CHAPELLE's back
pcmr
5,591 Posts
Preview of Season 3 
courtesy of spinemagThere's hope
courtesy of spinemagThere's hope
Comments
:weaksauce graemlin:
Damn, it sounds like they just salvaged what was left from when he gave up??
No Chapelle contributions beyond that?
I'm surprised they can get away with calling it his show...
"Word is he will keep getting paid by Comedy Central because the network is set to air episodes taped prior to Chappelle's retreat. The third season's four episodes are slated to air in the second quarter of 2006."
I think they might even have stretched to even get 4 episodes worth (read maybe 4 total skit that dave actually appears in).
http://www.chappellecenter.com/
4 out of 12
wack!
Hopefully Dave will return to skits down the line in his career.
I'd be crying and hardly able to breath
what's the deal on that? has DC done any interviews since he came back and started touring, etc? how could he walk away from such a mega-cashcow? it seems he had a long creative leash w/ Chapelle's Show.
Too much stress so he bounced
Co-sign. I have heard countless times how Chappelle was under so much "pressure" and was "stressed out" to the point of not being able to write anymore.
Excuse me? Every sitcom/sketch comeday writer faces deadlines, network execs' unrealistic expectations, etc.
Why do we hold Dave Chappelle to such a low standard? Anyone?
i thought i read somewhere there was like over 10 hours of footage they filmed for season 3, maybe im making that up though.
Sounds like raw footage to me. You ever seen the outtakes from this show? 10 hours after editing ain't shit.
yeah, definately true.
Most television content is produced by a large team of writers, Chappelle is almost completely written by Dave and his partner (
But I'm not so sure that was even the reason for his exit. For one, he expressed discomfort with presenting some of the racially "groundbreaking" material to a mixed audience in that he may be inadvertently perpetuating the stereotypes that he was working to dispel. A joke about "black folks always do this..." becomes dangerous when members of the audience don't know any black people. Additionally, Chappelle is a comic first and foremost and his involvement was seriously hindering his ability to do just that. People shouting "RICK JAMES BITCH" makes it difficult to tell an actual joke. Is it worth walking away from $30 million for the purity of your craft? I think yes.
All this Dave Chappelle is crazy talk is some bullshit, because you'd be patting your music heroes on the back for getting out of a record contract that conflicted with their beliefs and ultimately their art. But when a comedian does just that all of the sudden he must be a lunatic.
Good point
again, "traumatic"? pretty melodramatic language. like I said before, I think we hold this Chapelle guy to a pathetically low standard. I mean, getting paid millions to write jokes and be a star doesn't sound "traumatic" to me. maybe having your family killed or something would qualify.
as to the issue of perpetuation of racial stereotypes, I hear that. but dude built his career on this type of material, and his audience has always comprised white folks (among others). maybe he should have thought of this before he got into the game.
Dec 14, 5:21 PM (ET)
NEW YORK (AP) - One of Dave Chappelle's former employees says the comic asked him to be his manager for nine months beginning last year, but never paid him.
In a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Mustafa Abuelhija said Chappelle told him in September 2004 that he could be his personal manager and spread the word to his financial aides but never put it in writing.
The deal outlined in Chappelle's business and financial records called for Abuelhija to receive 5 percent of Chappelle's revenue from personal appearances and 10 percent of entertainment deals, according to the lawsuit, which was filed Monday.
The suit said Abuelhija was owed his cut of an initial payment of $4.5 million from Comedy Central for the third and fourth seasons of "Chappelle's Show." The deal was reportedly to be worth $50 million, but the comic walked out after doing half of the third-season episodes.
Since disappearing in May, Chappelle, 32, has since resumed performing live standup. Comedy Central recently announced that it will broadcast next spring the four episodes' worth of sketches he filmed before his exit.
The lawsuit said Abuelhija was fired by Chappelle at a San Francisco hotel in June 2005 and had received only $40,000 as an advance against the sum Chappelle owed him in commissions as a personal manager.
