Publisher Kris Millegan will release This Day in Comedy: The Ethnic Encyclopedia of Laughter through his TrineDay-Star Books on December 3, 2019.
Stand-up comedian Darryl Littleton and Humor Mill Publisher Frank Holder couldn’t take it anymore: Where was a comprehensive review of African American contributions to the world of comedy? Finding none, they decided to write their own and hence This Day in Comedy: The Ethnic Encyclopedia of Laughter is now the first-ever encyclopedia of diversity in the craft of comedy.
Comedy, which Mr. Littleton considers the hardest of all the arts, has long been considered frivolous and devoid of serious craft. This definitive collection of landmark events, facts, figures, bios, photos, quotes and milestones in American ethnic comedy will change all that. Not only is it a detailed source guide to African-American, Latin, Asian, Native-American and Middle Eastern comedy, but innovative in its presentation.
Instead of This Day in Comedy being a stodgy collection of humorous information, it’s an exhilarating journey using 21st Century sensibilities. This book incorporates video links to bring the experience of the entertainers, films, TV shows and rare concert footage to life for the reader; lending a greater appreciation to the subject matter and allowing the text to truly come alive. The legends of the genre are given their proper place in history with insightful biographies and then afforded the space to display the talent readers only imagined. Want to know why this person or event is important? Just look!
This Day in Comedy is not just an encyclopedia, but a celebration of comedy. Every day of the year something happened in the world of comedy and we highlight them. In humorous prose the book takes us through the often-neglected sub-cultures of comedy in America, acknowledging the inclusiveness of the performers, shows and films that made this art form so vital to us and deserves chronicling and preservation.
This encyclopedia offers rare, and in some cases, never-before-seen photos and obscure textual facts making it an indispensable comedy essential. We all grew up on some form of comedy no matter what generation you’re from and each of these pages will restore fond memories or invigorate new ones.
About the Authors:
Darryl Littleton is an accomplished stand-up comedian, author and producer. He’s the Associate Curator for The Comedy Hall of Fame and an Emmy nominated writer for his work on the documentary, “Joan Rivers: Exit Laughing”. His first book, “Black Comedians on Black Comedy” was an instant classic, taught as part of the curriculum at USC and adapted into the Showtime documentary, “Why We Laugh”, executive produced by Littleton and directed by Robert Townsend.
Littleton began his comedy career writing sketches for “The Tom Joyner Morning Show” on CBS Radio. Soon afterwards he became a regular at the world-famous Comedy Store, adopted the stage name, “D’Militant” and landed a job as D. L. Hughley’s exclusive writer when he hosted BET’s “Comic View”. Darryl was promoted to writer/producer and also penned material for Cedric the Entertainer, Sommore and Don DC Curry.
Littleton’s television credits include Robert Townsend’s WB sitcom, “The Parent Hood”, “Townsend Television” for Fox, HBO’s “Def Comedy Jam”, Comedy Central’s “Make Me Laugh”, Martin Lawrence’s “1st Amendment”, Telemundo’s “Loco Comedy Jam”, Byron Allen’s “Comic’s Unleashed”, “Unsung: The Jeffersons” where he was the go-to expert on 70’s sitcoms and ABC’s “America’s Funniest People” where he was the Grand Prize Winner.
Darryl Littleton toured Europe and Asia as a stand-up comedian entertaining US military troops, released 2 comedy CDs, worked as a commentator for NPR, toured as a public speaker, produced “Black & Blue: The Laff Records Collection” and published six additional books as well as the satirical graphic novel, “1 Broke Activist: The Adventures of D’Militant – Mein Trump“.
Frank Holder is the Founder and Publisher of the Humor Mill Magazine, an urban comedy and entertainment on-line digital magazine distributed to over 1.3 million email subscribers. Since its launch over nine years ago and with the addition of the humormillmag.com website, it is now the leading urban comedy website in the industry.
The Humor Mill is known for being a gateway to introducing unknown comedians to the general public. Since its inception, they have introduced thousands of emerging comedians, while sharing in-depth interviews, and exclusives for their audience.
