Paul Mooney is worth an estimated $500,000, according to Celebrity Net Worth. Mooney made a name for himself in the comedy world when he wrote for Richard Pryor. The pair collaborated on Pryor's 1982 film "Live on the Sunset Strip" and co-wrote the 1986 movie, "Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling with Rocco Urbisci," per the New York Daily News.

Mooney opened up to NPR in December 2009 about what life was really like before he hit it big. "I was living at a very cheap apartment on Sunset in Hollywood, where Gladys Knight and the Pips stayed," he said. "A bunch of people would come and stay because nobody had any money, and we let them all sleep on the floor and in the bathtub or wherever they wanted to sleep."

Mooney's work spanned decades, and his role as Sam Cooke in the 1978 movie "The Buddy Holly Story" won an Oscar, per the Daily News. According to the Herald Tribune, Mooney wrote for "Sanford & Son" and "Good Times," "which are now considered to be groundbreaking for being the first sitcoms to feature African-American families." Mooney clearly loved comedy and wasn't motivated by money, telling the outlet, "People think you're crazy if you turn money down ... people worship money ... (but) money's an illusion ... because you never see a Brinks truck following a hearse."

Mooney also wrote for "The Patti LaBelle Show, "Roseanne," and even starred in the 2016 movie "The Blacks," per his IMDb.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7XCpKCsr5mbwW%2BvzqZmbWlkbYV3e8eormalpZi1bsPArGScp52asaqtzWanmq2cYrqwu82esGavn6fBqXnArWStoJViwaq5xGamn2WYnsBusMSaq6Fn