Chris Rock

At 59 years old, Chris Rock has this physical status:

Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American comedian, writer, editor, producer, and director. Rock came to fame as a cast member of Saturday Night Live in the early 1990s after being a stand-up comedian and appearing in supporting film roles.

He went on to more well-known film appearances, including Down to Earth (2000), Head of State (2003), The Longest Yard (2005), The Madagascar film series (2005–2012), Grown Ups (2010), Top Five (2014), and a series of acclaimed stand-up specials for HBO.

Everybody Hates Chris, a comedy based on his early life, was written, illustrated, and narrated the sitcom Everybody Hates Chris from 2005 to 2009. In 2005 and 2016, Rock hosted the 77th Academy Awards in 2005 and the 88th in 2016.

He has received four Emmy Awards and three Grammy Awards.

In a poll conducted by Comedy Central, he was named as the fifth best stand-up comedian in the nation's fifth year.

In 2007, he was voted the ninth-greatest stand-up comedy on Channel 4's 100 Greatest Stand-Ups, as well as the eighth-best stand-up comedy in the country, and he was also named in the new 2010 list as the ninth-greatest stand-up comedy.

Early life

On February 7, 1965, Christopher Julius Rock was born in Andrews, South Carolina. His parents immigrated to Brooklyn, New York, just short of being born. They migrated and settled in Bedford–Stuyvesant, a few years ago, in the working class zone. Rosalie (née Tingman) was a teacher and social worker for the mentally impaired; his father, Julius Rock, was a truck driver and newspaper deliveryman. Julius died in 1988 after ulcer surgery.

Rock is the eldest of his parents' seven children (six boys and one girl), and he had an older paternal half-brother, Charles Ledell Rock, who died in 2006 after suffering from alcoholism. Tony, Kenny, and Jordan, all of Rock's younger brothers, are now in the entertainment industry.

In 2008, Rock's family history was chronicled on PBS' African American Lives 2. He was of Cameroonian descent, primarily from the Udeme (Ouldémé) people of northern Cameroon, according to a DNA test. Julius Caesar Tingman, Rock's great-grandfather, was enslaved for 21 years before serving in the American Civil War as part of the United States Colored Troops. Rock's paternal grandfather went from South Carolina to New York City in the 1940s to become a taxi driver and preacher.

In predominantly white neighborhoods of Brooklyn, where he suffered bullying and beatings from white students, rock was bused to schools. As he got older, the bullying grew, and Rock's parents pulled him out of James Madison High School. He dropped out of high school completely, but he later received a General Educational Development (GED). Rock used to work at fast-food franchises.

Personal life

On November 23, 1996, Rock married Malaak Compton-Rock. Compton-Rock is the founder and executive director of StyleWorks, a non-profit, full-service hair salon that provides free assistance to women who are in need of welfare and entering the workforce. The two children and their two children lived in Alpine, New Jersey. Rock requested his divorce from Compton-Rock in December 2014. Rock confessed to infidelity in the marriage, as well as dealing with a pornography addiction. On August 22, 2016, the divorce was finalized.

Rock has spoken out against racial profiling of African-Americans, and he often speaks out about the everyday racism he encounters "despite being famous." While Seinfeld was driving, the police pulled over people in a 2013 episode of Comedians in Cars. In the episode, Rock admits that "If you weren't here, I'd be worried." Yes, I'm well-known, but "still black." In 2015, Rock was pulled over three times in the first three months of the year. Rock took a selfie of the occurrence every day, but no further information was given regarding the reason or if he was given a citation.

Rock and several other well-known celebrities invested in a funding round for Lowell Herb Co, a California cannabis brand, on August 20, 2019. He is known as "a dedicated cannabis drinker."

Rock confirmed on September 18, 2020, he was diagnosed with a non-verbal learning disorder, a medical condition that makes it impossible for him to recognize non-verbal social cues.

Rock confirmed on Twitter that he had been tested positive for COVID-19 on September 19, 2021. He has vowed to get his followers vaccinated.

Rock had begun dating actress, screenwriter, and director Lake Bell on July 7, 2022.

