UPDATED 8/28/19: Paul Mooney has canceled at least one appearance in wake of his sexual abuse scandal.
A day after Richard Pryor Jr. suggested he was molested by Mooney as a teen, the 78-year-old comedian pulled out of his Wednesday night hosting gig at the Atlanta Comedy Theater. TMZ reported the news just hours before the show was to take place, sharing a photo of sign posted at the venue.
"ATTENTION!! Paul Mooney is NOT on show tonight due to health reasons," the message read. "We will transfer purchase to Faizon Love or Donnell Rawlings. Let box office know."
The owner of the comedy club has since confirmed he is offering full refunds for Wednesday night's show and is also handing out free tickets for upcoming events as a form of compensation.
A representative for Mooney told TMZ that the comedian has decided to cancel all his events that were scheduled within the next few weeks.
See original story below.
Richard Pryor Jr. has seemingly confirmed the sexual misconduct claims against Paul Mooney, the comedian who is accused of "violating" him decades ago.
The allegations were fueled by a recently published video featuring Rashon Kahn, the former bodyguard of Richard Pryor Sr. Khan claimed Pryor Sr. and Mooney's personal and professional relationship began deteriorating around 1986, because "Mooney had fucked Richard's son by that time." Khan, who is promoting his forthcoming tell-all book, Everything Wasn't Funny, did not indicate when the purported "violation" took place; however, Richard Jr. has indicated it happened when he was under age.
"Whatever happened in my life, it happened when I was young. Way before the '80s," Pryor Jr. told TMZ when asked about the allegations against Mooney.
The cameraman then questioned whether the sexual relationship was consensual, to which Richard Jr. replied: "How can any relationship be consensual if I was a teenager?"
The 58-year-old refused to speak on the claims that his late father had put a $1 million hit on Mooney for the alleged molestation.
Mooney's representative has continued to deny the allegations, telling TMZ that Khan's story doesn't add up. The representative highlights the fact that Mooney and Richard Sr. were seen hanging out as late as the 1990s, about 20 years after Khan claims their relationship had gone sour. The rep also points out that Richard Jr. never mentioned Mooney by name when he was speaking to TMZ about the nonconsensual sex.
