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Instead, Chappelle famously walked away from the series and a $50 million paycheck. He abruptly left during production in 2006, effectively breaking his contract with Comedy Central. He was reportedly unhappy with the direction the show had taken and needed to step away.
But there has been one person who has been with the comedian through it all and that's his wife, Elaine.
Dave and Elaine Chappelle Prioritize Family Over Money
In an interview with Time, Chappelle spoke about moving to Ohio and walking away from his show, saying, "Coming here, I don't have the distractions of fame. It quiets the ego down. I'm interested in the kind of person I've got to become. I want to be well-rounded, and the industry is a place of extremes. I want to be well-balanced. I've got to check my intentions, man.”
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There was much speculation during this time in Chappelle’s life. Fans couldn’t fathom the idea that he’d walk away from his popular and successful show and $50 million. People thought he must have a drug or alcohol problem. Others thought it was a mental health issue that led comedian Dave Chappelle to walk away from it all. That wasn’t the case at all. Chappelle simply reprioritized his life in a way that was better for himself and his family.
Through the media circus that followed Dave Chappelle’s wife Elaine Mendoza stood by him. Dave and Elaine have been married for 21 years. They tied the knot in 2001 and have two sons, Sulayman and Ibrahim, and one daughter, Sanaa.
Who is Elaine Chappelle?
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Dave Chappelle’s wife Elaine Mendoza was born on August 31, 1974, to devout Christian Filipino parents. (Dave converted to Islam in 1991.) She grew up in Brooklyn and according to various sources, once planned to become a professional chef. Dave and Elaine Chappelle met more than 20 years ago, so she would have been in her 20s. After meeting and falling in love with Dave Chappelle, Elaine chose to devote herself to raising the couple’s three children.
How Did Dave Chappelle and Elaine Meet?
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During an interview with Howard Stern in the early 2000s, Dave Chappelle revealed that he met his then-girlfriend Elaine Mendoza in Brooklyn and at the time he said she was pregnant with his baby. He said that he was immediately interested in her, but she took some time to get to know Dave before committing to the relationship.
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He also revealed that she was Filipino, which led Stern and his co-host Robin Quivers to make some distasteful jokes about Asian stereotypes. Up until this point Dave Chappelle had been a regular guest on Stern’s show and even credited the exposure Stern gave him with helping his career. After they made those so-called jokes about the future Elaine Chappelle, he has continually refused to ever appear on Stern’s show again. Though he publicly says it’s because the show tapes too early in the morning, it feels like he's showing where his loyalties lie – with his wife Elaine Chappelle.
Elaine is Dave Chappelle’s Support System
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Dave and Elaine Chappelle have a strong marriage that has lasted more than two decades so far. Over the years, Dave Chappelle has made many comments about how his wife is his support system. In his final interview with Howard Stern, Chappelle said, “She was with me when I was poor.”
For a celebrity like Chappelle, it is especially important to have a strong support system in place. Fans and the media can be brutal to a public figure like Elaine Chappelle’s husband. She has been with Dave through some rocky parts of his career including when he walked away from Chappelle’s Show and the more recent controversy over the anti-trans content in his standup routine.
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He appreciates the perspective Elaine Chappelle brings to his life and said, "My wife, if it gets real bad, she’ll let me know, like, ‘Oh, you should look into this.’ But for the most part, I try not to pay attention to it because you don’t want to be careful as a comedian. I try to keep my business small enough so it can still be authentic enough.”
Speaking of that $50 million Chappelle walked away from when he quit Chapelle’s Show and voided his contract with Comedy Central – Chappelle did an interview with Conan O’Brien in 2006 during which he talked about it, saying, “My wife’s still a little salty… She’s not mad at me, but don’t think you’re going to walk away from $50 million and your wife’s just gonna be cool with it.”
Where the Married Couple is Today
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Dave and Elaine Chappelle and their three children live on a 65-acre farm in Yellow Springs, Ohio, which is located about 20 miles from the Dayton Metropolitan area. In 2006, Chappelle said, “I used to be cable’s hottest star and now I’m just a Yellow Springs guy. It turns out you don't need $50 million to live around these parts, just a nice smile and a kind way about you. You guys are the best neighbors ever. That's why I came back and that's why I'm staying.”
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Chappelle grew up in Yellow Springs, where his father was the dean of students at Antioch College.
By all accounts, Dave and Elaine Chappelle are living a peaceful, quiet, and normal life in Ohio with their children. She keeps out of the spotlight and doesn’t have any social media accounts. They appear to be a grounded couple with mutual love and respect for each other and that’s a beautiful thing.
