August 23, 2017 The Skanner Page 7
Arts & Entertainment
surpluses to poor blacks
in areas where SNCC was
encouraging voter reg-
istration, Gregory char-
tered a plane to bring in
several tons of food,” the
biography said.
“He participated in
SNCC’s voter registra-
tion drives and in sit-
ins to protest segrega-
tion, most notably at a
restaurant
franchise
in downtown Atlanta,
Georgia. Only later did
By Stacy M Brown
NNPA Newswire
Contributor
L
egendary civil rights
activist and come-
dian Dick Gregory
died on Saturday.
He was 84.
Friends, family and
celebrities took to social
media to honor the icon
and innovator of the
Black community.
“It is with enormous
sadness that the Grego-
ry family confi rms that
their father, comedic leg-
end and civil rights activ-
ist Mr. Dick Gregory de-
parted this earth tonight
in Washington, DC,” said
Christian Gregory, his
son, in a statement post-
ed on Facebook. “The
family appreciates the
outpouring of support
and love and respectfully
asks for their privacy as
they grieve during this
very diffi cult time.”
On Facebook, Roland
“
Quoting legendary en-
tertainer Richard Pryor,
sports writer Myron
Medcalf tweeted, “Dick
Gregory was the great-
est, and he was the fi rst.
Somebody had to break
down that door.”
Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis,
Jr. the president and CEO
of the National Newspa-
per Publishers Associa-
tion, also paid homage to
Gregory.
“We salute and honor
the living legacy of free-
dom fi ghter Dick Grego-
ry. RIP,” Chavis wrote on
Twitter.
Gregory had been in
a Washington, D.C. area
hospital battling an un-
disclosed illness. How-
ever, as late as Thursday,
family members were
said to have been upbeat
about his recovery and
he even had plans to ap-
pear at a show on Satur-
day in the nation’s capi-
tal.
Born Richard Claxton
He was honest, truthful, un-
fl inching, unapologetically
Black. He challenged Ameri-
ca at every turn
Martin, a journalist and
host of NewsOne on TV
One said that he had
enormous respect for
Gregory.
“He was honest, truth-
ful, unfl inching, unapol-
ogetically Black. He chal-
lenged America at every
turn. RIP,” wrote Martin.
“He was one of the
sweetest, smartest, most
loving people one could
ever know,” said Steve
Jaff e, Gregory’s publicist
of 50 years, according to
The Hollywood Report-
er. Jaff e added, “I just
hope that God is ready
for some outrageously
funny times.”
Singer John Legend
tweeted that, “Dick Greg-
ory lived an amazing,
revolutionary life. A
groundbreaker in come-
dy and a voice for justice.
RIP.”
Filmmaker Ava DuVer-
nay tweeted that Gregory
“taught us and loved us.”
“Dick” Gregory in St.
Louis, Missouri on Oct.
12, 1932, Gregory became
a comedian and civil
rights activist whose so-
cial satire changed the
way Whites perceived
African-American come-
dians, according to his
biography.
Dick Gregory entered
the national comedy
scene in 1961 when Chi-
cago’s Playboy Club (as
a direct request from
publisher Hugh Hefner)
booked him as a replace-
ment for white comedi-
an, “Professor” Irwin
Corey. Until then Grego-
ry had worked mostly at
small clubs with predom-
inantly Black audiences
(he met his wife, Lillian
Smith, at one such club),
according to his biogra-
phy.
“Such clubs paid co-
medians an average of
fi ve dollars per night;
thus Gregory also held
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Dick Gregory Dies at 84
Dick Gregory, pictured here in a photo that accompanied a 1964
interview with the New York World-Telegram, died Saturday at the
age of 84.
a day job as a postal em-
ployee. His tenure as a
replacement for Corey
was so successful — at
one performance he won
over an audience that in-
cluded southern White
convention goers — that
the Playboy Club off ered
him a contract extension
from several weeks to
three years,” Gregory’s
biography said.
“By 1962, Gregory had
become a nationally
known headline per-
former, selling out night-
clubs, making numerous
national television ap-
pearances, and record-
ing popular comedy al-
bums.”
Gregory’s biography
continued: “It’s import-
ant to note that no biog-
raphy of Gregory would
be complete without
mentioning that he and
his beloved wife, ‘Lil,’
had ten children, who
have become highly re-
spected members of the
national community in
a variety of fi elds. They
are: Michele, Lynne, Pa-
mela, Paula, Stephanie
(a.k.a. Xenobia), Gregory,
Christian, Miss, Ayanna
and Yohance.”
While a student at
Sumner High School in
St. Louis he led a March
protesting
segregated
schools. Later, inspired
by the work of leaders
Kam Williams
Movie Previews at
Award
winning
movie crit
ic
Revealing
celebrity s
interview
NEW MOVIES OPENING EVERY WEEK!
such as Dr. Martin Lu-
ther King Jr., and orga-
nizations such as the
Student Nonviolent Co-
ordinating Committee
(SNCC), Gregory took
part in the Civil Rights
Movement and used his
celebrity status to draw
attention to such issues
as segregation and dis-
franchisement, accord-
ing to his biography.
“When local Mississip-
pi governments stopped
distributing Federal food
“
time on social issues and
less time on performing,
his biography noted. He
participated in march-
es and parades to sup-
port a range of causes,
including opposition to
the Vietnam War, world
hunger and drug abuse.
Dorothy Leavell, chair-
man of the NNPA and
publisher of the Crusad-
er Newspaper Group
said that this was a sad
moment and a great loss
Dick Gregory was the great-
est, and he was the fi rst.
Somebody had to break
down that door
Gregory disclose that he
held stock in the chain.”
Gregory’s
autobiog-
raphy, “Nigger,” was
published in 1963 and
it became the number
one best-selling book in
America. Over the de-
cades it has sold in excess
of seven million copies.
He explained his choice
for the title in the fore-
word of the book, where
Dick Gregory wrote a
note to his mother, his bi-
ography explained.
“Whenever you hear
the word ‘Nigger’,” he
said, “you’ll know their
advertising my book.”
Through the 1960s,
Gregory spent more
to America, especially
Black America.
This is a sad moment
and a great loss to Amer-
ica and especially Black
America.
“Dick Gregory was a
personal friend, but also
a voice for Black Amer-
ica which has now been
stilled,” said Leavell.
“Dick was also a close
friend to the Black Press
and the National News-
paper Publishers Associ-
ation (NNPA).”
Leavell
continued:
“While we mourn this
loss we are grateful for
the many contributions
he made that have helped
us all.”
2018
THE SKANNER
FOUNDATION
SCHOLARSHIPS
APPLICATIONS
ARE OPEN
2018 The Skanner Foundation Scholarship
Application Deadline: October 31, 2017
For more information and to download
The Skanner Foundation scholarship application, go to
www.theskanner.com/foundation/scholarship
Scholarships will be awarded at the Martin Luther King, Jr.
Breakfast on January 15, 2018.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
• Undergraduate student or high school
• Plans to att end for entire academic year,
student transitioning to college
beginning in fall, 12 credits per quarter
• Minimum grade point average of 2.5
• 20 hours of active community service
within past 12-months
• Att ending a post secondary, accredited
institution or planning to att end
• Leadership involvement