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Career

In 1984, Rock began as a stand-up comedian in New York City's Catch a Rising Star. Eddie Murphy befriended and mentored the aspiring comedian after his appearance at a nightclub. In Beverly Hills Cop II, Murphy gave Rock his first film role and a major break. In addition to appearing in bit parts in the film I'm Gonna Git You Sucka and the TV series Miami Vice, Rock rose to the top of the comedy circuit.

Rock appeared on Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1993. Chris Farley, Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, and David Spade became the Bad Boys of SNL. Born Suspect, his first comedy album, received acclaim for his role as a crack addict in the film New Jack City in 1991. Rock received national recognition during his time on SNL. (Rock has appeared on SNL three times, in 1996, 2014, and 2020.)

Rock was effectively "fired" from the show after the 1992-93 season, according to plans to leave Saturday Night Live. He appeared in six episodes of In Living Color, the mainly African American sketch show, beginning in the fall. He appeared as a special guest star. A month after he appeared, the performance was postponed. Rock wrote and starred in the low-budget comedy CB4, which earned $18 million against its budget of $6 million. He was referred to as a client of 3 Arts Entertainment.

As part of HBO Comedy Half-Hour, Rock released his first HBO comedy special in 1994, titled Big Ass Jokes. Rock's second special, 1996's Bring the Pain, made him one of the most well-known and commercially successful comedians in the country. Rock received two Emmy Awards for the special and acclaim for his work in the arts, as well as a slew of critical praise. "Niggas vs. Black People" was a controversial part of the special.

He received another Emmy Award for his widely publicized role as a commentator for Comedy Central's Politically Incorrect during the 1996 presidential election. Rock was also the voice for the "Lil Penny" puppet, which was the alter ego of basketball player Penny Hardaway in a string of Nike shoe advertisements from 1994 to 1998, and the 97 MTV Video Music Awards.

Bigger & Blacker in 1999, and Never Scared in 2004. In Time and Entertainment Weekly, there are articles relating to both specials, including Rock "the funniest guy in America." The Chris Rock Show, HBO's talk show, also aired, earning critical praise for Rock's interviews with celebrities and politicians. For writing, the show received an Emmy Award. His television work has earned him a total of three Emmy Awards and 15 nominations.

Rock was established as one of the country's most popular stand-up comedians and comedy minds by the decade's end. During this period, Rock also converted his comedies into print in the book Rock This! Roll with the New, Bigger & Blacker, and Never Scared have all been nominated for Grammy Awards-winning comedy albums, including Roll With the New, Bigger & Blacker and Never Scared. Kill the Messenger, Rock's fifth HBO series, premiered on September 27, 2008, garnering him another Emmy Award for outstanding writing for a variety of music genres.

On October 30, 2016, Netflix revealed that two new stand-up comedy specials would be released from Rock, with Rock's Bob Hope being paid $40 million per special. On February 14, 2018, Netflix unveiled Chris Rock: Tamborine, the first special edition. It was shot at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and was directed by comedian Bo Burnham. The specials were released in ten years as the comedian's first concert specials. The special received a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album nomination.

Rock wasn't until the success of his stand-up act in the late 1990s that he began to be recognized as a leading man in films. Pookie, a crack addict in New Jack City (1991), the Steve Martin comedy Sgt. Bilko (1996), Beverly Hills Ninja (1997), and Lethal Weapon 4 (1998).

He appeared in Kevin Smith's fantasy comedy film Dogma (1999). The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and attracted raves. Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Alan Rickman, Salma Hayek, and George Carlin appeared in the film as an ensemble cast. He appeared in the dark comedy Nurse Betty (2000) starring Renée Zellweger, Greg Kinnear, and Morgan Freeman, which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival on May 11, 2000. The film was a critical success.

Rock began shooting more behind the camera in the late 2000s. Along with mate and comedian Louis C.K., he produced Down to Earth (2001). The film was based on Warren Beatty's book Heaven Can Wait (1978). In the United Kingdom, Rock also produced and starred in the C.K. this year. Pootie Tang (2001) is a film directed by a filmmaker. Rock will also appear in the political comedy Head of State (2003) and marital comedy I Love My Wife (2007). In both films, he was also the lead actor. In addition, he appeared in films such as The Longest Yard (2004) opposite Adam Sandler and the action comedy film Bad Company (2002) opposite Anthony Hopkins.

