On Feb. 19 Comedy Central premiered Patrice O’Neal: Killing Is Easy, a full-length documentary on the caustic but honest comedian who died way too young — at age 41 — in 2011. Produced in collaboration with Bill Burr’s All Things Comedy, the doc features interviews with the comics O’Neal worked with (and often roasted the hell out of) back in the day — including Burr, Kevin Hart, Denis Leary and Colin Quinn. You also get interviews with family and friends who knew the compassionate, complicated side of O’Neal, a man who felt he was on borrowed time due to diabetes, and still tried to make a lasting dent in the comedy world. Once you’ve watched the doc (which can be viewed on the Comedy Central app, video on demand and download-to-own platforms), you might wanna head over to YouTube and do a deep dive. I recommend watching Patrice O’Neal: Elephant in the Room, the stand-up special he filmed not too long before his death. After that, check out old episodes of Tough Crowd With Colin Quinn, the brilliant but short-lived Comedy Central panel show that showcased O’Neal at his loudmouthed finest. CRAIG D. LINDSEY
