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Chris Rock

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For the English comedian, see Crissy Rock.

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Chris Rock
Chris Rock 2014
Rock in 2014
Birth nameChristopher Julius Rock III
Born (1965-02-07) February 7, 1965 (age 60)
Andrews, South Carolina, U.S.
Medium
  • Stand-up
  • film
  • television
EducationJames Madison High School
Years active1984–present
Genres
  • Observational comedy
  • black comedy
  • sketch comedy
  • insult comedy
  • sarcasm
  • satire
Subject(s)
  • American politics
  • African-American culture
  • current events
  • human sexuality
  • marriage
  • pop culture
  • race relations
  • racism
Spouse
Malaak Compton
​
​
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Children2
Relative(s)Tony Rock (brother)
Websitechrisrock.com

Christopher Julius Rock III (born February 7, 1965) is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, director, singer and songwriter. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best comedy album and four Primetime Emmy Awards as well as a Golden Globe Award nomination. He was ranked No. 5 on Comedy Central's list of the 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time.[1] He also ranked No. 5 on Rolling Stone 's list of the 50 Best Stand-Up Comics of All Time.[2]

After years working as a stand-up comedian and appearing in minor film roles including Beverly Hills Cop II, Rock gained prominence as a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1993. While at SNL he appeared in films New Jack City, Boomerang and CB4, which he also wrote and produced. He reached mainstream stardom with the critically acclaimed Bring the Pain in 1996, the second of his five HBO comedy specials. His other HBO comedy specials include Bigger & Blacker (1999), Never Scared (2004), Kill the Messenger (2008), and Chris Rock: Tamborine (2018). He developed, wrote, produced and narrated the sitcom Everybody Hates Chris (2005-2009), which was based on his early life. From 1997 to 2000 HBO aired his talk show, The Chris Rock Show, which gained critical acclaim for Rock's interviews with celebrities and politicians.

Rock was cast in starring film roles in Nurse Betty (1999), Down to Earth, Pootie Tang (both 2001), Head of State (2003), The Longest Yard (2005), the Madagascar film series (2005–2012), I Think I Love My Wife (2007), Death at a Funeral, Grown Ups (both 2010), its sequel Grown Ups 2 (2013), Top Five (2014) and Spiral (2021). He is known for his appearances in television including Louie, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, Fargo. He made his Broadway theater debut in the 2011 Stephen Adly Guirgis play The Motherfucker with the Hat for which he received Drama League Award for Most Distinguished Performance. He hosted the Academy Awards twice; in 2005 and 2016, and was involved in an incident on stage at the 2022 Awards.

Early life[]

Christopher Julius Rock was born in Andrews, South Carolina on February 7, 1965.[3][4] Shortly after his birth, his parents moved to the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. A few years later, they relocated and settled in the working class area of Bedford–Stuyvesant.[5] His mother, Rosalie (née Tingman), was a teacher and social worker for the mentally handicapped; his father, Julius Rock, was a truck driver and newspaper deliveryman.[6] Julius died in 1988 after ulcer surgery.[3]

Rock is the eldest of his parents' seven children (six boys and one girl),[7] and he had an older paternal half-brother, Charles Ledell Rock, who died in 2006 after suffering from alcoholism.[8][9] Rock's younger brothers Tony,[10] Kenny,[11] and Jordan[12] are also in the entertainment business.

Rock's family history was profiled on the PBS series African American Lives 2 in 2008. A DNA test showed that he is of Cameroonian descent, specifically from the Udeme (Ouldémé) people of northern Cameroon.[13] Rock's great-great-grandfather, Julius Caesar Tingman, was enslaved for 21 years before serving in the American Civil War as part of the United States Colored Troops. During the 1940s, Rock's paternal grandfather moved from South Carolina to New York City to become a taxicab driver and preacher.[14]

Rock was bused to schools in predominantly white neighborhoods of Brooklyn, where he endured bullying and beatings from white students.[15][16][17] As he grew older, the bullying worsened and Rock's parents pulled him out of James Madison High School.[17] He dropped out of high school altogether, but he later earned a General Educational Development (GED). Rock then worked various jobs at fast-food restaurants.[15][16]

Career[]

Early work[]

Rock began working as a stand-up comic during 1984 in New York City's Catch a Rising Star.[15] Upon seeing his act at a nightclub, Eddie Murphy befriended and mentored the aspiring comic. Murphy gave Rock his first film role and big break in Beverly Hills Cop II.[18] Rock rose up the ranks of the comedy circuit in addition to earning bit roles in the film I'm Gonna Git You Sucka and the TV series Miami Vice.

