Ohio, where he spent his adolescence (he was born in Washington D.C. August 24, 1973). While he is less visible than a few years ago, he remains a hot commodity and has signaled a new direction with an upcoming football movie and a surreal film.