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Rudy Ray Moore
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===Dolemite records and wider acclaim=== By his own account, Moore was working at the world famous [[John Dolphin (music producer)#Dolphin's of Hollywood|Dolphin's of Hollywood]] record store in Los Angeles in 1970 when he began hearing obscene stories of "Dolemite" recounted by a local man named Rico. Moore recorded a number of street poets, including [[Big Brown (poet)|Big Brown]] who, before he moved to Los Angeles, had been an influence on [[Bob Dylan]], among other artists, while living in Greenwich Village. (Dylan said Brown's poetry was the best poetry he had ever heard.)<ref>{{cite web |title=Bill Flanagan interviewed Bob Dylan in New York in March 1985 for his 1985 book "Written In My Soul." |url=https://www.interferenza.net/bcs/interw/85-mar.htm |access-date=2020-01-18}}</ref> In 1973, Moore produced Brown's album, ''The First Man of Poetry, Big Brown: Between Heaven and Hell''. According to Moore, the genesis for his decision to develop the "Dolemite" character came when he invited Rico into Dolphin's, where he let him perform:<ref>Interview with Moore on DVD "The Legend of Dolemite: Bigger and Badder"</ref> {{blockquote|Rico, you do "Dolemite", I'm gonna give you some money for soup. He did "Dolemite" in the middle of the floor in the store I was working and the people just rolled. So I thought then, he's not a professional; I'm a professional comedian. What if I did "Dolemite"? Sure enough, I invited him to my house, give him a little reefer and some wine. He put "Dolemite" on tape, I recorded it, the rest is history.}} Moore began recording the stories, and assumed the role of "Dolemite" in his club act and on recordings.<ref name=latimes>[https://web.archive.org/web/20081231052832/http://articles.latimes.com/2008/oct/21/local/me-moore21 Jocelyn Y Stewart, "Obituary: Rudy Ray Moore", ''Los Angeles Times'', 21 October 2008]. Retrieved February 23, 2014</ref> In 1970β71 he recorded three albums of material, ''Eat Out More Often'', ''This Pussy Belongs To Me'', and ''The Dirty Dozens'', where "with [[jazz]] and R&B musicians playing in the background, [Moore] would recite raunchy, sexually explicit rhymes that often had to do with [[pimps]], prostitutes, players, and hustlers."<ref>[https://www.allmusic.com/album/this-pussy-belongs-to-me-mw0000094218 Alex Henderson, Review of ''This Pussy Belongs To Me'' at Allmusic.com]. Retrieved February 23, 2014</ref> Moore was influenced by more mainstream comedians such as [[Redd Foxx]] and [[Richard Pryor]], as well as by traditions such as [[the Dozens]]. The recordings were usually made in Moore's apartment, with friends in attendance to give a party atmosphere. The album covers and contents were often too racy to be put on display in record stores,<ref name=latimes/> but the records became popular through word of mouth and were highly successful in Black American communities,<ref name=NYT/> where his "warped wit and anti-establishment outlook" were embraced.<ref name=chicago/>
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