When I was 16 or 17, I saw Lenny Bruce being taken to jail. They took him off stage because he talked about race.

No wonder circus animals do what they do: They tortured them. And you know the only ones they can't control? It's the chimpanzees. You can't control them. That's why you never see a gorilla in a movie, because the gorilla may decide there'll be no filming.

If you're happy with what you're doing, then you don't get bored.

America does not like losers. Look how we treated those soldiers who came back from Vietnam. Because they lost. America likes winners.

The king of comedy is dead. Richard Pryor was the king of comedy. The rest of them are the king of copycats.

People think you're crazy if you turn money down... people worship money.

I've never seen anyone more messed up over success than Richard Pryor. For him, it's a constant battle between success in the white world and keeping it real for his black self.