[upbeat rock music] both: i took a walk through this beautiful world felt the cool rain on my shoulder found something good in this beautiful world i felt the rain getting colder - la, la - sha la, la, la, la sha la, la, la, la - sha la, la, la - sha la, la, la, la sha la, la, la, la, la - pittsburgh is a city of neighborhoods, each with its own rites and rituals, a patchwork of cultures that took shape over a century ago. back then, the city was a beacon of hope and possibility for people from all over the world, offering the promise of work, prosperity, a new life. pittsburgh could have been another company town gone to beautiful ruin, but something happened. the city started to pop up on lists of the most livable places in america. it became attractive to a new wave of people from elsewhere looking to reinvent themselves and make a new world. and so we find ourselves asking the same questions we ask in other cities in transition. are the n
- you know what? that looks like fire! - comedy without black people would be like the nba without black players. (kevin screaming) - your biggest, biggest superstars in comedy have been black. (eddie yelling) - just genius and hilarious. - yeah, i said it. (audience cheering) - the chappelle show redefined sketch comedy. - i m rick james, bitch. (audience laughing) - in living color set up a platform for black comedians blowing up. - i don t think so. homie don t play that. (audience laughing) - arsenio hall was, woo, woo, woo, woo, woo. it was groundbreaking. - [audience] woo, woo, woo, woo, woo. - you had a black man willing to fight the power. - nice being out of jail. (audience laughing) - laughter is healing, laughter purifies the air. actually i don t like to talk about the races, because i m white. - and we, as black people, have been doing it forever. - i am, this is a freckle. (audience laughing) - all black comedians discuss race. - it s harder being gay than i
- and if you can t get sponsorship, you can t exist. and when the show was canceled, what he said was, madison avenue is afraid of the dark. and they were. (smooth rock music) - in the late 50s, early 60s, the country starts to change more when civil rights hit. then you re getting grittier comedy that is gonna deal with race. - i hate to see any baseball player having troubles cause that s a great sport for my people. that is the only sport in the world where a negro can shake a stick at a white man and won t start no riot. (audience laughing) - dick gregory put politics in his comedy. it was like seeing a curve ball, and he d throw it and you couldn t see it coming. - 1961, appearing on the jack paar show, dick gregory becomes the first black comedian ever to sit down on the couch after his performance. - what kind of car you got? - a lincoln, naturally. - [jack] well, that s a. (audience laughing) - dick gregory in the 50s and early 60s
that white audiences would boycott their products. - and if you can t get sponsorship, you can t exist. and when the show was canceled, what he said was, madison avenue is afraid of the dark. and they were. (smooth rock music) - in the late 50s, early 60s, the country starts to change more when civil rights hit. then you re getting grittier comedy that is gonna deal with race. - i hate to see any baseball player having troubles cause that s a great sport for my people. that is the only sport in the world where a negro can shake a stick at a white man and won t start no riot. (audience laughing) - dick gregory put politics in his comedy. it was like seeing a curve ball, and he d throw it and you couldn t see it coming. - 1961, appearing on the jack paar show, dick gregory becomes the first black comedian ever to sit down on the couch after his performance. - what kind of car you got? - a lincoln, naturally. - [jack] well, that s a. (audience laughing) - dick gregory in the 50s a
(smooth rock music) - in the late 50s, early 60s, the country starts to change more when civil rights hit. then you re getting grittier comedy that is gonna deal with race. - i hate to see any baseball player having troubles cause that s a great sport for my people. that is the only sport in the world where a negro can shake a stick at a white man and won t start no riot. (audience laughing) - dick gregory put politics in his comedy. it was like seeing a curve ball, and he d throw it and you couldn t see it coming. - 1961, appearing on the jack paar show, dick gregory becomes the first black comedian ever to sit down on the couch after his performance. - what kind of car you got? - a lincoln, naturally. - [jack] well, that s a. (audience laughing) - dick gregory in the 50s and early 60s was making $10,000 a week and he gave all that up to march with martin luther king. - dick gregory has been dubbed the father of black political comedy.