About the Film: When a young nun at a cloistered abbey in Romania takes her own life, a priest with a haunted past and a novitiate on the threshold of her final vows are sent by the Vatican to investigate. Together they uncover the order’s unholy secret. Risking not only their lives but their faith and their very souls, they confront a malevolent force in the form of the same demonic nun that first terrorized audiences in “The Conjuring 2,” as the abbey becomes a horrific battleground between the living and the damned.
“The Nun” stars Oscar-nominated Demian Bichir (“A Better Life”) as Father Burke, Taissa Farmiga (TV’s “American Horror Story”) as Sister Irene, and Jonas Bloquet (“Elle”) as local villager French.
WATCH the trailer below;
Tiffany Haddish isn’t bothered by what appeared to be shade by fellow comedian and The Last O.G. co-star Tracy Morgan recently.
In her cover story with The Hollywood Reporter Wednesday (June 13), the triple threat opened up about her adored career and the many lessons she’s learned along the way. One was knowing her artistic worth, which caused a bit of tiff on the set of the TBS comedy The Last O.G.
Booked before the release of Girls Trip, Haddish plays the role of Shay, Tray’s (Morgan) former girlfriend whose life has evolved during Tray’s time in prison.
As he hilariously navigates through a gentrified Brooklyn 15 years later, he also tries to win over his former flame. As her brand grew, expectations for her to bust out “She Ready-isms” as Shay came with it, which she refused to do. She also shared how her relationship with Morgan changed as well.
While doing promo for the Vulture Festival in May, Morgan took part in an interview where he brushed off a question about his co-star. “We’re not gonna go there,” he said. “Because this isn’t Tiffany’s show. This is Tracy Morgan. This is The Last O.G. If you’re going to go there, ask that about Tiffany, ask that about Cedric [The Entertainer], ask that about Kraft services, everyone that comes to work on that show. I don’t like that.”
The series was thought of years ago by Morgan and with the help of Jordan Peele, became a reality as the first season wrapped earlier this month.
As comedians like Lil Rey Howery came to Haddish’s defense on social media, the comedian shared how it didn’t bother her.
“You guys, chill. He’s probably just tired of hearing my name,” she said. “It’s exhausting. I’m tired of hearing my name. I could see how that could be irritating, like, ‘Hello, I died, people. I’m back from the dead. Tiffany’s cool, but it’s me sitting here now.’ So, I get it, I’m not mad about it, I love me some Tracy.”
During a sit down with the Associated Press in April, Morgan and Haddish were candid about their unique chemistry. “I already knew that she was a tough cookie before I got to the set,” he said. “That’s what made me pick her [for the role].”
Haddish hinted towards their artistic differences but explained how her ideas were always respected. “You’re able to give more input on how you feel about the character, what you think this should be, or that should be and your point of view of respected,” she said. “It may not be what we do, but it’s respected.”
Haddish and Morgan will reunite with the rest of the cast this summer to film season two of the comedy.
Check out more from her chat with THR here.
Source: VIBE, The Hollywood Reporter
It was written in six days, filmed in 14 and produced for about $450. To call the web series “Struggleing” an underdog for Emmy consideration is an understatement.
But then, that’s exactly the kind of story Brent Harvey was out to tell. Harvey, a Marine Corps combat camera veteran, came to Hollywood after leaving the service to pursue his childhood dream of becoming an actor. The road has been tough, but also funny and inspiring. It was also a little hard to explain to his family and friends not immersed in the Hollywood scene.
“I wanted to creatively express my frustrations with Hollywood in a fun way, while explaining to my Midwestern family what my life was like,” Harvey says. “I also wanted to prove to others it could be done, hopefully inspiring them to take charge of their careers.”
A like-minded group of actors easily saw their own frustrations in Harvey’s scripts and pitched in for the whirlwind production that involved 46 actors playing 76 parts. Harvey is the thread that pulls the stories together, offering his views on auditioning, getting an agent, navigating the gig economy to make ends meet and even finding love, all while chasing the Hollywood dream.
Joanna Bronson, the series director, executive producer and a supporting actor, sees the production of the series itself as its own kind of inspiration. “Just putting this series together shows the way technology, creativity and Hollywood are intersecting in entirely new ways now to create the new possibilities for TV series and films to be produced,” Bronson said. “Content can be shared with the world by anyone who has a story and the fortitude to tell it.”
Harvey hopes aspiring actors and other production professionals look at the series and realize, “We live in a world of infinite possibilities. If you create your own content, you can pave your own path to success as you see fit. You may not out-talent everyone, but you can, for sure, out-work everyone to the top.”
