"Richard Pryor is an alchemist who can turn the darkest pain into the deepest comedy. [He] doesn't go for the jugular — he goes straight for the aorta."
-- Robin Williams
"What would life be like without Richard Pryor and Mudbone? Dull, baby, very dull. There will never be another Richard Pryor. He is, and always has been, the funniest man alive."
-- Whoopi Goldberg
"He's the kind of comedian that everyone calls him by his first name — like they know him. Richard!"
-- Dave Chappelle
"Some people are born wearing an iron shoe. They're the ones who kick doors down and enter the places that before them have been untouched even by light. Theirs is always a mission filled with loneliness and broken bones. Richard Pryor is one of the bravest of them."
-- Jim Carrey
"To fully appreciate the power of Richard Pryor as a stand-up comedian, you had to follow him at the Comedy Store. I did once, and I'm lucky to be alive."
-- David Letterman
"I've always thought that a big laugh is a really loud noise from the soul saying, 'Ain't that the truth!' Richard Pryor is the truth machine. He has taken black street humor to its highest universal level."
-- Quincy Jones
"Pryor peels back the last layer of his battle-scarred skin to reveal the wretched demons that make him the true King of Comedy, and the rest of us just pretenders to the throne."
-- Denis Leary
"It is impossible to exaggerate the greatness of Richard Pryor. [He] is truly an incandescent star, and we are lucky to bask in his glow."
-- Richard Belzer
"Richard Pryor is to comedy what Gretzky is to hockey, what Ali is to Boxing. He is The Beatles of comedy."
-- Paul Rodriguez
"[Richard is] a gifted, raging, soaring, plummeting, deeply human man with the tender boy inside — the greatest pioneering comic artist of the last three generations."
-- Lily Tomlin
"Richard is the consumate comic/jazz artist, and no one will ever touch his genius."
-- Chevy Chase
"Richard had that thing where he could make you laugh so hard and then all of a sudden he'd break your heart."
-- Robert Townsend
"I love Richard Pryor. He is a comic genious and a great human being. As he's explored the depths and heights, he's found a laugh around every corner."
-- David Lynch
"Richard Pryor is truly one of the great artists of our time. His comic genius and influence remain unparalleled."
-- Eddie Murphy
"His star shines fiercely in the universe of art, with a truth and intensity unlike any other."
-- Kris Kristofferson
"Richard was our King Solomon. He truly created the kingdom of Niggerdom.
-- Mitzi Shore, owner of the Comedy Store
"There are many different kinds of comedians . . . the observational humorist, the impressionist, the character creator, the physical comedian, the self-deprecator, and the dirty-joke teller. What made Richard Pryor so brilliant is he was able to incorporate all these styles at once."
-- Damon Wayans
"Richard Pryor is the greatest stand-up who ever lived. He opened the biggest door and turned the light on in the room."
-- Roseanne
"There are some people who impact your life forever. Richard Pryor is such a person. It is undefining to call him a comedian, for he seemed to transcend comedy when he spoke to us."
-- Morgan Freeman
"Richard Pryor is the King. He always will be."
-- Bernie Mac
"You are my friend, my pal, my domino partner, and the funniest motherfucker in the world today."
-- Willie Nelson
"At one moment you want to rescue him and save him and the next moment you know he's going to do the same for you."
-- Jennifer Lee
"He doesn't fall into the [categories] of comedians we have, like prop comic, black comic, Jewish comic, white comic... he doesn't even get comic. He's just funny!
-- Jon Stewart
"Richard Pryor is the greatest comedian of all time."
-- Chris Rock
"You changed the world... for everyone in it."
-- Mos Def
