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Timing is important in comedy.
And not just in terms of the speed of a retort or length of a pause.
Senses of humor tend to be very specific to their time.
Comedy doesnt age as well as, say, music.
As a result, as comedians age, its hard to maintain the same sort of relevancy.
Thats why George Wallaces career is so remarkable.
In the 2000s, he fulfilled a career-long dream of his own Las Vegas residency.
But that wasnt it!
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Actually, at 6 years old, I knew I enjoyed making people happy.
And to this day, when I see happy people, it makes me happier.
That is my sex and my drugs.
So thats what Ive always done.
Thats what I will always do.
I think Im a combination of both.
I have a go at do both.
Its probably actually a great gift to be able just to talk and make people laugh and happy.
So what I do is just have some fun.
I dont even know how to explain this; I just love what I do.
So when I hit the stage, Im in my element.
And that was even before rap music.
Rap music is a form of expression, saying what you want to say, and what you think.
So it was all-white clubs.
There werent even Black comedians in the clubs when I started.
Thats what we did.
All the television shows: Merv Griffin,Tonight Show,you name it Leno, Letterman.
There still werent any Black comedians doing it then.
Just the three of us.
So back in the day, we played the games.
I played the game.
But whenDef Comedy Jamcame out, there was a club in Los Angeles called the Community Act Theatre.
Then the comedians had seen me on TV.
And Jimmy Walker, and these young Black kids, were going, I want to do that too!
That is the best way to do it.
As you know, hes been my best friend for 44 years.
We started together 1976.
But thats not good enough for him.
He wants 110 percent.
One-hundred and ten percent!
So to hell with you, Jerry Seinfeld.
You do it your way, I do it my way.
Hes so good at what he does, and Im good too.
But its just how you do things.
You know, he had the TV show, of course.
So he puts the asses in the seats.
I go out and have fun, and I guess I put asses in the seats too.
I was going onstage in the late 70s, just trying to learn how to write jokes.
Youre just trying to get a joke to go over [well], let alone your personality.
I can honestly tell you that what I did ten years ago … Im a different person today.
Because Ive grown into evenanotherme.
Every generation, you grow into a new you.
Im from the drugs.
Im from the sex, from the crazy people.
And in the 80s, you turn a new leaf.
In the 90s you become a new person.
Now were older, thinking about things that older people do: how mean you are.
You think a little more about politics.