Holder holds degrees in communication and was a Program and Music Director on such radio stations as WRBB, WERS, WZOU and WMJX. Holder recently launched The Minority Report, which is The State of Urban News & Affairs for the minority community and he’s in pre-production on The Humor Mill Comedy Festival which is set to launch in November of 2020.
“This Day in Comedy: The Ethnic Encyclopedia of Laughter” will be like no other book in your collection and once you add it you’ll never look at January to December quite the same way again.
A sequel to the 2004 comedy Johnson Family Vacation is in the works at Fox Searchlight.
Johnson Family Celebration will pick up nearly two decades after the events of the original film, and will see the return of Cedric the Entertainer as Nate Johnson, the well-meaning patriarch of the Johnson family that embarked on an ill-fated cross-country road trip. (Family Vacation grossed $31 million in theaters in 2004.)
Along with DeVon Franklin and his Franklin Entertainment banner, Cedric will produce with Eric Rhone via his A Bird and A Bear Entertainment. Michael Elliot — the writer behind Like Mike and Just Wright — will pen the sequel.
Taylor Friedman will oversee for the studio. Zahra Phillips will oversee for Franklin Entertainment.
Franklin was most recently in theaters with faith-based film Breakthrough, which grossed an impressive $50 million at the global box office. He is repped by WME and Hansen Jacobsen.
Cedric the Entertainer and A Bird and a Bear are repped by CAA, Visions Management and Del Shaw. Elliot is repped by Jackoway Austen.
Raedio, the new label co-founded by Emmy-nominated actress-producer-writer Issa Rae, and Atlantic Records have announced a new partnership, which kicks off with today’s release of the new single, “Kinda Love,” by singer-rapper TeaMarrr. The companion visual, directed by child (Ari Lennox, Lucky Daye), features cameos from Rae and comedian Jessie Woo — watch it below.
Formed earlier this year, Raedio serves artists and creators at the highest level as an “audio everywhere company,” according to the announcement. The label also is a platform to align acts with film and television projects, commercials, podcasts, and other endeavors.
Rae has maintained a close connection to the music world throughout her career. Her Peabody Award-winning HBO series “Insecure” has featured the work of female, independent or Los Angeles-based artists including Jazmine Sullivan, SZA, City Girls, Saweetie, Radiant Children, and more. Indeed, Rae’s emphasis on the importance of soundtracks dates back to her early web series, including “The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl.”
TeaMarrr (the three “r”s are not a typo) is a Boston-born, Los Angeles-based, Haitian-American singer-songwriter who broke through last year with the single “One Job” and its eye-popping video, which racked up more than 1.2 million streams and caught the attention of Rae, who signed her as the new label’s flagship artist. TeaMarrr’s forthright lyrics, melodic ability and elaborate choreography are all on display in the brand-new “Kinda Love” video, which is the first fruit of her alliance with Rae — watch it below.
“Music has always been an essential part of every project I do and working with emerging talent is a personal passion,” Rae said. “Raedio allows me to continue that work within the music industry and audio entertainment space. The Atlantic Records team are innovators in terms of shifting and shaping culture. I’m excited to join forces with them to discover new artists,”
“Issa Rae is a next-level, future-thinking creative force who’s been breaking down cultural barriers and conquering one field after another,” said Atlantic Chairman & COO Julie Greenwald. “She’s made music a central character in her artistic evolution, and now she’s brought all that amazing passion, inspiration, and taste to the formation of Raedio. We’re thrilled to be partnering with Issa and her team on this exciting new venture, and TeaMarrr is the perfect artist to launch with.”
Raedio also provides music supervision services for HBO’s “A Black Lady Sketch Show.” The Raedio team, led by Rae’s longtime business development executive and now President, Benoni Tagoe, champions the next generation of artists and presents a progressive paradigm for the music industry.
Source: Variety
Naomie Harris is in talks to play Spider-Man villain Shriek in Sony’s “Venom 2,” with Tom Hardy returning as the titular anti-hero.
Andy Serkis is on board to direct, with Michelle Williams and Woody Harrelson also reprising their roles.
