Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

American Studies Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Senior Theses and Projects

American Studies

Articles 1 - 1 of 1

Full-Text Articles in American Studies

What Are You Laughing At? The Comedy And Social Commentary Of Dave Chappelle, Andrew J. Fishman 5373761 Apr 2016

What Are You Laughing At? The Comedy And Social Commentary Of Dave Chappelle, Andrew J. Fishman 5373761

Senior Theses and Projects

Coming off of the second season of his hit comedy show, Dave Chappelle was being hailed by media sources around the country as “the funniest man on television.”[1] The Chappelle Show had found a way to revolutionize sketch comedy through creative yet taboo racial sketches. The show’s wild success was closely tied to the memorable characters, ridiculous stories and the quotable lines that were produced week after week. The Chappelle Show invented many characters that became fan favorites, such as the crack addict Tyrone Biggums, Clayton Bigsby, the blind black man who was a white supremacist, and his memorable …