Rudy Ray Moore, The Human Tornado, Godfather of the Disco, Dead At 81

Rudy Ray Moore -RIP- 1927-2008

source: L.A. Times

Rudy Ray Moore, the self-proclaimed “Godfather of Rap” who influenced generations of rappers and comedians with his rhyming style, braggadocio and profanity-laced routines, has died. He was 81. Moore, whose low-budget films were panned by critics in the 1970s but became cult classics decades later, died Sunday night in Toledo, Ohio, of complications from diabetes, his brother Gerald told the Associated Press.

“People think of black comedy and think of Eddie Murphy,” rap artist Luther Campbell of 2 Live Crew told the Miami Herald in 1997. “They don’t realize [Moore] was the first, the biggest underground comedian of them all. I listened to him and patterned myself after him.”

In the liner notes to the 2006 release of the soundtrack to Moore’s 1975 motion picture “Dolemite,” Snoop Dogg said: “Without Rudy Ray Moore, there would be no Snoop Dogg, and that’s for real.”

“These guys Steve Harvey and Cedric the Entertainer and Bernie Mac claim they’re the Kings of Comedy,” Moore told the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 2003. “They may be funny, but they ain’t no kings. That title is reserved for Rudy Ray Moore and Redd Foxx.“

Moore was born in Fort Smith, Ark., on March 17, 1927. In his youth Moore worked as a dancer and fortune teller and he entertained while serving in the U.S. Army. The heyday of his fame was in the 1970s, with the release of Dolemite, followed by The Human Tornado, Petey Wheatstraw – The Devil’s Son-In-law, and The Monkey Hustle.

But long before “Dolemite” debuted on theater screens, Moore had found fame — and fans — through stand-up routines and a series of sexually explicit comedy albums. “What you call dirty words,” he often said, “I call ghetto expression.”

OddCulture still thinks Disco Godfather is one of the greatest films ever made. No shit, baby.

Dolemite, Godfather of the Disco, Rest In Peace.