Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Dave Chappelle and Fan Entitlement

It had occurred to me earlier this evening that I hadn't heard too much about of Dave Chappelle in a long time, and I decided to look him up on the IMDB. I hadn't been living under a rock when he had his much publicized parting from Comedy Central, but I had thought that he had still done a few projects over the years, and it turns out that I was mistaken.

Anyway, while I was there, I happened to start reading threads that people had started about him.

Now first, don't do that. While it is moderated, it is like a cleaned up version of Youtube comments, which means that a lot of stupidity remains.

Case in point, a thread calling his a coward for abandoning his fans.

There is a huge difference between saying "I'd like to see Dave Chappelle start doing tv again," and saying "Dave Chappelle is a coward who is letting down his fans."

Because really, Dave Chappelle doesn't owe you or me anything. If he doesn't want to do television or make movies anymore, then he is free to do so. If he wants to retire to Ohio and raise a family outside the scrutiny of TMZ, then he is entitled to do so, and he doesn't have to explain himself to anyone.

He made a decision, like Bill Watterson did, to pull back from the limelight and do what he wants to do with the rest of his life, and while I miss seeing him do standup on TV, I respect the decision he's made.

If you were his fan, don't be an ass and demand that he entertain you so more. If he wants to come back and do something, he will. Until then, be patient.

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