The original film was a huge hit for the studio when it premiered in 2018, grossing $213 million at the domestic box office and a massive $855 million worldwide. It followed Hardy as Eddie Brock, a journalist who becomes host to the alien entity known as Venom.
Shriek is Carnage’s romantic interest in the comics so she’s bound to team with Harrelson in this movie to face off against Hardy’s Venom.
Sony recently dated an untitled Marvel sequel for October 2020, which superhero enthusiasts are speculating is “Venom 2,” possibly giving it the same release date as its predecessor.
Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach and Amy Pascal will return as producers, alongside Hutch Parker. Kelly Marcel is penning the script.
Harris, who was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in “Moonlight,” can next be seen in the Screen Gems thriller “Black and Blue,” and is set to reprise her role as Eve Moneypenny in the new James Bond pic “No Time to Die.” She is currently filming the HBO/Sky co-production “The Third Day” opposite Jude Law.
Harris is repped by Untitled Entertainment, WME, Artists Partnership and Ziffren Brittenham.
Sony had no comment on the casting negotiations.
Oscar winner Forest Whitaker and Marlon Wayans have joined Jennifer Hudson in MGM’s Aretha Franklin biopic, Respect.
Also joining the production are Broadway star Audra McDonald, recording superstar Mary J. Blige, Broadway actors Saycon Sengbloh and Hailey Kilgore, as well as Marc Maron, Tate Donavan, Tituss Burgess, and newcomer Skye Dakota Turner.
Liesl Tommy, a Tony winner best known for her stage work, is directing the drama which follows the Queen of Soul’s rise to fame in the 1960s and 1970s and chronicles her abusive marriage. Hudson is portraying Franklin.
Whitaker will play Franklin’s father, a Baptist minister and popular preacher who was unfaithful to his wife.
Wayans will play Ted White, Franklin’s first husband whom she married when she was 19 and who was abusive.
McDonald will play Franklin’s mother. Sengbloh will play her elder sister, Erma, while Kilgore will play her sister Carolyn.
Blige will play Dinah Washington, with Burgess playing Reverend Dr. James Cleveland, Maron playing legendary Atlantic Records music producer Jerry Wexler.
Turner, who appeared on Broadway’s Young Anna Mae in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, will play young Aretha.
Said Tommy regarding her cast: “I am thrilled with the incredibly talented cast we have assembled for our film, and I’m so proud that Ms. Franklin entrusted us to tell her story and to share it with the world. As a storyteller, hers is the kind of story we all dream of telling. Her music has inspired me since I was a little girl, and the milestones of her life and career have shown us all how to strive and thrive. To have this powerhouse group of actors – and the phenomenal talent of Jennifer Hudson in this iconic role – means we have the chance of making this film as transcendent as her glorious life and legacy.”
Tradecrafts’ Scott Bernstein (Straight Outta Compton) and Harvey Mason, Jr., a music producer who has worked with both Hudson and Franklin, will produce.
The film will feature the songs Respect; I Say A Little Prayer; Think; (You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman; You’ve Got A Friend; Dr. Feelgood; Do Right Woman, Do Right Man; Spanish Harlem; and Young, Gifted and Black. The film will also feature Ain’t No Way; Precious Lord; There’s A Fountain Filled With Blood; Amazing Grace; and Chain of Fools.
Jonathan Glickman and Adam Rosenberg are overseeing the project on behalf of the studio.
Whitaker, who won an Oscar portraying Idi Amin in Last King of Scotland, currently stars in Godfather of Harlem, Epix’s prequel to the crime film American Gangster.
Wayans is coming off Sextuplets, his Netflix comedy that debuted to over 50 million views in a little over a week, according to sources. He also produced the movie via his Ugly Baby Productions and starred as seven characters. Respect continues his dramatic push as he recently wrapped On the Rocks, Sofia Coppola’s drama starring Jenny Slate and Rashida Jones.
Whitaker is repped by WME, Brillstein Entertainment, and Ziffren Brittenham. Wayans is repped by 3 Arts Entertainment, WME and Lawrence Kopeikin and Kevin Yorn of Morris Yorn.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
DeWanda Wise, best known for her breakout role in Netflix’s “She’s Gotta Have It,” has landed a leading role in the third installment of Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment’s “Jurassic World” saga.
