Saturday, November 12, 2016, marked one of the most anticipated moments in television history: The return of beloved comedian screenwriter, producer, and actor Dave Chappelle. The always hilarious Mr. Chapelle lit up the Saturday Night Live stage with his 11 minute and compelling, yet amusing monologue that focused on no other than the President-elect, Donald Trump.
In true Chappelle fashion, the Washington D.C born,Silver Spring Maryland-bred, poked fun at the election stating, “I didn’t know that Donald Trump was going to win the election. I did suspect it. It seemed like Hillary was doing well in the polls and yet — I know the whites. You guys aren’t as full of surprises as you used to be,” he said.
To add to the crowd’s delight he continued by saying, “Donald Trump, he did it. He’s our president. I feel bad saying it. I’m staying at the Trump Hotel right now. I don’t know if he’s going to make a good president, but he makes a swell hotel suite”.
As the crowd roared with laughter, Chappelle also touched on countless topics affecting our world today such the ISIS, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the death Harambe. “There’s more shootings than I can literally count,” Chappelle said. “You can’t even go to the goddamn zoo without seeing a shooting out there. They shot a gorilla at my local zoo. And the Cincinnati Police said ‘Shooting that gorilla was the toughest decision this department has ever had to make.’ I said, ‘Well, you about to see a lot of n****s in gorilla costumes in Cincinnati.'” The crowd roared with laughter once again.
While expressing his experience at a recent White House party during the Obama administration, Chapelle got serious. He expressed how excited he was after not visiting in so many years. He also mentioned how BET sponsored the event, and that everyone there was black except Bradley Cooper. He then stated, “I looked at that black room, and saw all those black faces, and Bradley, and I saw how happy everybody was”. “These people who had been historically disenfranchised. It made me feel hopeful and it made me feel proud to be an American and it made me very happy about the prospects of our country”.
He concluded his monologue with Wishing Donald Trump luck by saying, “I’m wishing Donald Trump luck. And I’m going to give him a chance, and we, the historically disenfranchised, demand that he give us one too. Thank you very much.”
With his vast acting and comedic background, Chappelle rose to prominence in 2003 as he became widely known for his sketch comedy show on Comedy Central, Chappelle’s Show, which ran until his retirement from the show two years later. The show parodied many aspects of American culture, including racial stereotypes, politics and pop culture. Along with comedy skits, the show also featured musical performances by mostly hip-hop and soul artists. He promoted the work of other black comedians as well, most notably Paul Mooney and Charlie Murphy.
By 2006, Chappelle was named the “comic genius of America” by Esquire Magazine. The show continues to run in late-night syndication and on television networks around the world. In 2009, Comedy Central ranked him No. 43 in the “100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time. Today, Chappelle continues to perform stand-up comedy.
Welcome back Dave!
