Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he studied
dramatic arts and earned a playwrighting
fellowship. He graduated in 1970, and
completed an MFA from the Yale School of
Drama in 1977.
-
tice.” Black got to the storied venue in 2006
— delivering a performance that spawned a
Grammy-winning comedy album — by not
practicing stand-up for much of his early career.
He primarily pursued theater.
After receiving his undergraduate degree,
Black moved back to the Washington,
D.C., area, writing plays and supporting
himself by working at the Appalachian
Regional Commission, an economic-development
agency.
Brickskeller, a tavern in Dupont Circle to experiment
with stand-up. But the comedy —
not yet edgy, just nervous and awkward —
New York to write plays, many of which
were performed at the West Bank Café
-
en space where he was co-artistic director,
playwright-in-residence and emcee.
54 artsLife | FALL 2018
In 2009’s autobiographical Me of Little Faith, Black
hones in on religion, which he thinks is taken
too seriously and is therefore “open to ridicule.”
Through two dozen essays, Black explores his own
tortured “spiritual journey” and takes every faith
tradition to task.
It was as an emcee that Black found his
(rather loud) comedic voice. Fellow comedians
Dan Ballard and Kathleen Madigan
encouraged him to mine his anger for
Madigan telling him. “You should yell your
whole act.”
Black developed a following by expressing
the sort of fury others felt, but were too
polite to express. But more than that, he was
hilarious, with a disheveled appearance and
an unpolished delivery that gave his rants
authenticity — and mitigated any hint of
condescension.
He was endearing in a way that other
angry comedians — such as Sam Kinison —
could never be. “I can express an opinion
that gets applause,” says Black of his rou-
get a laugh.”
In 1996, with Barack Obama and Mitt Romney
battling for the presidency, Black taped
The Daily
Show. In it, he skewered Romney for backpedaling
on gay adoption — while manag-
Host Craig Kilbourne knew that Black
would, indeed, be back. He continued to
host, as well as that of Jon Stewart. Now,
-
tion with the show, which has now reached
22 years and counting.
Black has written several books — includ-
Me of Little Faith
— hosted several cable comedy specials
and released numerous CDs and DVDs of his
performances.
He has also appeared in acting roles on
television and in movies, and helped to
create the annual Carolina Comedy Festival
at his undergraduate alma mater.
has Black most riled up these days. The son
of a teacher — Jeannette Black was 99 years
old at press time — he advocates for higher
teacher pay and a renewed emphasis on
the teaching of civics.