IF I STOP I'LL DIE: THE COMEDY AND TRAGEDY OF RICHARD PRYOR

Traces the life and career of comedian Richard Pryor, discussing the events that shaped his outlook and personality, and his stage routines and movies

John Williams ( The Man Who Cried I Am ) and his son, Dennis, who teaches writing at Cornell University, here take a critical look at the life and art of one of show business's most troubled and troubling personalities. They discuss the sensational events that have brought Pryor notoriety--self-immolation, drug use, numerous marriages--but more significantly concentrate on his place in the entertainment world, where he has established himself as a comic genius. But in spite of his brilliant stage routines, Pryor has made consistently mediocre movies. Attempting to explain this problem, the authors examine the history of blacks in the entertainment industry and present penetrating insights into why black filmmakers in Hollywood have been unable to present a true picture of African American life in America. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Unauthorized life and career of Richard Pryor set against the careers of many African-American comedians and actors; by the father-son Williams team of novelist John A. (Jacob's Ladder, 1987, etc.) and son Dennis A., a former Newsweek journalist. The Williamses clearly did not have Pryor himself as a source and often fall back on ``seems to'' and ``must have'' when they lack hard facts. Their book, however, is chockablock with data about the history of black comedians and Pryor's rise and fall in the hierarchy. The title comes from Pryor's famous free-basing coke blast in which he set himself on fire and ran down the street, his cooked body smoking, until some alert cops stopped him: ``Stop, Richard. We gotta get you to a hospital.'' ``If I stop I'll die.'' Pryor was a knockout comedian as a Peoria, Ill., school kid, but when he broke into show business he tamed his humor and set about imitating soft-spoken Bill Cosby, whose only rival then was Dick Gregory. In a famous episode in Las Vegas, Pryor walked off the stage in midperformance and drove to Los Angeles: He'd realized to his chagrin that he was enjoying himself when playing to a sort of ``Mother's Day'' crowd. Over the next three years, the true Pryor emerged, with his wildly brash sexual humor and stories about his family and his own self-destructive behavior and drug-taking. Although he's made 40-some movies, often as writer/actor, Pryor is stifled by the screen but blooms on stage. In fact, he often plays characters on film that he once lampooned blisteringly on stage. The authors mean this to be a sympathetic critical biography, but Pryor does not come off all that well, despite a final paean by Dennis A. that directs us back to the comedian's great concert tapes. Still, in all, lively, serious scholarship. (Photographs-- not seen.) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Pryor, currently recovering from recent open-heart surgery, is known for both his comedic talents as well as his personal problems. John A. Williams ( Jacob's Ladder , LJ 12/87) and his son Dennis (a former Newsweek reporter) do not ignore his drug problems, failed marriages, or other conflicts. However, unlike most celebrity biographers, they look at Pryor in the context of the society that provided the background for his comedy, and in comparison with his comedic contemporaries. Not only is Pryor a gifted comic, he is a skilled writer who continues to support groups in his hometown of Peoria. The Williams's scholarly treatment of a celebrity life will nonetheless please all readers with its mixture of concise information and occasional trashy tidbit. A detailed filmography and discography are included. Photos not seen.
- Danna C. Bell-Russel, Marymount Univ. Lib., Arlington, Va.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.