Meanwhile, the lawsuit alleged, Chappelle had earned $2.2 million from personal appearances and about $6 million in entertainment deals including the contract for his show.
Abuelhija, who met Chappelle when he managed a New York comedy club in 2000, also said he produced the movie "Dave Chappelle's Block Party" but never received the producer credit to which he was entitled. The film, which screened at the Toronto Film Festival in September, is to be released in March.
The lawsuit seeks nearly $1 million in damages and an unspecified sum for a percentage of royalties.
Chappelle's lawyer, David Smith, had no comment.
No, it's not melodramatic. Doing TV is not easy, not even close, especially for someone on a show with a cult following. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about.
point taken. but consider the stress of actually FAILING at doing TV. like not being able to get a job/grinding and nobody liking your work for years, etc. shit, dude was hugely successful and well compensated. Now you may argue that this actually ADDS to the stress, but I say he got the benefits AND the burdens of a successful career. period.
I'm just sick of hearing how much everyone loved his show as an excuse for bailing on it. it seems he's getting a pass for giving up.
if Jerry Seinfeld, at the height of his popularity, had said "I can't take all this success" and bailed, would people have felt SORRY for him? no, they probably would've put him on blast for being a prima donna.
if anything chappelle gets a pass from me because of how much i disliked his show.
there are so many reasons why seinfeld cannot be used as an accurate chappelle analog in this scenario. you're out of your element rootless.
point also taken. The relative difficulties attendant with success or failure is would make for a good debate. I've seen a bit of both, and I think that the easiest route is something in between (e.g. reliable role on moderately popular sitcom).
Stars on hugely popular tv series', or on cult shows have to deal with so much nonsense beyond their actual on-screen work it's absurd. Press junkets, talk shows, interviews, benefits, CONSTANT solicitations for financial support/sponsorships etc. And fans. Oh my god, the fucking fans. Yes, it's the fans that make you popular and keep you paid, but it's also the fans that make you want to gauge your own eyes out.
I realize this is a ludicrous analogy, and I apologize if it seems unsensitive, but it's a bit like living in a city full of homeless people. Even if you're a kind, compassionate, patient, and sympathetic individual, there are just days when you don't feel like dealing with bums coming up to you on the street. Maybe you're having a bad day, maybe you don't feel like taking the time, or maybe you're just tired of people treating you like you owe them something, whatever it is, there are some days when you just don't want to deal with it. Being a big celebrity is like living in a city where homeless people outnumber everyone else 1000 to one.
At the peak of my sister's fame she had to change her phone number once a month, because fans would get a hold of it and call her non-stop. Ordinary tasks became gauntlets of pictures and autographs. One fan broke into her house just to talk to her. Dealing with shit like that when you're pregnant and working 80 hours a week is not fun, no matter who you are.
You're right, but Jerry had three other cast members that shared the brunt of his fame (unlike Chappell). Knowing the repercussions of leaving a popular show is a bit of a prison itself, and it often leads actors to continue their involvement with a series long after it's gotten old and tiresome for them.
To be honest, I'm not all that sympathetic of celebrities. They make millions of dollars doing what they love, and have the opportunity to things the rest of us only dream about. Most of them put their work in though, one way or another.
Gillian Anderson
yeah? after doing a google image search, I found out she was the girl from X-Files...really your sister? neat-o.
yup. And she hated her last few years with the show. So much so that she moved out of the country and back to London where she's been doing theater and British films.
Are you sure about this. I've worked on 5 different shows over the last 11 months all of which only had a 2 person wiriting team, one paid writer, or the executive producer handling the writing duties.
Chappelle signed a massive deal in which he got everything he practically asked for. TV deals for his friends, potential movie deal added in and then months later bitches out. there is no sympathy for someone who gets it all and leaves it putting many others out of work. Buckling under pressure is never a good look.
Not trying to come down on dude too much, but making excuses for him is not really neccasary IMO.