Why Pessimism is a Killer (and How to Let it Go)
When we’re born, we’re a clean slate. All the potential and possibilities of the world are open to us.
However, as we grow up things happen to us that lead us to feel defeated and lose that sense of excitement and wonder for life. When this happens, the wound needs to be healed, otherwise, you risk living out the rest of your life unhappy and without peace.
Admittedly, this is easier said than done. However, it is no less important. To live out the rest of your life in this way is the same fate as death, so it’s critical you begin now to uncover the wound which has caused this negative outlook and begin the healing process.
Why Pessimism is a Killer (and How to Let it Go)
When I look into my son’s eyes I see a blinding positivity that is so pure. As a parent, it can be almost heartbreaking to imagine that, one day, that positive outlook will be challenged.
A pessimistic attitude isn’t anyone’s base state (and I’m not talking about clinical depression). This is a state which is often built up over years of setbacks and disappointments to shape our very outlook on life.
Sometimes, we can’t help it. The reality is life isn’t fair and sometimes we experience a combination of setbacks, disappointments, and tragedies that would bring anyone to their knees. But one thing is universal: no matter where this outlook came from, it can destroy any chance you have of ever being happy and successful until you’ve uncovered the cause and eradicated it.
At best, it leads you to question yourself constantly and think that nothing good ever comes your way, leading you to stop looking for opportunity. At its worst, everything you do you (often unconsciously) try to sabotage because you expect and fear failure and rarely try your best at anything.
It happens to all of us at some point, and when it does, you have two choices:
The reality is, you only have those two choices. I know, sometimes we want to kick and scream a little. I’ve felt the same way. Sometimes, we want to blame someone. I’ve felt that way too. However, none of that will get you anywhere because the solution lies inside of you, not outside in the world.
So, if you’re ready to get up and show the world who’s boss, this is for you.
How to let it go
Please, whatever you do, don’t ever listen to that guy or girl who tells you, “you just need to let it go,” as if doing so was some instantaneous act of will.
It’s true, it’s not so easy as to just “let it go”. However, there is a clear and dependable path to getting out of this place of paralyzing pessimism and into a life of greater confidence and positivity. It’s not a perfect science, but I’ve found three things to be critical in the path to uncovering these difficult and even painful experiences and changing your set point from pessimistic to optimistic.
1. Begin uncovering the pain
First, it’s important to understand that there are certain root experiences that have caused this outlook. Because of this, it can be very helpful to uncover any feelings you have in connection with the experiences (but it’s not always required).
Mindfulness meditation is a great tool because it’s all about developing clarity and uncovering the inner dialogue, the source of our negative self-talk which has been caused by these root experiences. Alternatively, you can get professional help if you’d prefer to have someone to speak with regularly and aren’t confident going it alone (and there’s nothing wrong with that).
Whatever route you go it’s important to start putting real work into gaining clarity about your life, what you’ve gone through, and what could have contributed to this outlook.
2. Bring more positivity into your life
Once you’ve begun gaining clarity, you need to start tipping the scales. It’s easy to live convinced that there’s no good in the world and that opportunity only leads to tragedy or corruption, but if you look around you’ll find enough examples to prove that’s not the case at all. Even a single example of love or goodness can completely obliterate your preconceived notions if you can experience it first-hand.
Ways to do this include:
3. Be honest with yourself (and patient)
Once you’ve begun the process of uncovering your negative self-talk and the experiences that have contributed to it and started to influence the mind with stories and examples of positivity and success in people, all that’s left is to be open and honest with yourself throughout the process.
By shifting your mindset to one that is less pessimistic and more optimistic, you’re going to be challenged by truths that you may not want to face or admit. However, it’s critical that you allow yourself to be open to everything you’re going through if you ever hope to make real change.
This includes the positive stories and examples you’ll come across. Your pessimism will often want to reject certain stories especially if they resemble in some way your own challenges. This can then either be a useful experience for finding clues about your own challenges or just another chance at burying any opportunity for change. The choice is always up to you.
It’s also important to be patient along the way because this whole thing is a process. Significant experiences that root deep within us and go so far as to affect our outlook on life can dig real deep, meaning it will take time for us to dig them out. If you can be open, honest, and patient with yourself, though, you can begin to find freedom and space to breathe that you haven’t felt in some time.
Pessimism can be a real killer. If left untreated, it can destroy all ambition and leave you feeling defeated. A healthy dose of pessimism every now and then is healthy, but a deep-rooted sense of pessimism towards yourself can be altogether killer.
However, by opening up to yourself and diving in you can begin to uncover the experiences that shaped your pessimistic outlook and begin to unearth them, reframing your outlook and changing the script of your life.