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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 13, 1985)
JO JO DANCER at ichard Pryor has been making his of ten-checkered life the basis of his art for many years. Gritty subjects like racism, drug abuse, sex and vio lence—they're all there in Pryors legendary stand-up shows. But until now, little of the ‘real' Richard Pryor has spilled over into his film roles. There can hardly help hut he plenty of Pryor in Jo Jo Dancer, Yt>ur Life Is Calling, the new film Pryor wrote, produced, di reeled and in which he stars. Consid er that Dancer is the story of a well known entertainer "at the peak of his popularity and at the bottom of his self-esteem" who has a serious acci dent at his home. Me is rushed to the hospital, and, as he lies in intensive care, reviews the events of his life The parallels between the Pryor behind the cam era and the Pryor in front of it be come almost t<K) close for comfort. Says Pryor, "when you mess up and you’re talking to an expert in messing up the only way to put it behind you and get on with life is to be brutally honest Self deception is one of the worst drugs there is." Pryor is talking about his own acci dent, when he was seriously burned while preparing drugs (today Pryor no longer takes drugs and campaigns against drug use) Just as dancer di rector Boh Fosse used his own life and heart attack as the basis for his acclaimed film. All That Jazz, so Fry or feels Jo Jo Dancer is 'my vision It's not a documentary; it's not the story of my life. Like any writer or director or actor or in this case all three I've used what I know about to create something everybody can relate to And these days, I think 11 an finally say I know about myself Taking on twin acting and direct ing burdens was an education, Pryor says, since, "the two jobs take a dif ferent kind of energy There were times when I was dead on my feet as an actor, but the other half of me, the director, was ready to go all night.” To help him through the produc tion, filmed ori locations around Los Angeles and in the Midwest, Pryor (Left, clockwise from top) Debbie Allen, Tanya Boyd, Barbara Williams and Fay Hauser as the women In JoJo's life (Above) Richard Pryor hail such experienced hands as cine matographerjohn A Alon/o (Norma Hue, Chinatown) anti produi lion tic signer John l)c Cuir (Three time < )s car winner for llcllo, Dolly, The King am! / and Cleopatra Populating Pryor's "fantasy con cept" which spans four decades from the 1940 s to today, are Billy Kck.stine as a showman, Carmen McRae as Jo Jo's grandmother, Diahnnc Abbott anil Scoey Mitchlll as Jo Jo's parents and I )ebbie Allen, Barbara Williams and Tanya Boyd as the very different women he has wooed and won. so, d< >es Jo Jo learn from the ex|x* hence dial almost killed his creator? "You'll have to see the film to find out," says Pryor, "hut Richard never lelt better " /o /o Dancer, YonrUJc Is (.'atthifi o|x.*ns nationwide this l)e centher. ♦
