Source: Lester Cohen / Getty
Dave Chappelle Is Being Awarded the Mark Twain Prize For American Humor.
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has announced that Dave Chappelle will be honored with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor this year. He’ll receive the award during the Kennedy Center gala on Oct. 27, 2019, with a TV special of the big night airing on PBS stations on Jan. 6, 2020.
“Dave is one of the truly original voices in comedy — the definition of a creative artist,” Matthew Winer, director of comedy and special programming at the Kennedy Center, recently told NPR. “He’s a modern day sociologist, skewering stereotypes, defying boundaries and showing us that laughter can be a way to contextualize issues that we struggle to understand.”
In a statement, Deborah F. Rutter, president of the Kennedy Center said:
“Dave is the embodiment of Mark Twain’s observation that ‘against the assault of humor, nothing can stand.’ For three decades, Dave has challenged us to see hot-button issues from his entirely original yet relatable perspective.”
Congrats to Dave.
New Sandra Bland Cellphone Footage Shows Her 2015 Traffic Stop from Her Perspective.
While it was previously thought that Texas State Trooper Brian Encinia’s dash cam footage was the only footage from the traffic stop, it turns out authorities had been holding on to Sandra Bland’s cell phone footage for the last four years.
A recently released clip that was recorded with her cell phone has been released, showing the moment Encinia ordered Bland from her car. When she asks why, Encinia draws his Taser and threatens “I will light you up!” while pointing the Taser in her direction.
The video was released as part of a WFAA partnership with the Investigative Network, further igniting suspicions surrounding Texas officials withholding evidence surrounding her arrest and death.
Chadwick Boseman Is Playing the First Known African Samurai.
Deadline reports that Chadwick Boseman has signed on to play Yasuke, the first African samurai in Japan.
“Yasuke was a native of Portuguese Mozambique who was brought to Japan as a slave to Jesuit missionaries,” Deadline explains. “The first Black man to set foot on Japanese soil, Yasuke’s arrival aroused the interest of Nobunaga, a ruthless warlord seeking to unite the fractured country under his banner. A complex relationship developed between the two men as Yasuke earned Nobunaga’s friendship, respect — and ultimately, the honor, swords and title of samurai.”
Narcos co-creator Doug Miro is writing the script.
“The legend of Yasuke is one of history’s best kept secrets, the only person of non-Asian origin to become a Samurai,” Boseman stated. “That’s not just an action movie, that’s a cultural event, an exchange, and I am excited to be part of it.”
For more content like this, be sure to follow CASSIUSLife.com.
