(CNN) From its debut on “Saturday Night Live” to its first stand-up special “Bring the Pain” and then to a landmark event live on Netflix, Chris Rock’s comedy has shaped popular culture for more than three decades.
On Saturday, Rock’s latest special, “Selective Outrage,” will mark the first live global event to air on Netflix. A trailer for specials Rock sat in a dressing room when he knocked on the door, announcing, “Chris, they’re ready for you.”
Ahead of the main event, here are five times Rock was the funniest.
“Bigger and Blacker” (1999)
Rock tackles several big topics like racism and gun control in this special, released shortly after the Columbine massacre.
He talked about guns and ammunition being too accessible and suggested a solution.
“If a bullet cost $5,000, there would be no more innocent bystanders,” Rock said.
Election Night Sketch on ‘Saturday Night Live’ (2016)
Rock appeared as a cast member on “SNL” from 1990 to 1993 and has hosted the show three times since. In 2016, just after Donald Trump was elected President of the United States, Rock made a surprise appearance in a skit alongside the evening’s host, Dave Chappelle.
The pair attended election night in the skit, where a group of white guests commented on how shocked they were by the results of the presidential election.
Rock and Chappelle are shocked that the guests were so ignorant.
Appearance from ‘Late Show with David Letterman’ (2010)
Rock has appeared on the talk show several times, but a 2010 appearance stands out. At the time, Letterman was recovering from a public scandal after admitting he had intimate relationships with some female employees. The host was under bad weather and was losing his voice, so Rock asked him why he didn’t take a few days off.
“My wife is still mad at you, isn’t she?” Rock joked. “Why go back to Connecticut with a mean woman? ‘I might as well stay here and do the show speechless.’ I love you honey I’ve been there, Dave I get sick on the road And if my wife’s mad at me I add a few shows.
He Admits His Own Faults (2018)
In his “Tamborine” special, Rock came to terms with his divorce from Malaak Compton-Rock, admitting in his set, “I was not a good husband.”
He went on to explain why.
“When you’re in a relationship, you’re in a band,” Rock said. “And when you’re in a band, you have roles that you play in the band. Sometimes you sing and sometimes you’re tambourine. And if you’re tambourine, play it right…because no one wants see a crazy tambourine player.”
OJ Simpson (1996)
Rock’s 1996 TV special “Bring the Pain” made him famous.
He talked about the OJ Simpson trial.
“Black people are too happy, white people too angry,” Rock said of Simpson’s acquittal. “I haven’t seen white people this angry since they canceled ‘M*A*S*H’.
“It was about fame. If OJ wasn’t famous, he’d be in jail right now,” Rock said. “If OJ drove a bus, he wouldn’t even be OJ. He would be Orenthal, the murderer driving the bus.”
Chris Rock’s “Selective Outrage” premieres March 4 at 10 p.m. ET on Netflix.