Saturday Night Live and stand-up success[]

Film[]

1990s[]

2000s[]

2010s[]

Everybody Hates Chris (2005–2009)[]

Academy Awards[]

2005 ceremony[]

2016 ceremony[]

2022 ceremony[]

Music videos[]

Stage play[]

Comedic style and views[]

Rock's subject matter typically involves family, politics, romance, music, celebrities, and race relations in the United States. Though not strictly autobiographical, much of his comic standpoint seems rooted in his teenage experience; his strict parents, concerned about the inadequacies of the local school system, arranged to have the adolescent Rock bused to a nearly all-white high school in Bensonhurst. In his memoir Rock This, he recalls, "My parents assumed I'd get a better education in a better neighborhood. What I actually got was a worse education in a worse neighborhood. And a whole bunch of ass-whippings."[19]

Rock has not wavered from a position explored in his 1996 Roll With The New show, and reiterated in his 1997 memoir: "Why does the public expect entertainers to behave better than everybody else? It's ridiculousTemplate:Tsp[[[:Template:Hsp]].Template:Hsp.Template:Hsp. of] course, this is just for black entertainers. You don't see anyone telling Jerry Seinfeld he's a good role model. Because everyone expects whites to behave themselvesTemplate:Tsp[[[:Template:Hsp]].Template:Hsp.Template:Hsp. nowadays,] you've got to be an entertainer and a leader. It's too much."[20] Often the subject of tabloids, when asked about paparazzi and the other negative aspects of fame, Rock says he accepts the bad with the good: "You can't be happy that fire cooks your food and be mad it burns your fingertips."[21]

At the London Live Earth concert on July 7, 2007, which was broadcast live on the BBC, before introducing the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rock called the crowd "motherfuckers" and said "shit", and after a brief pause said he was joking. Due to the broadcast being at 5:45 p.m., Rock was immediately cut off, and the BBC made several apologies for his use of the word "motherfucker".[22]

Chris Rock has been an avid fan of the New York Mets baseball team since childhood. He complained that his team "had no money" during a 2011 interview with David Letterman.[23]

During a 2008 rant on his Kill the Messenger tour, Rock labeled George W. Bush as "the worst president ever".[24]

In May 2021, Rock voiced opposition to cancel culture.[25][26][27][28][29] He said that it has led to "boring" and "unfunny" material from comedians.[25][26][27] He also commented that there is an existing built-in mechanism for audiences informing comedians that their content does not work, like the audience not laughing at their jokes.[25][26][27] Rock went on to say "Everybody's scared to make a move. That's not a place to be. You know, we should have the right to fail because failureTemplate:Tsp.Template:Hsp.Template:Hsp. failure is a part of art."[25]

Rock has said that he was influenced by the performing style of his paternal grandfather, Allen Rock, a preacher. Rock's comedy influences are Bill Cosby, Redd Foxx, Dick Gregory, Flip Wilson, Richard Pryor, Steve Martin, Pigmeat Markham, Woody Allen, Bill Maher, Eddie Murphy,[30] Sam Kinison, George Carlin, Mort Sahl,[31] and Rodney Dangerfield.[32]

Comedians who have cited Rock as an influence include Dave Chappelle,[31] Christian Finnegan,[33] George Lopez,[34] Kevin Hart,[35] and Trevor Noah.[36]

Personal life[]

File:Chris Rock Alpine.jpg

Chris Rock's home in Alpine, New Jersey

Rock married Malaak Compton-Rock on November 23, 1996.[37] Compton-Rock is the founder and executive director of StyleWorks, a non-profit, full-service hair salon that provides free services for women leaving welfare and entering the workforce.[37] The couple lived in Alpine, New Jersey[38][39] with their two daughters.[3] In December 2014, Rock filed for divorce from Compton-Rock.[40] Rock admitted to infidelity in the marriage, as well as struggling with a pornography addiction.[41] The divorce was finalized on August 22, 2016.[42]

