"Word Association", also called "Racist Word Association Interview", "Racist Word Association" and "Dead Honky", is a ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

'' sketch first aired on December 13, 1975, featuring

Richard Pryor Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Known for reaching a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, he is widely regarded ...

and

Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He became the breakout cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1976), where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment b ...

Synopsis

At a job interview, the interviewer (Chase) asks the applicant, Mr. Wilson (Pryor), to take a Word Association test. Partway through the test, the interviewer begins using increasingly offensive anti-black racial slurs, to which Wilson reacts with anti-white slurs (including "

honky Honky (also spelled honkey) is a derogatory term used to refer to white people, predominantly heard in the United States. The first recorded use of "honky" in this context may date back to 1946. Etymology The exact origins of the word are gener ...

"). Finally, the interviewer says "

nigger In the English language, ''nigger'' is a racial slur directed at black people. Starting in the 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been increasingly replaced by the euphemistic contraction , notably in cases where ''nigger'' is Use–menti ...

", to which Wilson replies, "''Dead'' honky" and glares at the interviewer, his face twitching. The interviewer, frightened, offers him the job, as well as paid vacation and the highest janitor's salary in the country.

Origin

Authorship of the sketch is disputed, with claims being made both by Chase and by Paul Mooney."Saturday Night Live's" edgiest night: The inside story of Richard Pryor's brilliant evening
at

Salon.com ''Salon'' is an American politically progressive and liberal news and opinion website created in 1995. It publishes articles on U.S. politics, culture, and current events. Content and coverage ''Salon'' covers a variety of topics, includ ...

; excerpted from ''Becoming Richard Pryor'', by Scott Saul, published 2014 According to Mooney, when Pryor agreed to perform on ''Saturday Night Live'', one of his conditions was that Mooney be hired as a scriptwriter. Mooney's interactions with

Lorne Michaels Lorne Michaels (born Lorne David Lipowitz; November 17, 1944) is a Canadian and American television writer and film producer. He created and produced ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1980, 1985–present) and produced the ''Late Night (franchise) ...

and

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

executives were not positive, and he wrote the sketch as a direct response. He also noted that Pryor "despise(d)" Chase:"Saturday Night Live" and Richard Pryor: The untold story behind "SNL's" edgiest sketch ever
at

; excerpted from ''Furious Cool: Richard Pryor and the World That Made Him'', by David Henry and Joe Henry; published 2013 Chase, conversely, has described it as the result of a peaceful collaboration with Pryor, in which the paucity of anti-white slurs, relative to anti-black slurs, was "reflective of the lack of bigotry in ryor"

Reception

In 2014, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' ranked the sketch No. 10 in their list of the 50 "greatest Saturday Night Live sketches of all time", 50 Greatest ‘Saturday Night Live’ Sketches of All Time
at ''

''; published February 23, 2014; retrieved July 16, 2019 while in 2011, ''

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'' ranked it No. 5 in their list of the 10 "most shocking moments"The 10 Most Shocking Moments on Saturday Night Live
by Ross Bonaime; published October 27, 2011; retrieved July 16, 2019 — an opinion shared by

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...

.The 15 Most Shocking Things to Happen on ‘Saturday Night Live’
by Tara Aquino, published February 3, 2015; retrieved July 16, 2019

Don Cheadle Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (, ; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. Known for his roles in film and television, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Don Cheadle, multiple accolades including two Golden Globe Award ...

declared it one of his favorite sketches,'SNL': Don Cheadle Reveals His Favorite Sketches Ahead of Hosting Gig
by Michael Hein, at PopCulture.com; published February 16, 2019; retrieved November 13, 2019 as did

Keegan-Michael Key Keegan-Michael Key (born March 22, 1971) is an American comedian, actor, producer, and writer. He and Jordan Peele co-created and co-starred in the sketch series '' Key & Peele'' (2012–2015) for which he received one Primetime Emmy Award from ...

Key & Peele's Comedy Syllabus
in ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

''; published September 26, 2014; retrieved July 16, 2019 and

Albert Brooks Albert Brooks (born Albert Lawrence Einstein; July 22, 1947) is an American actor, director and screenwriter. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the 1987 comedy-drama film '' Broadcast News' ...

. My Favorite ‘Saturday Night Live’ Sketch: “Word Association” (Racist Interview) and Tina Fey as Sarah Palin
by

, at ''

''; published March 16, 2017; retrieved December 15, 2019 ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

'' described it as " e of (Pryor's) most famous sketches" and a "signature moment() in SNL history",Like ‘Daddy Rich,’ Pryor was a true king
by Michael Ventre, at ''

''; published December 10, 2005; retrieved July 16, 2019 while ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to Nort ...

'' observed that its "climax still feels dangerous and revelatory".The 100 Jokes That Shaped Modern Comedy
by Jesse David Fox, in ''

''; published January 31, 2016; retrieved July 17, 2019 Pryor biographer Scott Saul stated that the use of the phrase ''dead'' honky' "transforms the word association test from a language game into a contest of wills, in which righteous courage is bound to prevail." Cultural historian Nick Marx described this as a transition from "a war of words (into) the threat of bodily harm", which he compared to "an articulation of a range of strategies for black oppositionality — from resentful protest to violent revolt".
Sketch Comedy: Identity, Reflexivity, and American Television
', by Nick Marx; published 2019 by

Indiana University Press Indiana University Press, also known as IU Press, is an academic publisher founded in 1950 at Indiana University that specializes in the humanities and social sciences. Its headquarters are located in Bloomington, Indiana. IU Press publishes ...

The sketch has been cited in academic works on racism. The bad, the good, the misunderstood: The social effects of racial humor
by Saucier, D. A., O'Dea, C. J., & Strain, M. L. (2016). https://doi.org/10.1037/tps0000059Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word
by Randall Kennedy, published 2008 by

Knopf Doubleday Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the follow ...

External links

References

{{Saturday Night Live Saturday Night Live sketches Saturday Night Live in the 1970s Richard Pryor Ethnic and religious slurs African-American-related controversies