Representatives of the comedian Dave Chappelle yesterday denied rumors that drugs were involved in the suspension of production of his acclaimed sketch comedy show, "Chappelle's Show."
Matt Labov, Mr. Chappelle's publicist, categorically denied speculation that drug use - a frequent topic of Mr. Chappelle's stand-up comedy routines - played any part in his client's problems with delivering the show on time. The third season's premiere had already been delayed twice.
"He's not in rehab. He does not have a cocaine addiction," Mr. Labov said.
But little other information was offered about the abrupt suspension, which was announced Wednesday. Officials at Comedy Central, the cable channel that carries the show, said they had no information as to when or if new episodes might be seen. After a yearlong hiatus, the show was to have returned for its third season at the end of this month.
Mr. Chappelle, 31, took on an enormous amount of responsibility last August when he signed a two-year contract with Comedy Central worth an estimated $35 million to $50 million, a lucrative deal for a half-hour cable comedy show.
"Obviously, I'm sure there's a lot of pressure, with the expectation of the fans, and the network and the expectation of the press," said Mr. Labov.
But those expectations and tensions were no doubt also heightened by the unusual amount of hands-on involvement Mr. Chappelle has in the show. In addition to his roles as the producer and star - playing everyone from a blind, black racist to Rick James, the decadent (and now deceased) funk star - Mr. Chappelle and his writing partner, Neal Brennan, were also writing almost every line of this season's 10 scheduled shows.
"Dave and Neal are essentially the whole writing staff," said Mr. Labov. "They'd shoot for a week and then Dave and Neal would take a week off to write."
Indeed, some of the internal pressures may have come from the unique style of production employed by "Chappelle's Show," in which dozens of comedy sketches, musical numbers and other bits are shot in no particular order and assembled later in the editing room. "They don't necessarily have a shooting script for a set episode," said Mr. Labov.
While that method worked well in two previous seasons, earning rave reviews and high Nielsen ratings, the show currently has no completed episodes despite having shot material sporadically since early February.
Mr. Chappelle added to his workload by booking several casino engagements this spring, playing large theaters at the Borgata in Atlantic City and Foxwoods in eastern Connecticut.
Last season the show was one of Comedy Central's biggest draws, averaging more than three million viewers, twice as many as Comedy Central's "Daily Show" with Jon Stewart.
Ratings like that, along with impressive DVD sales, helped to establish Mr. Chappelle as a major star worthy of a multimillion-dollar deal after years as a stand-up comic and movie actor.
"Each network has certain things that identify them and 'Chappelle' is one of - if not the - show, that says Comedy Central," said Jon Mandel, the chairman of Mediacom, a media buying agency.
Donnell Rollins, a regular on "Chappelle's Show," refused to comment on the circumstances of the delay. "We've been told that all calls should be directed to his publicist," he said, but he added that he believed it had nothing to do with the quality of the coming season. "Yeah, it was going to be funny," he said. "It was going to be consistent with the first two seasons."
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Matt Labov, Mr. Chappelle's publicist, categorically denied speculation that drug use - a frequent topic of Mr. Chappelle's stand-up comedy routines - played any part in his client's problems with delivering the show on time. The third season's premiere had already been delayed twice.
"He's not in rehab. He does not have a cocaine addiction," Mr. Labov said.
But little other information was offered about the abrupt suspension, which was announced Wednesday. Officials at Comedy Central, the cable channel that carries the show, said they had no information as to when or if new episodes might be seen. After a yearlong hiatus, the show was to have returned for its third season at the end of this month.
Mr. Chappelle, 31, took on an enormous amount of responsibility last August when he signed a two-year contract with Comedy Central worth an estimated $35 million to $50 million, a lucrative deal for a half-hour cable comedy show.
"Obviously, I'm sure there's a lot of pressure, with the expectation of the fans, and the network and the expectation of the press," said Mr. Labov.
But those expectations and tensions were no doubt also heightened by the unusual amount of hands-on involvement Mr. Chappelle has in the show. In addition to his roles as the producer and star - playing everyone from a blind, black racist to Rick James, the decadent (and now deceased) funk star - Mr. Chappelle and his writing partner, Neal Brennan, were also writing almost every line of this season's 10 scheduled shows.
"Dave and Neal are essentially the whole writing staff," said Mr. Labov. "They'd shoot for a week and then Dave and Neal would take a week off to write."
Indeed, some of the internal pressures may have come from the unique style of production employed by "Chappelle's Show," in which dozens of comedy sketches, musical numbers and other bits are shot in no particular order and assembled later in the editing room. "They don't necessarily have a shooting script for a set episode," said Mr. Labov.
While that method worked well in two previous seasons, earning rave reviews and high Nielsen ratings, the show currently has no completed episodes despite having shot material sporadically since early February.
Mr. Chappelle added to his workload by booking several casino engagements this spring, playing large theaters at the Borgata in Atlantic City and Foxwoods in eastern Connecticut.
Last season the show was one of Comedy Central's biggest draws, averaging more than three million viewers, twice as many as Comedy Central's "Daily Show" with Jon Stewart.
Ratings like that, along with impressive DVD sales, helped to establish Mr. Chappelle as a major star worthy of a multimillion-dollar deal after years as a stand-up comic and movie actor.
"Each network has certain things that identify them and 'Chappelle' is one of - if not the - show, that says Comedy Central," said Jon Mandel, the chairman of Mediacom, a media buying agency.
Donnell Rollins, a regular on "Chappelle's Show," refused to comment on the circumstances of the delay. "We've been told that all calls should be directed to his publicist," he said, but he added that he believed it had nothing to do with the quality of the coming season. "Yeah, it was going to be funny," he said. "It was going to be consistent with the first two seasons."
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