George Lopez organizes all-star comedy benefit to support Richard Pryor statue in hometown of Peoria

An all-star lineup of stand-up comedians will play in Peoria so that a comedic legend’s statue can stand tall in that town for generations to come.

George Lopez, Cedric the Entertainer, D.L. Hughley, Eddie Griffin and Mike Epps will headline “A Night For Richard,” on Nov. 2 at the Peoria Civic Center in Illinois.

“Richard deserves a statue in his hometown of Peoria. I am honored to be involved in making that happen,” Lopez said.

Lopez announced the benefit show Monday via his Twitter:

The Recognize Richard effort has been trying to raise $100,000 to cast a 7-foot-6 bronze sculpture of Pryor, stand it atop a base and add informational plaques about the comedian.

Before his death in 2005, Pryor and his wife, Jennifer, had selected Peoria artist Preston Jackson to create the statue. The photograph above is a clay model Jackson already has made.

Epps was cast last month in the official biopic about Pryor, which will be directed by Lee Daniels and produced by Daniels with Jennifer Lee Pryor and Oprah Winfrey (who’ll also portray Pryor’s grandmother, who raised him).

Tickets for “A Night For Richard” go on sale Wednesday through Ticketmaster, by phone at 1-800-745-3000 or at the @PeoriaCivicCntr Box Office.

Sean L. McCarthy

Editor and publisher since 2007, when he was named New York's Funniest Reporter. Former newspaper reporter at the New York Daily News, Boston Herald and smaller dailies and community papers across America. Loves comedy so much he founded this site.

View all posts by Sean L. McCarthy →

One thought on “George Lopez organizes all-star comedy benefit to support Richard Pryor statue in hometown of Peoria

Comments are closed.