Customer Reviews

Black Is the New White

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This makes for a tremendous read. It's an absolute page turner and a must have for both Mooney lovers and haters alike. As usual Paul Mooney pulls no punches in this project. Not wanting to give too much away, he goes indepth about his personal and professional relationships w/ Richard Pryor as well as many other of Hollywood's (and "Homeywood's") biggest comedians. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I am a 34 year old fan of Paul Mooney's who grew up on All in the Family, Richard Pryor, In Living Color, and other works that Paul Mooney has lent his brilliance to, but didn't match the material to the face until a few years back on Chappelle.

Paul Mooney's work and analysis on America is some of the most important analysis out there. This book gave a sincere and candid look "behind the curtain" as Mooney writes, into his life in Louisiana and Oakland, discovering his talents and self-confidence, and breaking into Hollywood on his own terms, much of that with his right hand man Richard Pryor.

There's a lot more to write about, but I certainly can't do it justice. Buy this book and educate yourself about Paul Mooney. America will be better off for it!!

Paul Mooney is one of my favorite comedians...so this book was a must read. I did not know what to expect, but I should have known that Paul Mooney would absolutely keep it real, keep it truthful and keep it funny. The man is awesome and the book reveals the layer below the surface. I have seen Mooney live before and witnessed his realness make a few audience members walk out. After reading the book, I now know why he does that. Not saying that I agree, but I do understand.

He discusses his rich history with Richard Pryor and a host of other comedians (both old and new). I did not know that his career and journey was so deep and extensive. He is a living legend and full of history when it comes to the old greats like Moms Mabley, Flip Wilson, Red Foxx and others. This book was long overdue.

His experience with racism all during his life comes through in his jokes and stories. It was his life experience be it good or bad and he has the absolute right to deal with it anyway he chooses. I enjoyed the information on the old days when various musical stars crashed at his apartment, his grandmothers' wisdom, how Huey P. Newton of the Black Panthers became his friend, the whole Richard Pryor & Dave Chappele experience, his Hollywood journey of working on scripts etc., and the story about working at a department store with the future Mrs. Aaron Spelling.

Paul Mooney's life has been in living color and you will enjoy. It is a worthy read.

This was on my "to read" list for the longest time and I finally got a chance to dive in. I was disappointed. Mooney is my favorite comedian and I really expected to read a lot more about his life. What I got was A LOT about his life with Richard Pryor. It got to the point that I questioned whether Mooney had any other friends besides Pryor and did he do anything besides be Pryor's friend. I understand Pryor was his best friend, but I wanted more about Mooney's career - HIS acting/writing/comedy/family - not all the dish about his experiences with Pryor.

First things first. Mooney's brilliant and a real original in a world where there aren't many originals. The book is well written and easy to read. It has a good mix of humour and behind the scenes stories.

Second thing. It's not all about him. This is more a book about Richard Pryor than it is about Paul Mooney. And given that Pryor was his best friend and collaborator, means that the book is worth a read. Mooney is surprisingly honest and "real" about Pryor's personal life, given that he obviously has enormous affection for the man. That fact alone means Mooney did a great job on the book.

The only thing I wish the book had was more detail. There's a lot of surface area covered and there would definitely be room to expand and for Mooney to go deeper.

I'm not asking for lurid details or a "tell all" trashy autobiography -- just a bit more "heart" to go with the reportage. For example, when the death of his son is covered less than half a page, and the death of Pryor on two pages - you have to ask yourself why we don't get more detail. He does a great, insightful (and emotionally affecting) job of talking about Pryor burning himself up but seems to pull his punches on a few other areas that could be fleshed out.

But to close this review let me go back to what I said at the top. Read this book, you won't regret it.

I really didn't know what to expect when I bought this book. I have always been a fan of Paul Mooney, so I gave it a try. Because Paul is so close (both personally and professionally) to Richard Pryor that this story is just as much about Pryor as it is about Mooney. It offers a different perspective on Hollywood, what it means to make it in Hollywood. As serious as this book is, it also has some very well placed comedy. It is book that I found myself reading aloud so that others could experience it with me.

As mentioned before, there is much to learned about Richard Pryor through the eyes of his best friend. Mooney makes know excuses nor offers any apologies; however his glimpse into Pryor's psyche is heartfelt.

I would definitely recommend this book, and I would gladly read it again.

This was a very interesting read, I was laughing at Paul Mooney's take on situations and racial observations. I really never knew what Paul Mooney was all about other then an angry black guy, but really this book was a great read. His relationship with Richard Pryor to his encounters with other celebs, it really taught me about comedy acts/bits/characters/jokes I found funny. It had me researching on youtube and the web on bits he wrote. I get it now. Paul Mooney is a comic legend under-rated and I respect him for what he does and how he did it.

This book is a must read for any ethnicity who plans on entering the entertainment world. The best part is when he outs all the racists in Hollywood. He has worked hard to get where he is and he explains who he is and why. He is an excellent role model. I have since reading the book watched and read as much about him and Richard Pryor as possible. Yes white people, it is a great book for you to read too. It's not just life lessons for us black people.

Amazon had him listed under Money for some reason so I have added it into my tags.

His insight is dead on, this was soooo seriously funny. I could not put it down, loved the way he just story tells whats on everyone's mind, especially reading the minds of black and white america so candidly. Happy to know that my grandchildren in ten years will be adding this book from my many collections of the raw truth in BLACK HISTORY!!!

I really truly enjoyed reading Paul Mooney's memoir "Black Is The New White". I have enjoyed his comedy for over 2 decades and really didn't know much about him outside of that and knowing he was good close friends with Richard Pryor. I read in the past Pryor's autobio "Pryor Convictions" so I had a fundamental understanding of his life involving drama, drugs, women, kids and MS. Mooney as a close friend goes into very keepin it real detail on the Good, Bad and Ugly with Pryor right up to his death in Decemeber 2005. I also enjoyed reading from his point of view the hypocrisy and BS of so called Liberal Hollyweird in the 70's and 80's. Especially when your creative spirit and getting across your point of view as a black person on the black experience in a comedic twist was (and still is) taboo. I wasn't even aware of Mooney having kids and a wife to be honest with you and was sad to hear of the loss of his youngest son in 2001. If you are a fan of Mooney and his keeping it real, no holds barred style of comedy this memoir is for you!