Customer Reviews

Jokes My Father Never Taught Me: Life, Love, and Loss with Richard Pryor

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I can't remember the last book I read that made me laugh as well as cry. This is a good'un: a must have for any Richard Pryor fan. And if you weren't a Rain Pryor fan before, you will be after reading this. I am proud of Rain and she should be proud of herself. She really did her thing on this one. She didn't hold back, she let it all out. This book is not sugar-coated at all. She's brutally honest just like her dad.

This book was so moving to me because I can relate to Rain in several different ways. My father was also abusive. My father abused alcohol and drugs and went on violent rampages. My father also believed that money was equivalent to an apology or an expression of love. Rain recalled that a good solid hug would have been much better than a new car. I can definitely relate to that. My father also ended up wheel-chair bound and died from a debilitating disease (Parkinson's). It's not easy watching someone you love deteriorate like that no matter how bad of a parent they were. And like Rain, no matter what my father did, I still loved him very much.

I know Richard is looking down on her beaming with pride. While he never recovered from his troubled childhood, she did. And she did it with grace and a forgiving spirit. Bless her heart, with two unstable parents, it's amazing what's she's done with her life. Though she dabbled with alcohol and drugs, she never became an addict. She was also blessed to find a good husband unlike many daughters of abusive fathers. Hats off to you Rain!

This book is definitely a page-turner, as a matter of fact, I didn't put it down once I started reading it. I read the whole thing in one sitting. An easy read, this book is also filled with some really nice photos. And the photos are not only in the middle of the book, they're placed here and there throughout the book which is very nice. There's a touching photo of Rain and her father taking a nap together. She looks just like her dad and she's funny just like him too.

This book also revealed Jennifer Lee's true colors. Jennifer was Richard's last wife, wife #5 and wife#7. I was convinced she really loved Richard, had forgiven him for the way he'd treated her and wanted to take care of him in his time of need. That would explain her marrying him when he was wheel-chair bound, nearly in a vegetative state and dependent on her for his survival, right? WRONG! She had dollar signs written all over her. I once admired her for trying to keep some dollars coming in for Richard. She helped to get his TV show released on DVD, she helped put together his 9 CD box set and she also appeared on his Comedy Central Special, "I Ain't Dead Yet." But I guess I didn't stop to think that by being his wife/caretaker, she got to cash some chips in too for herself. She did a good job handling Richard's business affairs but she was wrong for keeping him away from his children. She also had him change his will shortly before he died which left the bulk of his estate to her. Now I'm not saying she shouldn't have gotten anything, but she shouldn't get everything. Richard's daughter Elizabeth is contesting this in court. I hope she wins. Shame on you Jennifer.

If you're a fan of Richard or Rain, you won't be disappointed with this one. Rain has a beautiful spirit and like her father, she has a special way of touching people with her words. You go Rain!

Rain Pryor's book was hard to put down. As intimate as it was, I wanted even more details of her life, and I wanted to book to be longer. She inherited her Fathers incredible sence of humor, which I could not get enough of. Her strength and forgivness amazing me though. How can you forgive two Parents that were totally abusive in everyway ? Its tough, and Rain is one tough cookie ! In her book she describes Mamma , Richard Pryors Grandmother as teaching her that "Your Daddy beats you cuz he loves you" "Get over it" And she calls this good advice, was she serious or sarcastic ? I think accepting this kind of child abuse, perpetuates it.This scene was after Rain was sexually molested my a relative, and good ol' Richard stepped in to beat the hell out of Rain, for being molested ! "To teach her a lesson for flaunting her stuff " Richard Pryor being raised in a whorehouse run by this Mamma, he himself only saw sex and whoppin's, he had no chance. It fueled his true comic genius, sure, But, when is all this abuse going to stop? especially in the Black community, were Black comics think child Whoppin's are just hilarious? I see it everyday. Rain said "you have to let go", I agree, but until child abuse can be seen for what it is, Parents are going to get away with it, for cultural reasons. Rains Mother was the Mother from hell also, but she tried and admitted to Rain that she was "messed up" and on Richards death bed she told him Rain was the best we ever created, Rain heard this and it really helped her. Also one day close to the end Richard told Rain that he was so sorry for everything he put Rain through, and touchingly gave her, as an adult, a Teddy bear, his way of making amends.

