Comedian Patrice O'Neal Dies at 41

Patrice O’Neal, Boisterous Comedian, Dies at 41

By DANIEL E. SLOTNIK

Published: November 29, 2011

Patrice O’Neal, a stand-up comedian who boisterously took on
controversial topics like race, AIDS and his own struggle with diabetes, died
on Tuesday. He was 41 and lived in New Jersey.

G. Paul Burnett/The New York Times

Patrice O'Neal in 2006.

He died in a hospital in the New York City area from
complications of a stroke he suffered on Oct. 19, his agent, Matt Frost, said.

“See, I’ve got to lose weight now to stay alive, and that’s
not enough motivation for me,” Mr. O’Neal said in one of his television
specials on Comedy Central.

At 6-foot-4 and about 300 pounds, Mr. O’Neal commanded the
stage with not only his bulk but also his penchant for flashy clothing and
chains, and his confrontational style. He was loud and unpredictable,
frequently veering away from prepared material with a curse-laden segue.

Mr. O’Neal’s reputation for brash honesty led many to call
him a comic’s comic. He could alienate audiences and celebrities alike, both of
whom he mocked relentlessly.

He was quick to dismiss his detractors.
“Liars don’t like me,” he told Punchline magazine, which covers the comedy
world. “They don’t want to be given anything straight.”

He did not spare himself: his size and his diabetes were
often incorporated into his act.

Mr. O’Neal had a career most comedians would envy. He had
stand-up specials on HBO as well as Comedy Central and appeared on television
comedies like Michael Hurwitz’s lauded “Arrested Development,” NBC’s version of
“The Office” and Dave Chappelle’s hit Comedy Central sketch series,
“Chappelle’s Show.” He also performed regularly on the “Opie & Anthony”
satellite radio show.

Mr. O’Neal appeared in a handful of movies, including the
Spike Lee drama “The 25th Hour” (2002), released a stand-up album and DVD, “Elephant in the Room” (2011), and was co-host of
the short-lived Comedy Central show “Shorties Watchin’ Shorties,” which featured
the voices of comedians like Dane Cook, Denis Leary and Greg Giraldo riffing as animated babies.

His last widely viewed performance was at the Comedy Central
roast of the actor Charlie Sheen in September. “I respect Charlie Sheen, I do,”
Mr. O’Neal said, then added, “Not his body of work.”

During his set he likened Mike Tyson to Muhammad Ali, not
because they were boxers but because both became acceptable to white people.
And he advised Steve-O, a recovering drug addict and a star of MTV’s “Jackass,”
to relapse.

Patrice Lumumba Malcolm O’Neal (he was named after the
Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumba, and his last name has often been
spelled Oneal) was born on Dec. 7, 1969, in Boston. He began performing at open
mikes there, and by the late 1990s he was working clubs in Los Angeles and New
York.

He landed a guest appearance on the MTV comedy “Apt. 2F” in
1997 and worked briefly as a writer for World Wrestling Entertainment before he
had his first stand-up special on Comedy Central and was seen on the
short-lived sketch series “The Colin Quinn Show.”

Mr. O’Neal is survived by his wife, Vondecarlo; a
stepdaughter, Aymilyon; a sister, Zinder; and his mother, Georgia.