After years out of the spotlight, it looks like Dave Chappelle is trying to make a comeback of sorts. Amid rumors that he’s been shopping a new online show to the likes of Netflix, and Hulu, Mr. Chappelle has been spotted doing cameo appearances at clubs like the Comedy Cellar in NYC, and most recently, he did a comedy set for Alonzo Mourning’s Summer Groove Charity in Miami.
The hot buzz from Miami is that Dave bombed the set. As every comedian who’s been in the business long enough will tell you, “Bad sets happen,” but they shouldn’t happen to Dave Chappelle. He’s the Laugh Factory endurance record holder, and ranked 43rd all time in Comedy Central’s 100 Greatest-Stand-Ups.
Some may say you can’t hold the throne forever and his critics may tell you, “Dave’s washed up,” but perhaps it’s not Dave’s fault at all? Maybe he’s fallen victim to a sinister disease that’s been claiming the careers of famous comedians for years—Carrottopitis!
Carrottopitis occurs when comedians become obsessed with their body image and spend more time pumping iron than they do writing jokes. Named for its most famous victim, Carrot Top, Carrotopitis’ symptoms are as famous as some of the victims it infects:
- Going from ‘skinny’ to ‘jacked’ in an unnaturally short period of time
- Sudden wardrobe shift from loose and baggy to tight / revealing clothes
- Erratic, unexplained career decisions
- Once funny shtick now seems weirdly off even though nothing changed
- Small children cower and cry when they see you coming
Several comedians at the height of the prowess have fallen to Carrotopitis’ wrath. Joe Piscapo may have been the first “undocumented” case in the 80s, but the disease wasn’t truly understood until we watched helplessly in the 90s as Carrot Top went from funny, quirky, skinny, ginger kid, to roided out crackpot.
Even though we now recognize the dangers and symptoms of Carrotopitis, some of our best comedic talents still fall prey to this horrible disease. If Dave Chappelle is not careful with the weights, he could find himself in the company of washed up once-skinny, now-jacked comedic stars like, Eddie Murphy, Kathy Griffin, and (although not in standup, he was funny as hell in Major League) Wesley Snipes. Here’s a chart that shows the slippery slope skinny comedians are starting down when they hit the gym.
As you can see, getting too jacked has a direct correlation with sense of humor loss, but for Dave, there still might be a chance to reverse the awful symptoms of Carrottopitis. Check out Dave’s before and after pics below and let us know if you think Cappelle is already too jacked to wrestle his comedy career from the evil grips of Carrottopitis or if you think there are other celebrities battling this affliction.
About the Author: Greg Buckskin is a pop culture guru and writer for HighSpeedInternet.com.