I had bought this book for one of my best friends for her birthday. She also suffers from MS, and was interested to read about Richard Pryor. After finishing it, she let me borrow it to see if I came to same conclusion she did about Richard's daughter Rain. Jokes My Father Never Taught Me, tells the story of Rain Pryor's childhood and her life with one of the most famous fathers in Hollywood. Rain grew up with half Jewish, half black. She states that she never felt quite Jewish enough, or quite black enough. Constantly surrounded by drugs and alcohol, Rain finds herself lost in her own life. As she gets older, she realized that acting is what she most wants to do. However, after a short stint on Head of the Class, Rain finds herself without a car, or a home. Having lost everything due to the abuse of drugs and alcohol.

Furthermore, we see the pain that Rain experiences as her father suffers through a very harsh battle with MS. As his life is ran by one of his ex-wives, Rain must make appointments to see her father and is no longer allowed to see him on a regular basis. Also at this time, Rain meets her future husband Kevin, who she says helped her to deal with the struggles of her childhood and young adult life. However, after reading this story, I feel as though Rain Pryor is still not happy in life. My best friend came to the same conclusion. In fact, after closing the last pages of the book, I felt both emotionally drained and depressed. All in all, an interesting look into the life of one of America's top comics.

Without even taking into account the quality of most "offspring of celebrity" books, this was a very good read! It was touching and insightful, not just a wild and shocking account of Richard's life. (which by all accounts would have filled a book easily) I would recommend it for anyone who likes entertainment/show business memoirs.

Rain Pryor must have said to herself, "If Rebecca Walker can write a book, then so can I!" Both Rain and Rebecca are Black, Jewish women. They are both the children of a famous person and of a divorced family. Rain describes Richard Pryor's abuse and addiction; Rebecca describes Alice Walker's naive negligence. However, Rebecca's memoir is serious and "high" in nature; Rain's is a text that anyone can pick up and speed through. Rebecca only includes a photo of herself on the cover of her book; Rain is shown with her father. Rebecca's book has no other photos; Rain's is filled with them and that makes for its page-turning nature. Rebecca centers herself whereas Rain speaks of her father 85% of the time. Rebecca ends her book when she finishes high school; Rain describes her life until her father's death. (Rebecca goes on to Yale and Rain suggests she never went to college.) Though the two books have different aims, they are worthy in their own ways.

Rain admits that she is an actress and not a writer. She is no Toni Morrison, but her words and experiences are still valuable, entertaining, and insightful. Rain says despite being on "Head of the Class," she ended up doing construction work and Miss Cleo-like telephone service. This reminds me of how Eric Estrada said he struggled after "C.H.I.P.S." and Bob Crane went downhill after "Hogan's Heroes." Hollywood is fleeting, despite the Julia Roberts and Will Smiths on the screen.

As much as domestic abuse makes people cringe, this book was scant on the extent of Richard Pryor's nastiness. The film "What's Love Got to Do with It?" suggests that Ms. Turner went into detail about how Ike mistreated in "I, Tina." Rain just says, "He abused me" and later in the book she mentions one instance of being hit. I think people may have a better view of Richard's being a hot mess if she said more. Rain repeats, "He's the only father I had, so I love him regardless." I think may abused children will relate. She also said her own marriage was rocky, soon after it started. She never answers whether she and her husband divorced. She never questions whether her father's numerous unstable marriages affected her own.

If you want to know what this book is about check out the editorial review. If you want to know about Richard Pryor behind the scenes than read this book. It is unflaterringly frank and shows Richard Pryor to be a narcissistic individual who demonstrated some of the worst traits an individual can have. While reading it I felt bad for the daughter(Rain, the author) and some of the women in his life. He was really screwed up but a brilliant comedian. He was the the tragic figure that in the end was a pathetic, helpless person struck down with MS. I think this book was a cathargic release for Rain because I can't help but wonder why she wouldn't be as screwed up if not worse than her dad. I think writting this book released some of her demons. Some of the things that go on in the book are unreal to the average person. Some of the contents are so whacky that you actually feel sorry for Pryor and all the people he affected. On the other hand he made people laugh. Sometimes you have to cry to laugh. The book is a curious bit of writting, an easy read and somewhat entertaining; that is if you don't mind looking at other peoples dirty laundry. It's like looking at a car wreck on the freeway; sometimes you see things you wish you hadn't. The photographs were pretty cool and complimented the story so you could put a face to the story. If you like memoirs of Hollywood celebrities than you will like this book. It is almost like peeking into the National Enquirer; some of the stories are hard to take. There is lots of cursing since that was a staple of the Pryor lexicon. Read at your own risk.

