Dick Gregory: Fans Hail Comedian, Activist for ‘Fighting the Good Fight’
![](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/.aAZJYJrhg0fyOD_0SP8MQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD03MDA-/https://s.yimg.com/os/en_US/Entertainment/Variety/civil-rights-activist-dick-gregory.jpg)
Tributes were quick to pour in Saturday night for Dick Gregory, the groundbreaking comedian and civil rights activist who died in Washington, D.C. at the age of 84.
Friends and fans hailed Gregory’s legacy as a social justice warrior who turned his focus to the movement rather than his comedy career after he endured the pain of losing friends and fellow activists such as Medgar Evers and Martin Luther King Jr. to violence in the 1960s.
I was honored to celebrate Dick Gregory's last birthday at @CarolinesonBway. Thanks for 60+ years of laughter & for fighting the good fight. pic.twitter.com/elvC2qivRK
— George Wallace (@MrGeorgeWallace) August 20, 2017
You taught us and loved us. Thank you, #DickGregory. pic.twitter.com/uYytZ3PIKy
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) August 20, 2017
He taught us how to laugh. He taught us how to fight.He taught us how to live.Dick Gregory was committed to justice.I miss him already. #RIP pic.twitter.com/3CfpM2O17D
— Rev Jesse Jackson Sr (@RevJJackson) August 20, 2017
About being black in America Dick Gregory has passed away, Condolences to his family and to us who won't have his insight 2 lean on
R.I.P— Whoopi Goldberg (@WhoopiGoldberg) August 20, 2017
I've known Dick Gregory since I was 16 years old. A true, committed, and consistent freedom fighter. May he Rest In Peace. pic.twitter.com/4OelJucrbF
— Reverend Al Sharpton (@TheRevAl) August 20, 2017
Dick Gregory gave me a great compliment after I told"The Aristocrats" at the Hugh Hefner Roast. R.I.P. Dick Gregory
— Gilbert Gottfried (@RealGilbert) August 20, 2017
#Dick Gregory was the greatest comedian of his era by far. When he dedicated his life to "the movement" he never looked back.
— Lawrence O'Donnell (@Lawrence) August 20, 2017
The incredible #DickGregory has passed away: https://t.co/CPE2bPyBhy Rest in peace to a beloved activist. pic.twitter.com/LOzlAezE1e
— Rickey Smiley (@RickeySmiley) August 20, 2017
Get more from Variety and Variety411: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter