Rudy Ray Moore

AKRON, Ohio - Rudy Ray Moore, a raunchy 1970s comedian who played the title role of a flashy pimp in the movie "Dolemite" and influenced a generation of rappers, died Sunday. He was 81. Moore died at an Akron nursing home from complications of diabetes, said his brother, Gerald Moore. Rudy Ray Moore was part of the heyday of black "party records." His stage personality featured blunt sex routines but, unlike contemporaries Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor, he never crossed over to mainstream white audiences. Moore said he developed the style, later a feature of rap music, by listening to men sitting outside joints "drinking beer and lying and talking (expletive)." Moore played the fast-talking pimp and title character in the 1975 film "Dolemite." In later years, Moore collaborated with 2 Live Crew, Big Daddy Kane and Snoop Dogg. Moore's other acting credits included "The Human Tornado" in 1976 and "Disco Godfather" in 1979.