Somehow I've never seen this video clip, but with Star Wars: The Clone Wars arriving in theaters this Friday, it certainly popped into my life at a convenient time. From the short-lived Richard Pryor Show (which lasted only four episodes and aired on NBC in 1977) comes this skit with the comedian acting as a bartender in what appears to be The Mos Eisley Cantina ... but the show simply calls it Star Wars Bar. And I believe all of these are the original costumes worn in Star Wars: A New Hope, which makes the bit even funnier (especially when he wanders over to Greedo's table). The show itself was known for being a tad controversial, and did poorly in the ratings. Greatest line from this skit comes when Pryor reacts to a Star Wars creature by saying, "You look just like a nigga' from Detroit I know." Hilarious. Enjoy!

As a fresh 35mm print of Charlie Chaplin's quintessential 1947 thriller Monsieur Verdoux begins circulating through revival houses around the country, it seems like a good time to remind people that while the late actor is mainly known as a star of the silent screen, he definitely didn't die with it. Although the greatest slapstick artist of all time initially rejected the development of sound film, mocking it with hilariously exaggerated voices in City Lights, he eventually adopted it after realizing that resistance was futile. However, he refused to simply throw in a few lines of dialogue to accompany his beloved tramp shtick, choosing instead to take his career in a fresh direction. While Chaplin made many sound films over the course of several decades, only two of them really qualify as classic talkies (except for Limelight, which deserves a category of its own). Late flops like A King of New York don't really hold together, but Chaplin's initial forays into the world of sound film display his talent as a composer of distinctive prose.

His first work of this era, The Great Dictator, remains a masterpiece that broadened the potential of his tramp character with a modified Prince and the Pauper tale applied to World War II, and Chaplin doing double duty playing both a Jewish barber and an exaggerated Adolf Hitler (or "Hinkel," rather). Monsieur Verdoux, in which he plays a frustrated man whose losses during the Great Depression lead to a twisted scheme where he marries, murders and robs rich women, represented something else altogether: Chaplin's only brooding melodrama, the occasional laughs are almost incidental.

The passing of Richard Pryor was the loss of one of the greatest comedians in history. Pryor made a huge impact on the comedy business with a blend of justified rage and heartfelt humor. Pryor's first attempt at a biopic, Jo-Jo Dancer Your Life is Calling might have raked his personal life over the coals, but a new biopic is taking a different approach, albeit at the advice of legal counsel.

Back in 2005, Mike Epps was signed to portray the comedian in a film about Pryor's life. Unfortunately, in a recent interview with VH1, Epps admitted that the production might be delayed. In the interview, Epps says that a dispute between Pryor's ex-wives over the comedian's assets had caused pre-production to shut down. The film has signed Kasi Lemmons (Eve's Bayou) to direct and the new script is being written to include information from the memoirs of Pryor's daughter Rain. Epps explained the changes by saying the new film "is coming from the perspective and eyes of the kids, Rain and Elizabeth, and so forth. So I think people are gonna get a whole other view of Richard Pryor through this story."

Luckily, an agreement has been made which should allow for the film to begin shooting later this year. So barring any more family squabbling, pic should be set for release sometime in 2007.