She joins Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, who will reprise their roles from the previous films, as well as Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, who starred in the original mega-hit “Jurassic Park.” Mamoudou Athie also recently joined the cast.
Colin Trevorrow, who helmed the first “Jurassic World,” is returning to direct the pic, which he co-wrote with Emily Carmichael. The script is based on a story by Trevorrow and Derek Connolly, who penned the previous two scripts. The recent casting news comes on the heels of Trevorrow’s “Jurassic World” short film “Battle at Big Rock,” which earned rave reviews and a massive response from Social media in anticipation of the next film.
Steven Spielberg and Trevorrow return to executive produce, once again partnering with producers Frank Marshall and Pat Crowley. Universal’s senior vice president of production Sara Scott is overseeing production on behalf of the studio.
Trevorrow directed 2015’s “Jurassic World,” which went on to gross $1.67 billion worldwide and is the sixth-highest-grossing film in cinema history. Trevorrow will also continue to consult with Spielberg and Marshall on the management of the growing “Jurassic” brand, including video games, toys, novels, animated Lego series and theme parks.
Besides her role in “She’s Gotta Have It,” Wise has also recently appeared in the film “Someone Great.” She is repped by CAA and attorney Nina Shaw of Del Shaw Moonves.
Source: Variety
T.I., Tiny & Co. are back for another go-round. VH1 has ordered a third season of T.I. & Tiny: Friends & Family Hustle, which has started production we have learned. The 12 new episodes will air in 2020.
The reality show, a continuation of the long-running T.I. & Tiny: Family Hustle, features rapper-actor Tip “T.I.” Harris and Tameka “Tiny” Harris and their children Zonnique, Messiah, Domani, Deyjah, King, Major and Heiress.
In Season 2, T.I. and Tiny moved back in together under the same roof while juggling family, friendships and careers. Monica was faced with a health crisis in her family in the midst of launching a new album and tour. Toya was in full boss mode expanding her empire while contemplating the next relationship steps for her and her boyfriend Red. And Letoya and Tommie entered a new chapter as they welcomed their first child.
The cast endured a personal tragedy in season 2 when Precious Harris, sister of Tip “T.I.” Harris, who had been featured on the show, died following a car accident. Production was halted for a few days following her death.
T.I. & Tiny: Friends & Family Hustle, which has delivered solid ratings for VH1, is executive produced by Tip Harris for Grand Hustle, Tameka Harris for Pretty Hustle and Brian Sher for Category 5. Christian Sarabia, Vinnie Kaufmann, Jennifer McGrogan and Donna Edge-Rachell serve as executive producers for 51 Minds Entertainment.
Source: Deadline
Mamoudou Athie has joined the cast of the third installment in Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment’s “Jurassic World” saga.
He joins Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, who will reprise their roles from the previous films, as well as Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, who starred in the original mega-hit “Jurassic Park.”
Colin Trevorrow, who helmed the first “Jurassic World,” is returning to direct the pic and co-wrote the script with Emily Carmichael. The script is based on a story by Trevorrow and Derek Connolly, who penned the previous two scripts.
Steven Spielberg and Trevorrow return to executive produce, once again partnering with producers Frank Marshall and Pat Crowley. Universal’s senior vice president of production Sara Scott is overseeing production on behalf of the studio.
Trevorrow directed 2015’s “Jurassic World,” which went on to gross $1.67 billion worldwide and is the sixth-highest-grossing film in cinema history. Trevorrow will also continue to consult with Spielberg and Marshall on the management of the growing “Jurassic” brand, including video games, toys, novels, animated Lego series and theme parks.
Best known for his breakout role in Jason Reitman’s “The Front Runner,” Athie can be seen as the lead in Prentice Penny’s father-son drama “Uncorked” for Netflix. Other past credits include “Patti Cake$” and Facebook’s “Sorry for Your Loss.”
He is repped by WME and Sloane, Offer, Weber and Dern.
Source: Variety
