Biography
Lewis Niles Black (born August 30, 1948) is an American stand-up comedian, author, playwright, social critic and actor. He is known for his comedy style, which often includes simulating a mental breakdown, or an increasingly angry rant, ridiculing history, politics, religion, trends and cultural phenomena. When not on the road performing, he resides in Manhattan. He also maintains a residence in Chapel Hill, N.C. He is currently the spokesman for Aruba Tourism, appearing in television ads that aired in late 2009 and 2010.
He hosted the Comedy Central series “Lewis Black's Root of All Evil,” and makes regular appearances on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” delivering his “Back in Black” commentary segment.
In 1998, Black starred in his first comedy special on the series “Comedy Central Presents.” He starred in two additional episodes of the series in 2000 and 2002. He starred in another special for the network in 2002, titled “Taxed Beyond Belief.”
“The White Album” was Black's first album, recorded in 1999 at Laugh Lines Comedy Club in Madison, Wisconsin and released in June 2000. The cover and title was a reference to the album “The Beatles” (also commonly referred to as “The White Album”). An EP of outtakes made during the recording sessions “The White Album” was released in 2002, titled “Revolver.” The title is again a reference the Beatles and their album “Revolver.” This was done to acknowledge the fact that these were outtakes and different edits from the sessions of Black's earlier release.
His second album, “The End of the Universe,” was recorded at The Punchline in Atlanta, Georgia and released in July 2002. The title refers to Black's belief that the end of the universe is in Houston, Texas, where two Starbucks coffeehouses are located across the street from each other.
His first album for Comedy Central Records, “Rule of Enragement,” was released in 2003. It was recorded at Acme Comedy Company in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The title is a play on the military term, “Rules of engagement.”
“Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues,” recorded Luther Burbank Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa, California and released in 2005, was nominated for a Grammy for Best Comedy Album in 2006. He would win the award for Best Comedy Album at the 49th annual Grammy Awards for his 2006 album, “The Carnegie Hall Performance.”
Consisting of stand-up material he used on his tours over a three-year period, “Anticipation” was recorded on September 21, 2007 in Wausau, Wisconsin and released in 2008 on Comedy Central Records. The album cover featured part of the word “Anticipation” while the back features the rest of the word. It was designed for people to think Black was “anti-something.”
His eighth album containing the audio of a concert stand-up special of the same name, “Stark Raving Black” was released in 2010 through Comedy Central Records and was awarded the 2011 Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album.
His ninth comedy album, “The Prophet” was issued by Comedy Central Records in 2011.