Rock also voiced the eccentric zebra Marty in DreamWorks' animated film franchise Madagascar, which began in 2005. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (2008) and Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2013). In the Jerry Seinfeld animated film The Bee Movie, Mooseblood the Moseblood.

Rock released his first documentary, 2009's Good Hair, in 2009. The film explores how African-American women have viewed their hair and how historically styled it. The film explores the current hairdressing industry for black women, photographs of what is considered acceptable and desirable for African American women's hair, and their connection to African American culture. The film premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, where it received critical acclaim and a Special Jury Award. It was named one of the year's top documentaries by the National Board of Review. Rock was also nominated for the Best Documentary Screenplay and for the Best Documentary Screenplay from the Writers Guild of America. Rock has since revealed that he is working on a debt reduction show called Credit Is the Devil.

Death at a Funeral (2010), a black comedy based on the British comedy of the same name, is among his 2010 film appearances. Peter Dinklage, Tracy Morgan, Tracy Morgan, Kevin Hart, Zoe Saldana, and Luke Wilson appeared in the film. The film received mixed reviews, but Roger Ebert, a Chicago Sun-Times critic, praised the film's writing: "I laughed all the way through." This is the best comedy since the Hangover, and although it's almost a scene-by-scene reimagining of a 2007 British film with the same name, it's still funnier than the original. Rock also appeared in the summer comedy Grown Ups (2010) with Adam Sandler, Kevin James, David Spade, and Maya Rudolph.

He appeared in the ensemble romantic comedy film What to Expect When You're Expecting in 2012, alongside Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Anna Kendrick, and Elizabeth Banks. Despite receiving critical feedback, the film was a financial success. Rock received a Teen Choice Award for his performance. He appeared in the romantic comedy 2 Days in New York (2012), opposite Julie Delpy. 2 Days in Paris, 2007, Delpy's previous film, was the sequel to Delpy's previous film. "The best of the comedy is verbal and attitudinal," the film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, with critics lauding the chemistry with Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter.

Rock scripted, produced, and starred in the film Top Five in 2014, which critics have compared to Woody Allen's Stardust Memories (1980). The film is a social commentary on fame and culture. At the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, the film premiered. "Rock has finally found a big-screen vehicle for himself that comes close to capturing his electric wit, shrewd social research, and a deeply autobiographical vein of his stand-up comedy," Variety writer Scott Foundas said. "Rock brings the laughter, big ones, laced with razor-sharp commentary on everything from pop culture to racial politics," Peter Travers wrote in his article: "His confident, prowling wit as a stand-up has finally found its way to the screen, enhancing by a bracing vulnerability." This is Rock's best movie by a mile," the Top Five is Rock's Best Movie by a Mile.

Rock appeared in Sofia Coppola's Christmas musical special, A Very Murray Christmas starring Bill Murray, in 2015. "Do You Hear What I Hear?" Rock sings in the film. Murray is a member of the Murray family. The film premiered on Netflix and was honoured with the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie.

Adam Sandler appeared in another Netflix film, Sandy Wexler (2017) starring Adam Sandler. Sandler starred in the Netflix comedy The Week Of Fire directed by Robert Smigel in 2018. During the week of their children's wedding, two fathers are chronicled in the film. He appeared in the comedy film Dolemite Is My Name (2019), starring Eddie Murphy for a short time last year. Murphy portrayed Rudy Ray Moore in the film and centers around his early career as a stand-up, as well as a producer of blaxploitation beginning with Dolemite (1975). At the Toronto International Film Festival, the film premiered.

He appeared in a revival of the Saw franchise, Spiral (2021), which delves into the horror film genre in 2021.

The UPN television network premiered Everybody Hates Chris, loosely based on Rock's school days, of which he is the executive producer and narrator. Both critical and ratings have been earned on the program. The series was nominated for two Emmy Awards for Best Television Series (Musical or Comedy), a 2006 People's Choice Award for Favorite New Television Comedy, and two other Emmy Awards for costuming and cinematography.

