Charles Allan Hill (July 6, 1951 – December 30, 2013) was a comedian and actor. Hill was one of the first Native American

stand-up comedians Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage and delivers humorous and satirical monologues sometimes incorporating physical acts. These performances are typically composed of rehea ...

to appear on major television shows such as ''

The Richard Pryor Show ''The Richard Pryor Show'' is an American comedy variety show starring and created by Richard Pryor. It premiered on NBC on Tuesday, September 13, 1977, at 8 p.m. opposite ABC's ''Laverne & Shirley'' and ''Happy Days''. The show was produced ...

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the fourth and sixth installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Jay Leno, it aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009, replacing ''The Ton ...

Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...

Roseanne ''Roseanne'' is an American television sitcom created by Matt Williams (producer), Matt Williams that originally aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May ...

,'' and ''

Moesha ''Moesha'' (, ) is an American television sitcom that aired on UPN from January 23, 1996, to May 14, 2001. The series stars Contemporary R&B, R&B singer Brandy Norwood, Brandy as Moesha Denise Mitchell, an African-American teenager living with ...

.'' He was a member of the

Oneida Nation of Wisconsin The Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in Wisconsin. The tribe's reservation spans parts of two counties west of the Green Bay metropolitan area. The reservation was established by treaty in 1838, and was allotted to ...

, with heritage from the Mohawk and Cree Nations, and belonged to the Turtle Clan. He also wrote for the television series ''Roseanne'' and co-produced and hosted a Showtime special called The American Indian Comedy Slam: Goin Native No Reservations Needed.NPR profile of Charlie Hill
.

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

. Accessed December 31, 2013. Charlie Hill was the first Native stand-up comedian ever to perform on national television, making his network debut on ''The Richard Pryor Show'' in 1977. He then went on to become the first Native comedian to perform on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Johnny Carson, it aired from October 1, 1962 to May 22, 1992, replacing ''T ...

'' among many other national late-night talk shows. Charlie performed across North America for hundreds of Tribal communities and Nations throughout his career.

Early life and education

Born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

in 1951, he moved as a child with his family when they returned to their homestead on the Oneida Nation reservation in 1962. In 1969, he graduated from

West De Pere High School West De Pere High School is one of two public high schools in De Pere, Wisconsin, United States. Built in 1960, it serves students in 9th through 12th grade. The school's mascot is the Phantom. The Phantoms compete in the Bay Conference. Histo ...

and enrolled at

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

, where he majored in speech and drama. He was involved in the Broom Street Theatre Group in Madison, WI. During the early 1970s, he was a member of the Native American Theatre Ensemble. Among other productions, the ensemble performed ''Coyote Tracks'' and ''Foghorn'' at

La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club (sometimes abbreviated as La MaMa E.T.C.) is an Off-Off-Broadway theater founded in 1961 by African-American theatre director, producer, and fashion designer Ellen Stewart. Located in the East Village neighborho ...

in the East Village of Manhattan, where the ensemble was

in residence Artist-in-residence (also Writer-in-residence), or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs that involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs that pr ...

. The ensemble also toured Germany in 1973 and the United States in 1974. After college, Hill moved to New York City to study acting and later to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

to pursue his dream of becoming a professional stand-up comedian.

Career

In the 1970s, Hill earned a spot to perform at Hollywood's famous Comedy Store, a scouting ground for major network TV. There, he became fast friends with some of the top comedians at the time. Having made a name for himself at the age of 26, Hill received a once in a lifetime opportunity to debut on The Richard Pryor Show. Hill's first

network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematics ...

appearance was on ''

'' in 1977. He also appeared on ''

The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Johnny Carson, it aired from October 1, 1962 to May 22, 1992, replacing ''T ...

'',Kendra Meinert
"Groundbreaking Oneida comedian Charlie Hill dies at 62"
''

Green Bay Press-Gazette The ''Green Bay Press-Gazette'' is a newspaper whose primary coverage is northeastern Wisconsin, including Green Bay. History The newspaper was founded as the ''Green Bay Gazette'' in 1866 as a weekly paper, becoming a daily newspaper in 1 ...

,'' December 31, 2013. Accessed May 26, 2014. ''

'', and made multiple appearances on ''

Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the first installment of the '' Late Night''. Hosted by David Letterman, it aired from February1, 1982 to June 25, 1993, and was replaced by ...

''. Hill appeared on the Mike Douglas Show and The Merv Griffin Show several times. Hill appeared on many television shows, and hosted an evening of Native American comedians on a

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

special. He was the subject of the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

documentary ''On and Off The Res' with Charlie Hill'' (1999), directed by

Sandra Osawa Sandra Sunrising Osawa is a Makah filmmaker and poet. She is best known for her films ''Lighting the Seventh Fire'' (1995) and ''On and Off the Res with Charlie Hill'' (1999). Early life and education Osawa is a member of the Makah nation of Wash ...

