Pryor Convictions: and Other Life Sentences [Paperback]

Richard Pryor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 26, 1997

A candid, funny, often outrageous memoir by the comedian spans his childhood in the whorehouses, bars, and pool halls of Peoria, Illinois, his army service, his ascent to fame, and his tragic fall at the hands of drugs. Reprint. 35,000 first printing."

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

At the height of his career, Richard Pryor did something no other comedian had done up to that point: he took listeners deeply into his life, baring himself before audiences as he exposed his foibles and his follies, his tumultuous dealings with women and his misadventures with drugs. "People can't always handle it," he writes in Pryor Convictions. "But I knew that if you tell the truth, it's going to be funny." The pain and truth came from Pryor's earliest years--from his childhood in Peoria, Illinois, where he was raised in bars and whorehouses, and sexually assaulted by an older boy when he was just 6 years old. After a stint in the army, Pryor set out to become an entertainer and began making the slow climb from hole-in-the-wall nightclubs to stardom. Sometimes profane, but always funny, Pryor Convictions is a no-holds-barred autobiography told in Pryor's inimitable comic voice.

From Publishers Weekly

Profane, profound and poignant, this memoir manages to transfer much of Pryor's comic genius to the page. Aided by Gold, People magazine's Los Angeles deputy bureau chief, Pryor juxtaposes his reflections with italicized comic bits that show how he-and characters like the seen-it-all Mudbone-transmute life into comedy. Pryor grew up among whorehouses and nightclubs in Peoria, Ill., a perfect perch from which to observe racism and hypocrisy. Driven to the stage by "pain and insecurity," Pryor soon overindulged in drugs and women. But it took him years to evolve on stage from a colorless Cosby clone to a bard of the ghetto. Pryor's volatile personal life-as well as Hollywood's racism, he alleges-hindered his movie career, but he built a rich body of work on television, in concert films and on stage. His story careens between topics and episodes, including his abusive relationship with women (six marriages to date), his epiphanies in Africa and his notorious self-immolation while freebasing cocaine. Now, as Pryor fights multiple sclerosis, he reflects proudly on his work and vows he has much more to do. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 257 pages
• Publisher: Pantheon; 1st Pbk. Ed edition (August 26, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 037570048X
• ISBN-13: 978-0375700484
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #238,423 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars World's Most Profane and Profound Autobiography, March 1, 2003

By 

doomsdayer520 (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Pryor Convictions (Audio Cassette)

In chapter 20 of this book Richard Pryor offhandedly calls his comedy style "profane and profound" and inadvertently sums up his life and this book perfectly. This is at various times the most dirtyminded, hilarious, shocking, or downright disturbing autobiography you may ever read, but always with his great dark humor. With a bizarre and damaging childhood in Peoria, Richard Pryor was raised in his grandmother's place of business - which happened to be a whorehouse with all of its shady and unwholesome characters. A violent and painful childhood full of profanity and prejudice came out in Richard's comedy, which was truly groundbreaking in its shocking honesty. He lived a wild life in the spotlight, with addictions and a constant parade of rough women, including five wives that he divorced six times. The wives are hard to keep track of, but Richard is always brutally honest about his attitudes toward women even if it's rarely pretty. He also has a very refreshing outlook on racial matters, as the prejudice that was so damaging failed to ruin his respect for all people of any color. Most of the tail end of the book concerns his nearly born again soul searching about his infamous addictions and latest losing battle with multiple sclerosis. In addition to Richard's straightforward and unforgiving narratives, there are very frequent asides from one of his stage characters, Mudbone, who here is acting as his even more brutally honest alter ego. This gives the book an often jarring schizophrenic character, and surely reflects the true workings of Pryor's dark genius.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Joy and Pain., June 20, 2001

By 

Blackworm - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pryor Convictions: And Other Life Sentences (Hardcover)

PRYOR CONVICTIONS made have changed the names to protect the innocent, but the story that unfolded made up for it. Richard Pryor's life has been a rollercoaster ride of ups and downs, starting with his childhood, his molestation and rearing in a brothel to his complicated teens and young adulthood, when he felt he needed everyone's approval to live his life. Even as he reached maturity, he still felt he needed to belong to someone and needed to believe in something. It is this pyschological imbalance that drives him to drugs, numerous wives, and even more sexual conquests, but, in the end, he still felt alone and lost. He found out that the only need he couldn't live without was the need to be himself and the power to love who he is. Very candid and explicit, this is the real Richard Pryor, and, for better or worse, this is his story.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More Respect than "Pryor", September 4, 2002

By 

derrick Bogan (Brooklyn, N.y) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pryor Convictions: And Other Life Sentences (Hardcover)

This has to be one of the most honest and compelling autobiographies I ever read! I have an immense amount of respect for the intimate details that Rich felt comfortable with sharing with readers about his early life and personal problems. Though some parts dealt with painful issues, the comedic genius he is, he manages to have readers smiling through tears. I found it particularly painful to read his battle with MS, which I watched my mother suffer with, but again, the humor is always there. Richard Pryor is the epitomy of a survivor, not to mention one of the most talented comedians of our time. This was a very inspirational and enjoyable read and I recommend the purchase A.S.A.P.