Chappelle's Show

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About

Chappelle's Show is an American sketch comedy TV series starring comedian actor Dave Chappelle that gained a cult status for giving rise to a number of viral catchphrases and racial comedy during its run in the early 2000s.

History

Chappelle's Show premiered on Comedy Central on January 22nd, 2003. The show begins with host Dave Chappelle performing a stand up routine in front of a live audience before introducing different prerecorded sketches. The show ran for three seasons with a total of 28 episodes, ending on July 23rd, 2006.

Highlights

The show's pilot episode contained a memorable sketch in which Chappelle played the role of Clayton Bigsby, a blind white supremacist who is unaware that he is an African American (shown below, left). The second episode aired on January 29th, 2003 and introduced the character Tyrone Biggums, a crack-addicted homeless person who would later appear in several other episodes (shown below, right).

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On February 25th, 2004, Season 2 Episode 6 featured a skit in which Chappelle impersonates rapper Lil' Jon (shown below, left). On April 7th, 2004, Season 2 Episode 12 included a guest appearance by comedian Wayne Brady playing a fictional version of himself who murders innocent victims and terrorizes Chappelle (shown below, right).

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Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories

On February 11th, 2004, the Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories sketch aired in Season 2 Episode 4, featuring Murphy's personal account of past experiences involving the bizarre antics of soul performer Rick James. The sketch contained interviews with both Murphy and James, along with flashback sequences in which Chappelle plays the role of James and Murphy plays himself (shown below).

Online Presence

On March 28th, 2004, an entry for "Chappelle's Show" was created on Urban Dictionary,^[2] calling the show "America's #1 source of offensive humor." On December 4th, 2005, a WikiQuote^[5] page highlighting memorable quotes from the show was launched. On November 19th, 2007, a Facebook^[1] page titled "Chappelle's Show" was created, gaining over 1.3 million likes in the following seven years. On August 6th, 2012, a TV Tropes^[4] page for the show was launched. On January 22nd, 2013, the pop culture blog Complex^[3] highlighted a series of notable animated GIFs taken from Chappelle's Show sketches (shown below).

Fuck Yo Couch

"Fuck Yo Couch" is a catchphrase used to convey complete irreverence for another individual or group and was first uttered by the comedian Dave Chappelle while playing the performer Rick James in the "Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories" skit. In the episode, James shows disrespect to party hosts Charlie and Eddie Murphy by soiling their white leather couch with his mud-covered boots (shown below).

Cocaine is a Hell of a Drug

"Cocaine is a hell of a drug" is another catchphrase stemming from the "Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories" skit, in which Rick James attempts to explain his past behavior by asserting that the ilicit substance cocaine is a "hell of a drug" (shown below).

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I'm Rick James, Bitch

"Im Rick James Bitch" is a catchphrase originating in the Rick James "Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories" sketch, in which Chappelle announces "I'm Rick James bitch!" while portraying James.

What Did the Five Fingers Say to the Face?

""What did the five fingers say to the face?":https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/what-did-the-5-fingers-say-to-the-face is a fourth catchphrase from the "Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories" sketch in which James allegedly slapped Murphy across the face after asking him the rhetorical question.