. Hill was interviewed about

American Indian Movement The American Indian Movement (AIM) is an Native Americans in the United States, American Indian grassroots movement which was founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota in July 1968, initially centered in urban areas in order to address systemic issues ...

activist

Dennis Banks Dennis J. Banks (April 12, 1937 – October 29, 2017) was a Native American activist, teacher, and author. He was a longtime leader of the American Indian Movement, which he co-founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1968 to represent urban Indian ...

in the documentary '' A Good Day to Die''. Hill starred in the 1984 film ''

Harold of Orange ''Harold of Orange'' is a comedy short film directed by Richard Weise and produced by Dianne Brennan, with a screenplay by Gerald Vizenor. Plot Tribal tricksters Harold Sinseer ( Charlie Hill) and the Warriors of Orange, embark on a mission to ...

'', written by

Gerald Vizenor Gerald Robert Vizenor (born 1934) is an American writer and scholar, and an enrolled member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, White Earth Reservation. Vizenor also taught for many years at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was D ...

Awards and recognition

* 2009:

Ivy Bethune Tri-Union Diversity Award ''Hedera'', commonly called ivy (plural ivies), is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to Western Europe, Central Europe, Southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern ...

* 2010: "Native America on the Web" honored Hill for his "lifetime of promoting positive images of Native Peoples and bridging cultural differences through the healing power of humor" *2012: Jennifer Easton Community Spirit Award for his exceptional work as a Native artist. * 2022: On July 6, the

Google Doodle Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running annual Bu ...

was dedicated to Hill in recognition of his challenging harmful stereotypes in the entertainment industry as well as being the first Native comedian to be on national television.

Selected film and television credits

* 2010: '' A Good Day to Die'' (Hill is interviewed about

) * 2009: ''

Reel Injun ''Reel Injun'' is a 2009 Canadian documentary film directed by Cree filmmakers Neil Diamond, Catherine Bainbridge, and Jeremiah Hayes that explores the portrayal of Native Americans in film. ''Reel Injun'' is illustrated with excerpts from cla ...

'' (

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

; comedy routine by Hill) * 2009: ''Goin' Native: The Indian Comedy Slam – No Reservations Needed'' (

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

* 2004–2006: ''

'' * 2005:

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

Winnipeg Comedy Festival The Winnipeg Comedy Festival (WCF) is an annual national comedy festival, held in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The week-long festival takes place at several venues throughout the city, featuring Stand-up comedy, stand-up, Sketch comedy, sketch, and improvis ...

(

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

) * 2004: ''

City Confidential ''City Confidential'' is an American documentary television show, originally airing on the A&E Network, that singles out a community during each episode and investigates a crime that has occurred there. Rather than being a straightforward proced ...

'' (

television documentary Television documentaries are televised media productions that screen documentaries. Television documentaries exist either as a television documentary series or as a television documentary film. * Television documentary series, sometimes called d ...

) * 1999: ''On and Off the Res with Charlie Hill'' (documentary) *1996: ''White Shamans and Plastic Medicine Men'' (documentary short) * 1996: ''

'' (television series) * 1995: ''

'' * 1993: ''

North of 60 ''North of 60'' is a 1990s Canadian television drama depicting life in the sub-Arctic northern boreal forest (north of 60° north latitude, hence the title). It first aired on CBC Television in 1992 and was syndicated around the world. It is se ...

'' (television series) * 1992: ''

'' * 1986: ''Impure Thoughts'' * 1985: '' MacGruder and Loud'' (television series) * 1985: ''

'' * 1984: ''Earthlings'' (television film) * 1984: ''

'' (short film) * 1980: '' The Big Show'' (television series) * 1978: ''

The Bionic Woman ''The Bionic Woman'' is an American science fiction film, science fiction Action-adventure fiction, action-adventure television series created by Kenneth Johnson (producer), Kenneth Johnson based on the 1972 novel Cyborg (novel), ''Cyborg'' by ...

'' (television series) * 1977: ''

Death

Hill died on December 30, 2013, in

Oneida, Wisconsin Oneida is an unincorporated community and former census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Oneida, Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,070 at the 2000 census. At the census, part of the CDP lay within the Town ...

, of

Non-Hodgkins lymphoma Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is a group of blood cancers that includes all types of lymphomas except Hodgkin lymphomas. Symptoms include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, night sweats, weight loss, and tiredne ...

References

External links

*
Hill's page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Charlie 1951 births 2013 deaths Deaths from lymphoma in the United States American male comedians Native American male actors American television writers American male television writers American male television actors Male actors from Wisconsin Male actors from Detroit Native American comedians People from Oneida, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors Deaths from cancer in Wisconsin Screenwriters from Wisconsin Screenwriters from Michigan 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians Comedians from Wisconsin Comedians from Detroit Native American screenwriters 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male writers Native American people from Michigan Oneida Nation of Wisconsin people Turtle Clan of the Iroquois Iroquois actors