Rock has campaigned against the racial profiling of African-Americans, and often speaks of the everyday racism he experiences “despite being famous”.[43][44] In a 2013 episode of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee with Jerry Seinfeld, Rock and Seinfeld are pulled over by the police for speeding while Seinfeld was driving. In the episode Rock admits to Seinfeld that "If you weren't here, I'd be scared. Yeah, I'm famous – still black."[45] In 2015, Rock was pulled over three times in the first three months of the year. Each time Rock posted a selfie of the incident, without further comment as to the reason for the stops or whether he was issued a citation.[46]

On August 20, 2019, Rock, along with several other celebrities, invested in a funding round for Lowell Herb Co, a California cannabis brand. He is known to be "a dedicated cannabis consumer".[47]

On September 18, 2020, Rock said that he was diagnosed with a non-verbal learning disorder, a neurological condition that makes it difficult for him to understand non-verbal social cues.[48][49][50]

On September 19, 2021, Rock announced on Twitter that he had been tested positive for COVID-19. He strongly advocated getting vaccinated to his followers.[51]

On July 7, 2022 it was reported that Rock had started dating actress, screenwriter and director Lake Bell.[52]

Filmography[]

Main article: Chris Rock filmography

Discography[]

Comedy albums
  • Born Suspect (Atlantic Records, 1991)
  • Roll with the New (DreamWorks Records, 1997)
  • Bigger & Blacker (DreamWorks Records, 1999)
  • Never Scared (DreamWorks Records/Geffen Records, 2004)
  • Tamborine (Netflix Studios, LLC., 2018)
Standup specials
  • Chris Rock: Big Ass Jokes (released on HBO, 1994)
  • Chris Rock: Bring the Pain (released on HBO, 1996)
  • Chris Rock: Bigger & Blacker (released on HBO, 1999)
  • Chris Rock: Never Scared (released on HBO, 2004)
  • Chris Rock: Kill the Messenger (released on HBO, 2008)
  • Chris Rock: Tamborine (released on Netflix 2018)

Awards and nominations[]

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Chris Rock

Book[]

  • Rock This! (Hyperion Books, 1997) – Template:ISBN

References[]

