In the military, the reason you take the right path is they eliminate other choices. I needed that. They set me straight.

As the older brother, I was expected to make sure no one messed with Eddie when he went to the park. He didn't have to deal with anyone saying, 'I'll get you after school.'

If I look at my family tree and follow every generation before us, going all the way back to the slaves, then Eddie Murphy is the highest achievement as far as my bloodline is concerned. How could you be jealous? You can only be proud, unless you got some serious issues.

I went into the military because I wanted to get an education, not because I wanted to fight anybody.

I don't think there's a person in the industry that wouldn't love to work with Dave Chappelle. That's a no-brainer.

I look at the world and I find the funny in it, because there's funny in everything. No matter how ugly it may be, there's a funny way to look at it.

Charlie Murphy has been around for a long time. I've worked with a lot of exciting artists, and it was a thrill to be around to watch them display their skills.

Everything was a lot more challenging for me because of who my brother was. If I were in the film, someone would had said that I got the part because Eddie's in the film. If I wrote a script, folks would say that I didn't really write that: that Eddie did and I threw my name on it.

I never went around saying who my brother was. Everybody else was doing that.

Don't take life for granted.

Don't take people for granted.

Several of my uncles are comedians. My father is a comedian; my grandfather was known for his jokes. It definitely runs in the family.

What I'm pretty much giving you when you see me onstage is me; it's not a fake character.

I wake up every morning, and I am ecstatic.

I don't have beef with anyone, only martians.

'Chappelle's Show' was like the Tupac of TV shows. It came out, it got everybody's attention, it was a bright shining star, but it burned out, and for some strange reason, it burned out quick.

Richard Pryor - he had stories, he had characters, he had short jokes, and he had bits. He had all those things. Eddie Murphy has all those things, and he can sing. A comedian is a bunch of stuff; it's not just one area.

You have comedians who just do jokes, and they're called comics, not comedians. You have comedians that do bits - a person that has a lot of jokes that have a beginning, a middle and an end, but it's not a real story. And you have someone that does great stories, the one that blends those things together - that person is doing comedy.

Comedy has bits, has jokes, has stories, and it has characters.

I may make you angry or make you feel sorry for me, but in the end, you appreciate my show because it's not one-dimensional.

One thing helps the other. My stand-up helps my writing; my writing helps my stand-up; my stand-up helps my acting. They're all interlocked.

When I first started, it was a dare. Someone basically said, 'You're a tough guy... but I'll bet you won't get on a microphone in front of a bunch of people.' I was terrified, but I did it. Once I broke the ice and got onstage and got some laughs, I thought, 'That's not so bad.'

I guess I must have a good metabolism.

If you can't eat incredible food, then what's the point?

I don't like to go to regular, big stores - I don't like to wear anything anybody else does.

Carolines is the best. It has great sound, you can hear from the front all the way to the back with the same quality. If you want to see the top comics, go to Carolines.

I don't need to wait for someone else to get a bright idea and say, 'I wanna work with this guy.' I can do my own thing and drop it right on the Web and bypass you and your bright idea.

The whole thing with the Rick James story sketch and the Prince story sketch - I recounted my past, you know? - and that's what I was doing. It's not like I sat down and said I want to come up with a great story about Rick James. That stuff really happened.

You make shows, and you don't go into it thinking, 'Our show's going to be number one'; you go into it hoping to stay on the air.

Don't underestimate the power of the Web.

There's only going be one Richard Pryor. You know how many came out after Richard Pryor and died trying to be compared to him? Or Bernie Mac? You got to be like you.

People who know me know that I'm the last person on earth that wants to be somebody else.

I bombed in front of 5,000 people. Anybody that's ever stood in front of 5,000 people that don't like them can tell you, it's an energy associated with that. You don't want to feel that. You ask yourself, 'Do you really really want to do this?'

My background is part of my comedy. Your experiences are where the jokes come from.

I was a bodyguard for somebody I love. That's not a good combination. I was always ready to beat somebody up.

I've been in a lot of different arenas of life.

I didn't go to no school for acting. I learned it all by trial and error.

Nobody gave me anything.

Most of my good friends have fights with me. Those guys know that I was in martial arts for 12 years fighting on the circuit.

I'm always working, and I'm a single parent, so I don't think I have time for stuff most normal people do.

I don't think I have any hobbies.

My name is Charlie Murphy. I was born into this name, and I've been rolling how I've been rolling my whole life.

I have people tell me all the time, 'I was expecting you to be mean.' Why is that? Because you saw me in a movie? That's acting.

If you look at my acting career, I never played a role that was similar to anything my brother played. I was always cast as the bad guy or a gangster, because my brother didn't do those kind of roles.

I didn't want to do anything that could possibly tarnish my brother's career.

Every barbershop has a guy who wrecks shop every time he comes in. He has the whole barbershop laughing. That doesn't mean he's a comedian.

There are many styles of standup, but the comedians I like are people like Dick Gregory and Richard Pryor. Because Richard Pryor told the truth. Chris Rock. I love Chris Rock. He's funny, but he's also poignant. He's not there just to make people laugh; he's there to make people wake up, too.

I wasn't drawn to comedy: it was drawn to me - from fighting in school to going to jail, then joining the military and getting into Hollywood.

I've become a writer, an actor, producing films, and having a TV show. I'm pretty successful and proud of it.

Other comedians got love for me. But don't get it twisted - I'm not a clown, I'm a comedian and work hard as an artist. Clowns go to college.