Candid, well-written and an easy read. Language is a bit rough - uses F--k a bit much, but so did her father.

Response to C. M. Serrano comments:

Rain Pryor's book is one that pulls no punches. What is good about the book is that it is from the heart. Many times when stories are told, people seem to beat around the bush. "Beating around the bush" only avoids what there. I agree with you that child abuse is a serious issue; but I don't agree with you one hundred percent. The words "child abuse" needs to be revaluated. In Rain's case defiantly over done (Yes, I agree that Rain was abuse). Child abuse is not only in the black community. Child abuse doesn't go by race. The black comics make jokes about whopping a child, but let's be honest the white community can throw some good punches. It true- it has been caught on tape. Nothing like punching a toddler that strapped in a car set. That wasn't funny either. Bottom line; stop blaming the whole black community and save the word "child abuse" for cases that are actually are child abuse.

If you read Rain's book and look at what she has become, it should inspire anyone that has been through something. If you hold on to that terrible experience for the rest of your life, it will spill over and affect everyone around you. I am not saying to forget it; "but you have to let go". Once you let go, it will open the doors to a lot of other things. Rain's life is an example of that.

I remember watching Johnny Carson (The Tonight Show) when Richard Pryor came on and talked about his "freebasing accident." The thing I remember most was Pryor indicating how surprised and loved he felt at the outpouring of support and concern he received from fans. He seemed a humble and likeable man. This man does not appear in Rain Pryor's book.

I have to say, it didn't take reading very far into this book to have no feelings of respect for the Richard Pryor she portrays. He was a brilliant comic, but, according to his daughter, he was a lousy human being. He brutalized women on a regular basis (including her). He was an absolutely horrible father. He abused drugs and alcohol. What is amazing to me is Rain's continued professions of love for him throughout the book.

I was raised in a family where my step-father was an alcoholic. He was occasionally violent. My mother was a classic enabler. Once I left home, I got a lot of therapy. I was able to admit to myself that I didn't like either of my parents. They didn't deserve my love. I took care of my mother in her old age, but I had no delusions about her being a good person. For these reasons, I have real trouble following Rain's rationalizations about her father, her constantly saying, "he was despicable but I still loved him." Maybe she is actually harboring some unresolved ill feelings about him, however, because she put some really awful, even embarrassing pictures from the end of his life in this book. Shame on her co-writer and shame on her editors for allowing it.

As far as the book itself goes, it is not well written. This Cathy Crimmins, who helped Rain write the book, should be hiding her head. The book is repetitious. It has editing errors. It is often self-indulgent. It is essentially a one note samba: my parents didn't give me enough love. I kept the copy I had in the bathroom, where I could read it in little snippets. That's about all I could take.

I think for a view of some of Richard Pryor's life it has some interest. I also think it is a great example of someone who went through life thinking only of himself and someone who had no clue how to love anyone else. I wish it had been less of a breathless Hollywood tell-all, however. It would have served both Richard and Rain better if it had delved more deeply into either or both of their characters.

Richard Pryor for me like so many other people truly moved me with His Comic genius&timing on situations. I mean He was a Voice of the community&also a Man who was direct&vulnerable. that Honesty in his routines was what made him stand out so much. but this Book shows the other side once the lights went down on the stage&there was no Audience what Family Life was like for Rain&Her Father Richard. she saw first hand all the Demons He dealt with. she expereinced things that while in front of a Crowd was a delievery of Genius, in a Private atmosphere it could haunt you&make you feel Saddness.Rain is half Black&Jewish&she also was dealing with Race as a Young woman coming into her own. this Book touches on many topics&Subject matters. a very strogn Book&also has Photos over the years with Rain&Her Father.