David Khari Weber Chappelle is an American stand-up comedian, producer, writer, and actor. He was born on August 24, 1973. He became recognizable and won many awards, including three Grammy Awards, two Emmy Awards, and also Mark Twain Prize. He is probably best known from his iconic comedy sketch series Chappelle’s Show (2003-2006). After he left the show, he continued performing stand-up comedy across the country. Also, in 2017, he was ranked No. 9 in “50 Best Stand Up Comics of All Time” by Rolling Stone. He appeared in films such as Mel Brooks’s Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993), The Nutty Professor (1996), Con Air (1997), You’ve Got Mail (1998), Blue Streak (1999), Undercover Brother (2002), Chi-Raq (2015), and A Star Is Born (2018).

Dave’s Early Life

Dave grew up in Silver Springs, Maryland, with his parents and two older siblings. His mother and father are both professors at Universities. Dave attended Woodlin Elementary School, and later when his parents split up, he spent most of the time in Washington with his mother. Still, he visited his father in Ohio during summer. He studied Theatre Arts at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, from which he graduated in 1991. At that time, he had already decided that he wanted to be a comedian.

Dave’s Career

Dave moved to New York to pursue his career. His first performance was at the Apollo Theatre. When he was 19 years old, he made his first film debut in Robin Hood: Men in Tights. In 2003, ‘Chappelle’s Show’ was born, and it turned out to be a huge success. Here are the highlights of Dave’s career: Robin Hood: Men in Tights (Ahchoo, 1993), The Nutty Professor (Reggie Warrington, 1996), HBO Comedy Half-Hourdave: Dave Chappelle (1998), Half Baked (Thurgood Jenkins, 1998), Screwed (Rusty Hayes, 2000), Dave Chappelle: Killin’ Them Softly (2000), Dave Chappelle: For What It’s Worth (2004), Hosted Saturday Night Live (2016), Dave Chappelle: The Bird Revelation (2016), A Star is Born (Noodles, 2018).

Dave’s Best Quotes

I was doing sketches that were funny but socially irresponsible. I felt I was deliberately being encouraged and I was overwhelmed.” – Dave Chappelle

I got a lot of positive people around me.” – Dave Chappelle

“I think every group of black guys should have at least one white guy in it.” – Dave Chappelle

“The hardest thing to do is to be true to yourself, especially when everybody is watching.” – Dave Chappelle

“I’m cool with failing so long as I know that there are people around me that love me unconditionally.” – Dave Chappelle

“I’m famous today. People like me today. Might not like me tomorrow. You can’t count on it.” – Dave Chappelle

Dave’s Net Worth

According to recent studies, Dave’s net worth is around $50 million. In 2003, Comedy Central offered him a $55 million contract to continue the show. Two years later, they offered him a new $50 million contract, but he denied it and walked away from them.