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

stand-up comedians Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

, to appear on major television shows such as the Richard Pryor Show, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Show with David Letterman, Roseanne and Moesha. 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 Indian reservation, reservation spans parts of two counties west of the Green Bay, Wisconsin, Green Bay metropolitan area. The reservation was establishe ...

, with heritage from the Mohawk and Cree Nations. He wrote for the television series ''

Roseanne ''Roseanne'' is an American sitcom television series created by Matt Williams and Roseanne Barr which aired on ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May 22, 2018. The show stars Barr as Roseann ...

'' 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, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

. 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 with Johnny Carson.

Early life and education

Born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

in 1951, he moved as a child with his family when they returned to their homestead on the

Oneida reservation The Oneida Indian Nation (OIN) or Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in the United States. The tribe is headquartered in Verona, New York, where the tribe originated and held its historic territory long before Europe ...

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, USA. Built in 1960, it serves students in the 9th to the 12th grade. The school's mascot is the Phantom. The Phantoms compete in the Bay Conference. History In 20 ...

and enrolled at

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

, 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 (La MaMa E.T.C.) is an Off-Off-Broadway theatre founded in 1961 by Ellen Stewart, African-American theatre director, producer, and fashion designer. Located in Manhattan's East Village, the theatre began in the ...

in the East Village of Manhattan, where the ensemble was

in residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

. 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 ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

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 ''

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 ...

'' in 1977. He also appeared on ''

The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' was an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the ''Tonight Show'' franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, 1 ...

'',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 of northeastern Wisconsin, including Green Bay. It was founded as the ''Green Bay Gazette'' in 1866 as a weekly paper, becoming a daily newspaper in 1871. The ''Green Ba ...

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

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...

'', and made multiple appearances on ''

Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on NBC, the first iteration of the ''Late Night'' franchise. It premiered on February 1, 1982, and was produced by Letterman's production company ...

''. 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 broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

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 a Native American grassroots movement which was founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota in July 1968, initially centered in urban areas in order to address systemic issues of poverty, discrimination, and police ...

activist

Dennis Banks Dennis Banks (April 12, 1937, in Ojibwe – 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 urb ...

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

Harold of Orange ''Harold of Orange'' is a short film/comedy 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 is a male Germanic given name meaning "rule of the spear" from the prefix ''ger-'' ("spear") and suffix ''-wald'' ("rule"). Variants include the English given name Jerrold, the feminine nickname Jeri and the Welsh language Gerallt and Iri ...

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, central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern Africa and ...

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

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 filmmaker Neil Diamond, Catherine Bainbridge, and Jeremiah Hayes that explores the portrayal of Native Americans in film. ''Reel Injun'' is illustrated with excerpts from clas ...

'' ( documentary; 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 or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

) * 2009: ''The Longest Walk Through Hollywood'' (documentary) * 2004–2006: ''

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

'' * 2005: CBC

Winnipeg Comedy Festival The Winnipeg Comedy Festival is an annual comedy festival, held in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Created by the Osborne Village Cultural Centre in collaboration with CBC Radio, performances from the festival are also broadcast as a radio series on CBC Radio ...

(

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

) * 2004: ''

City Confidential ''City Confidential'' is an American documentary television show, originally transmitted on the A&E Network, which singled out a community during each episode and investigated a crime that had occurred there. Rather than being a straightforward ...

'' (

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 Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

) * 1996: ''

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

'' (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 s ...

'' (television series) * 1992: ''

'' * 1986: ''Impure Thoughts'' * 1985: ''

MacGruder and Loud ''MacGruder and Loud'' is an American crime drama from Aaron Spelling Productions that aired on ABC from January 20 to April 30, 1985. Premise The series stars John Getz and Kathryn Harrold as married police officers Malcolm MacGruder and Jen ...

'' (television series) * 1985: ''Spenser'' (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 action-adventure television series created by Kenneth Johnson based on the 1972 novel ''Cyborg'' by Martin Caidin, starring Lindsay Wagner that aired from January 14, 1976, to May 13, 1978. ' ...

'' (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 tiredness. ...

References

External links

*
Hill's page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Charlie 1951 births 2013 deaths Deaths from lymphoma 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 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 Michigan Native American screenwriters 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male writers Native American people from Michigan