  1. ↑ Comedy Central's 100 Greatest Standups of All Time.
  2. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."50 Best Stand-Up Comics of All Time". Rolling Stone. February 14, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Chris Rock. Yahoo! Movies.
  4. ↑ Sources differ on his year of birth. In his book Rock This!, Rock gives his birth date as February 7, 1966. However, Rock stated he was 42 years old on his February 28, 2007, appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show, which is pre-taped and not broadcast live.
  5. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Chris Rock". Inside the Actors Studio. Season 13. Episode 6. March 13, 2007. Bravo.
  6. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Pearlman, Cindy (January 29, 2001). "Rolling Rock: Chris Rock Hits His Hollywood Stride". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 14, 2007. Retrieved June 17, 2010.
  7. ↑ Myrtle Beach online - Rose Rock.
  8. ↑ Chris Rock Feels He 'Failed' Deceased Brother. Starpulse.com (October 4, 2007).
  9. ↑ 55 Fascinating Facts About Chris Rock (February 7, 2020).
  10. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Oppenheim, Gabe (October 9, 2008). "Tony Rock, Standing Up To His Name". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 10, 2012. Retrieved June 17, 2010.
  11. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named ToddBlue2009
  12. ↑ Jordan Rock: JayRockStar619's Channel. YouTube (August 31, 2006).
  13. ↑ Goffe, Leslie. "Americans seek their African roots" Template:Webarchive, BBC, June 29, 2009.
  14. ↑ Chris Rock. African American Lives 2. PBS.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Chappell, Kevin (October 1999). "Bigger, Better, And Hotter! Chris Rock Talks About Fame, Controversy And The Challenge Of Being No. 1". Ebony. Archived from the original on April 5, 2005. Retrieved June 9, 2010.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Chris Rock Discusses 'Down to Earth'". Larry King Live. CNN. February 12, 2001. Archived from the original on September 24, 2004. Retrieved June 9, 2010.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Gallahue, Patrick (June 18, 2005). "Chris Rock Gets Show Based on Childhood". New York Post. Archived from the original on June 29, 2010. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
  18. ↑ Gray, Tim (2022-05-20). The Big Break: Chris Rock Made Film Debut in 'Beverly Hills Cop 2' 35 Years Ago (en-US).
  19. ↑ Rock, Chris. Rock This Hyperion, 1997, p. 46. "I got bused from Bed-Stuy to a white school in a poor white neighborhood: Gerretson Beach, Brooklyn... What I actually got was a worse education in a worse neighborhood..."
  20. ↑ Rock, Chris. Rock This; Hyperion, 1997, p. 16.
  21. ↑ Everybody Loves Chris.
  22. ↑ Chris Rock defends Live Earth swearing. NME.COM.
  23. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Klopman, Michael (April 1, 2011). "Chris Rock Complains About The Mets On Letterman (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on April 6, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
  24. ↑ chris rock - bush is the worst president - YouTube (April 17, 2015).
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 McCarthy, Tyler (May 20, 2021). Chris Rock speaks out against cancel culture, says it creates 'unfunny' and 'boring' comedy content (en-US).
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 Chris Rock says cancel culture is "disrespectful" to audiences (en-GB) (May 20, 2021).
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 Chris Rock says 'cancel culture' creates 'unfunny' and 'boring' comedy (en) (May 21, 2021).
  28. ↑ Mahjouri, Shakiel (May 20, 2021). Chris Rock Argues Against Cancel Culture: 'Everybody Is Scared To Make A Move' (en-US).
  29. ↑ Chris Rock Thinks Cancel Culture Is 'Disrespectful' to Artists and Fans (en).
  30. ↑ Template:Cite videoTemplate:Page needed
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named ew
  32. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. Season 14. January 11, 2008. BBC One. part 2 Template:Webarchive
  33. ↑ Weiss, Rebecca (April 27, 2007). Christian Finnegan Chats. The Cornell Daily Sun.
  34. ↑ George Lopez at MySpace. Myspace.com.
  35. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Gomez, Luis (October 18, 2012). "Interview: Kevin Hart not shy about past flubs". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2012.
  36. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."New & Next: Meet South African Comedian Trevor Noah". Essence. June 14, 2013. Archived from the original on July 9, 2018. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 Dagostino, Mark (March 1, 2007). Chris Rock, Wife Say Their Marriage Is Solid. People.
  38. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Century, Douglas (February 11, 2007). "Alpine, N.J., Home of Hip-Hop Royalty". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 12, 2019. Retrieved October 16, 2007.
  39. ↑ Rich, Frank (November 30, 2014). "In Conversation: Chris Rock" Template:Webarchive. New York.
  40. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Corriston, Michele (December 28, 2014). "Chris Rock & Wife Malaak Compton-Rock Split". People. Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved December 28, 2014.
  41. ↑ Sharf, Zach (February 14, 2018). Chris Rock Gets Brutally Honest About Porn Addiction and Cheating on His Wife: 'I Wasn't a Good Husband'. Indiewire.com.
  42. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Bitette, Nicole (August 23, 2016). "Chris Rock, Malaak Compton finalize divorce after 20 years of marriage". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on June 23, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  43. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Chris Rock is Taking a Selfie Every Time He Gets Pulled Over By The Police". MotherJones. April 1, 2015. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  44. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."In Conversation Chris Rock". Vulture. November 30, 2014. Archived from the original on October 14, 2016. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  45. ↑ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock Pulled Over for Speeding by New Jersey Cop". NYmag. 2013. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  46. ↑ Wilstein, Matt (April 1, 2015). Chris Rock Stopped by Police 3 Times So Far This Year — and He Has the Selfies to Prove It.
  47. ↑ Adams, Benjamin M. (August 22, 2019). Miley Cyrus and Other Stars Invest in Cannabis Company (en).
  48. ↑ Chris Rock reveals learning disorder diagnosis, says he has 7 hours of therapy a week.
  49. ↑ Chris Rock Revealed He Has the Learning Disorder NVLD—Here's What That Is.
  50. ↑ Jacoby, Sarah (September 21, 2020). Chris Rock Reveals He Has a Learning Disorder—Here's How He's Managing It.
  51. ↑ Saperstein, Pat (September 19, 2021). Chris Rock Reveals He Has COVID, Urges People to 'Get Vaccinated' (en-US).
  52. ↑ Juneau, Jen (July 7, 2022). Chris Rock, Lake Bell Have Been Dating a 'Few Weeks,' Are 'Getting to Know Each Other': Source. People. Retrieved on July 12, 2022.

External links[]

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v - e - dAwards for Chris Rock

Template:Black Reel Award for Outstanding Screenplay, Adapted or Original Template:EmmyAward ComedyVarietyMusicWriting 1990s Template:EmmyAward VarietySpecialWriting Template:Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album

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