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Richard Claxton Gregory October 12, — August 19, was an American comedian, civil rights and vegetarian activist. Gregory became popular among the African-American communities in the southern United States with his "no-holds-barred" sets, poking fun at the bigotry and racism in the United States. In he became a staple in the comedy clubs, appeared on television, and released comedy record albums. Gregory was at the forefront of political activism in the s, when he protested the Vietnam War and racial injustice. He was arrested multiple times and went on many hunger strikes. Gregory died of heart failure, aged 84, at a Washington, D. Gregory was born in St. Louis, Missouri , the son of Lucille, a housemaid, and Presley Gregory. James; he also excelled at running, winning the state cross country championship in
Who Was Dick Gregory?
Enter your The HistoryMakers username. Enter the password that accompanies your username. Louis, Missouri. A product of humble beginnings, Gregory relied on his exceptional running skills at Sumner High School to eventually earn him a track scholarship at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Dick Gregory, depending on when one joins or leaves his story, may be remembered as a stand-up comic, someone who used to be a comic, or someone who used to be a comic who became one again; a person who went on long fasts to make political points, a dedicated activist, a nutritional pitchman and mogul, or a prickly elder statesman, a guest on all manner of talk shows, radio programs, podcasts and panels. For some, the name will ring no bells at all. He was away a lot, saving the world. It is as good or better a way to celebrate the Fourth of July than anything else you may have planned. Both came from poor backgrounds, both were star athletes; both left college for comedy, both broke color lines and brought new notes to comedy. Their approaches were different: Gregory, who worked off the news like Mort Sahl, with whom he would tour in , told compact jokes that were expressly political, from the point of view of a Black person in a racist society; Cosby told elaborate stories from his life that, in their universal appeal, offered white audiences another sort of glimpse into the Black experience. And each grew cantankerous in his later years. Martin Luther King Jr. But one became a superstar, who would be accused of abusing his power, while the other gave everything away in pursuit of righteousness.
