Richard Pryor's Peoria roots

Yes, Richard Pryor was a son of Peoria.

From AP:

Comedian Richard Pryor's comedy was shaped by his childhood on the wrong side of the tracks in this central Illinois city.

His experiences growing up in a brothel run by his grandmother were fodder for standup routines, as well as the semi-autobiographical 1985 film "Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling."

Pryor, 65, died Saturday of a heart attack in Los Angeles. He had been ill for years with multiple sclerosis, a degenerative disease of the nervous system.

Friends and former neighbors remembered him as a reed-thin, sarcastic kid who performed in plays and talent shows at the local community center.

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