I was a young tyke when this show came on the air. The local NBC affiliate preempted it from the 8:00 time slot until 11:00 p.m. Because it was so rare for African Americans to be on television, the phone rang late at night telling my Mom it was on. Even though it was a school night, Mom dragged me out of bed to watch the show.After Richard said the first word "ass" Mom gasped and ordered me back to bed. I only got a couple steps before she recanted and allowed me to complete the show. We were sad that it went off the airwaves after such a short run, but it was the talk of my classroom for a few weeks.In retrospect, the controversy seems non-existent. I felt the same way seeing an episode of the old CBS Smothers Brothers show. I also remember Mom telling me to turn that show off because of its content, yet today it seems tame enough for Nickelodeon or the Disney Channel. I agree with the other reviewers that Pryor paved the way for a lot of great shows, including the Wayans and Jamie Foxx. He will be missed.

The kind of deliciously subversive art we see here can only be spawned from oppression. That's true especially of comedy. This is the work of some highly intelligent and creative folks, of course especially Pryor himself, who provides that most important ingredient.A few months ago I watched "Live and Smokin'" which was a stand-up performance by Pryor from a few years earlier than this. It was taped in a time before his huge success and featured him in a relatively small club. He was obviously high. As he trotted out one joke after another, a picture emerged of a gentle and intelligent soul who has seen and lived through every social hardship imaginable. The tone was vulgar (as always), but extremely thoughtful. It's an overtly pain-filled performance that will change you if you see it. The audience reaction was awkward, at best.So, having learned about him, I came to this. It's an entirely different ball game having to satisfy so many others' visions (director, producers, network et. al) but it's still Pryor's painful life experiences that seep through all the cracks.He had come a long way between the two products, from merely letting his pain spill over to cleverly constructing a series of cultural statements out of it. It in fact comes off as a desperate attempt to save an American black culture that he saw as dying, or more accurately, being swallowed up. Featured are actual performances in swing dance, jazz and African (communal!) dance, and soul. The comedy bits are actually outnumbered by said performances and some "serious" short films. All this in the face of more popular black culture of the time. Blacksploitation aside.Pryor also evidently had a soft spot for the similarly oppressed gay culture, presumably from his upbringing in a whorehouse, where he surely became acquainted with all forms of burdened life. He here gave a platform for performers straight from the gay clubs. Why don't similarly beaten-down minorities relate to each other like this more often? Odd.The best comedy is that which causes two reactions. First the laughter. Then when the laughter dies down, the reflexion and examination of why it was so funny. Most often you will realize that you were made to laugh at something that is not funny at all. In fact the opposite. The legacy of intelligent comedians who do this include Bruce, Carlin and more recently Rock. But Pryor outshines them all. He knows more about pain.This show would never be allowed on a major network today.Added: The last skit on the last disc (3) is absolutely priceless. It features Pryor being confronted by leaders of the black community. They demand that he use his show as a platform for their cause, pump him up into a mad frenzy and they all storm toward the stage, ushering him to his performance. Pryor then staggers on stage and performs a perfectly mousy version of "There's No Business Like Show Business." This one moment alone was worth the whole 6 hours.

Perhaps I'm guilty of judging the show by modern standards, but I don't really think the Richard Pryor Show was as outrageous as it presented itself to be, or as NBC's Bureau of Standards & Practices did in 1977.One look at the four episodes of this show and you can tell, this is where the Wayans family got their ideas, back when they were stealing the thunder of comedians like Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall. It's also surprising to find that this show was the humble beginning for people like Marsha Warfield, Sandra Bernhardt, and Robin Williams, who I thought did nothing but the comedy club circuit before his famous role as "Mork from Ork." Yet with all the co-stars, and special features within the box set, it's not as funny or outrageous as you'd expect. This doesn't mean, however that it's not worthy of adding to your DVD library, because it is.

Before Chris Rock. Before Eddie Murphy. There was only one man who took comedy to its limits, RICHARD PRYOR. Pryor was at the top of his game when NBC offered him his own variety series back in 1977. Low ratings and Pryor's battle with the network's censors caused the show to shut down after a run of just 4 episodes. What is left is a brilliant piece of work by Pryor and his crew, which included Robin Williams, Tim Reid(WKRP), Marsha Warfield(Night Court), John Witherspoon(Friday)among others.Richard Pryor really pushed the limits with this show. In his skits, just when you thought the skit was over or he couldn't go any further with his material, Pryor always took it one step further. Whether he was playing the President or dumping on NBC(over the censors), Pryor wasn't just funny, but SHOCKINGLY FUNNY. Now, please keep in mind that this was 1977 and there was more of a barrier of what you can say and do on television(as for today, anything goes).Shows like CHAPPELLE'S SHOW I think owe a lot to The Richard Pryor Show. It broke all barriers.Without Richard Pryor, there would be no Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock, Chris Tucker, Dave Chappelle, Martin Lawrence, Steve Harvey, Wayans Bros. (the list goes on and on). Richard paved the way for them all, as you all will see. The Richard Pryor Show is being released on DVD/VHS in March 2004. I'd suggest you pick it up and get ready to fall out of your chair...LAUGHING.