He was quite raunchy, but that made him great. When he performed in movies, he often played a guy who did not quite make the grade, and felt he was taken advatage of. In "Moving," he played a man named Arlo Pear, who lost his job and went through a lot of trauma moving across country, and in "Stir Crazy" he was a wrongly convicted inmate trying to find justice while befriending a man who called him "sweet pants."

I always enjoyed the comic relief, the entertaining moments, and the talent this man displayed during his career. He told the grim reaper many times where to go and won the battle. He caught fire due to a drug addiction. He won that battle. He suffered from MS, and was doing fine.

This morning, the grim reaper finally won. The cause was a heart attack. The man was taken from us. A major talent lost. However, we shall not forget the gift he gave us, one true gift that comes from the heart... The gift of laughter.

I thank this man for touching my life. He will always have a place in mine for his comedy. His talent, and his will to survive.

Richard Pryor. 1930-2005

May he rest in peace.