He created the series Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell, which premiered in August 2012. For short, he owned Chris Rock Enterprises (or CR Enterprises) when he was a producer.

The 77th Academy Awards ceremony was held in February 2005 in Rock. Some believed that having Rock host the awards would bring an "edge" to the occasion and make it more relevant or appealing to younger audiences. "Welcome to the 77th and LAST Academy Awards," Rock opened. "Who is this guy?" Rock wondered in one segment. "If you want Tom Cruise and all you can get is Jude Law, wait [to make the film]!" reference to actor Jude Law, who was obviously in every film Rock had seen this year and implied that it was a low-rent Tom Cruise). "In response to our host's query, Jude Law is one of our finest young actors," Sean Penn said. (At the time, Penn and Law were firing All the King's Men.) However, Law was not the only one roasting that evening, but he turned the joke on himself at one point, saying, "If you want Denzel [Washington] and all you can get is me." Officials from the older Oscar academy were apparently dissatisfied with Rock's results, which did not raise awards for the ceremony. In an interview prior to Oscar night, Rock was also chastised for referring to the Oscars as "idiotic" and claiming that heterosexual men do not watch them.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Rock announced in October 21, 2015, that the following February will be hosted. When the subsequent acting nominations were revealed to include no ethnic minorities, Rock was invited to join a boycott of the event. Rock remarked at the funeral that it had failed because the show would have continued anyway, with him simply replaced. Rather, Rock expressed his dissatisfaction with AMPAS at different times during the show, closing by saying, "Black Lives Matter."

Critics generally lauded Rock's performance. "Rock's Oscars had some of the most memorable moments seen in the telecast's history," Los Angeles Times critic Mary McNamara wrote. He's deciding to ask the question, "Is Hollywood bigote?" says the author. Rock's performance was "evenhanded without being wishy-washy," according to New York Times television critic James Poniewozik, who said he was "an example of what the industry is still learning: that giving the right person the right opportunity will bring both participation and entertainment."

At the 94th Academy Awards in March 2022, Rock received the Grand Prize for Best Documentary Feature. Rock joked about Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head, which he likened to Demi Moore's shaved head in G.I. "I love ya, I love you," Jane says. G.I. Jane 2: Can't wait to see it" Pinkett Smith had to shave her head due to alopecia areata. Will Smith, her husband, responded to Rock's parody by walking onstage and slapping Rock, who said, "Will Smith just smacked the shit out of me." Smith regained his seat and yelled twice at Rock, "Keep my wife's name out of your fucking mouth!" Smith was named Best Actor for King Richard later in the evening, but not to Rock in his acceptance address. Rock refused to file a report about the incident with the Los Angeles Police Department.

Smith released a formal apology to Rock the next day, after public outrage, adding that "a joke about Jada's medical illness was too much for me to bear and I responded emotionally." "I was out of line" and that his conduct was "unacceptable and inexcusable," he said. During a stand-up performance in Boston, Rock said that Smith had not reached out to him personally, and that they had not consulted him personally; they hadn't spoken since the event.

Rock had apologized on social media, but were denied. There has been no official apology from Rock to Smith or Pinkett Smith.

Rock's first music video was for his album "You Mother's Got a Big Head" from his album Born Suspect. Rock also made videos for his songs "Champagne" from Roll With the New and "No Sex" from Bigger & Blacker, as well as "In the Champagne Room).

In "Bitt Gonna Cut You Down," a Madonna cameo in "God's Gonna Cut You Down" starring a guy getting his hair cut, he produced and appeared in several videos, including "Smooth Operator" by Johnny Cash as a wild West sheriff chasing down an 1889 cowboy version of Lil Nas X in "Old Town Road."

Rock appeared in Stephen Adly Guirgis' play The Motherfucker with the Hat with Bobby Cannavale and Annabella Sciorra in 2011. Rock was selected for a Drama League Award. Rock said in a Vibe magazine interview that he chose Broadway because he wanted more people to see him "actual act." When you do comedies, it's often formulaic, and it's impossible for really good directors to see that you can act."

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