Here’s a look back at the Dave Chappelle’s career in film, television and comedy.
Full story: Comedian Dave Chappelle resurfaces and speculation begins anew
By Noelene Clark and Jamie Wetherbe
Chappelle’s sketch comedy television series, “Chappelle’s Show,” written by Chappelle and his “Half-Baked” costar Neal Brennan, premiered on Comedy Central and soon became the network’s No. 2 show. The Emmy-nominated series parodied racial stereotypes, politics and pop culture, and turned Chappelle into a household name.
“His show is kind of like a salon, a raunchy salon with Chappelle as host, usually dressed in floppy hats and baggy street clothes, introducing comedic ideas that are then illustrated by filmed sketches that star Chappelle,” reads a 2004 Los Angeles Times review. “Chappelle’s host persona somehow channels both the emcee qualities of Bob Hope and the languid gait of Snoop Dogg.” (Jennifer S. Altman / Los Angeles Times)
In spring of 2005, Chappelle stunned fans — and Comedy Central — by abruptly quitting his popular sketch series on the heels of signing a $50-million contract with the network.
For reasons that still remain unclear, Chappelle went to South Africa during production of the show’s third season and reportedly cut off contact with some family members and close advisors.
Comedy Central scrambled to fill the time slot and announced it was indefinitely postponing the third-season premiere of its No. 2 show after “South Park.”
“It’s crushing on a lot of levels,” network President Doug Herzog told The Times in 2005. “There’s no question about it, he was the hottest thing on the network.... It’s tough to lose your big power hitter like that.” (Jennifer S. Altman / For the Los Angeles Times)
Two years after Chappelle bailed on Comedy Central, the network aired “Chappelle’s Show: The Lost Episodes,” compiled from unfinished skits left in the wake of the comedian’s vanishing act.
Critics panned the three-episode revival of the show. The Chicago Tribune’s Kyra Kyles wrote that the “bad and over-the-top exploitative” material “should have stayed lost ... forever.”
Seeing the direction of the show (and its increasingly offensive racial comedy), she also sympathized with the comedian’s sudden departure.
“If I were Chappelle, an escape to Africa wouldn’t be far enough,” Kyles wrote. “We’re talking space shuttle voyage.” (Erin Patrice O’Brien / Associated Press)