2018 Emmy nomination selection is open until June 25.
Nominees will be announced July 12.
On this day in comedy on June 15, 1969, Filmmaker, Actor, Writer, Rapper, Ice Cube (O’Shea Jackson) was born in Los Angeles, California
Prior to influencing the world of comedy, Ice Cube gained fame as a rapper with the hardcore pioneering rap group, NWA. Then against the odds he had a successful solo career after leaving the group amidst a contract dispute. He became an iconic MC (voted #8 greatest of all-time by MTV) a budding actor (Boyz N the Hood, Trespass, The Glass Shield, Higher Learning) and at the urging of director, John Singleton, Cube expanded his reach to other genres.
In 1995 Ice Cube released Friday and turned a quiet joke (What kind of comedy is a rapper going to make?) into a cottage industry. Friday became a franchise and made stars of Chris Tucker, Mike Epps, Katt Williams, Terry Crews, Faizon Love, Sommore and starred Cube himself. He then made Barbershop and added another franchise to his list. Cube then did Are We There Yet? with was a film franchise and a TV series on TBS. Oh, and the Ride Along franchise with Kevin Hart.
Ice Cube has kept plenty of comedians and comedy actors working. He produced Janky Promoters, All About the Benjamins, The Players Club (his directorial debut), Beauty Shop, First Sunday, The Longshots and Lottery Ticket. Besides, Are We There Yet?, Ice Cube also produced Barbershop: The Series and Friday: The Animated Series. All this makes Ice Cube one of the strongest comedy impresarios of all-time.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
Check out this clip:
On this day in comedy on June 14, 1931, Actress, Singer, Producer, Marla Gibbs (Margaret Theresa Bradley) was born in Chicago, Illinois
Gibbs seemed an unlikely artist. After high school she went to business school and became a United Airlines reservations agent in Detroit, Michigan. Retaining her job for security, she relocated to Los Angeles with her family and got into acting. She plied her craft in theater and made her celluloid debut in Blaxploitation flicks. Gibbs was featured in the cinematic classics, Sweet Jesus, Preacher Man and Black Belt Jones. They were roles that would’ve been considered ‘exposure’ at the time, but they exposed her enough to be cast in the new Norman Lear sitcom, The Jeffersons.
The groundbreaking and controversial CBS hit, All in The Family spawned a spin-off which proved to be just as controversial. The Jeffersons was about loud-mouthed, bigoted, self-made and newly rich black guy, George Jefferson, who thanks to his thriving dry-cleaning business, moved on up and out of the neighborhood inhabited by the likes of Family’s equally bigoted, but white, Archie Bunker. George, his wife, Louise (“Weezie”) and son, Lionel copped themselves a deluxe apartment and that meant they needed a maid. Enter, Marla Gibbs, character name, Florence Johnston. She embodied the disrespectful domestic help with aplomb and her sterling work earned her five Emmy nominations. Gibbs alter ego was so popular she got her own spin-off, Checking-In.
Gibb’s spin-off aspirations didn’t last long as Checking-In soon checked out, but it was of no consequence. Once The Jeffersons turned off the lights after 11 seasons, Gibbs starred in an original project for NBC – 227. This sitcom was about a nosy, gossipy neighbor (Gibbs) and her neighbors/friends in the building. It was a hit for Gibbs the actress/producer and 227 introduced the viewing world to Jackee Harry.
Once 227 shut down after 116 episodes Gibbs divided her versatile talents between comedy and drama. She appeared in the films Meteor Man, Foolish, Lost & Found and The Visit (for which she won the Method Fest Independent Film Award), The Brothers, Madea’s Witness Protection and on the television series, A Different World, In the Heat of the Night, Empty Nest, Dream On, Martin, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Dawson’s Creek, Touched by an Angel, King of Queens, The Hughleys, ER, House of Payne, Scandal, Hot in Cleveland and The Carmichael Show.
In a distinguished career, Marla Gibbs won a total of seven NAACP Image Awards. Another talent was that of an entrepreneur. She owned the revered Los Angeles jazz club; Marla’s Memory Lane and she was also an accomplished vocalist who released numerous albums.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
Check out this clip:
On this day in comedy on June 14, 1968, Comedian, Actor, Faizon Love (Langston Faizon Santisima) was born in Santiago de Cuba.
The offspring of a Naval father, Love moved around a lot. His main stomping grounds were Newark, New Jersey and San Diego, California. He got into stand-up comedy and cut his teeth in clubs like Maverick Flats and The Comedy Act Theater. Coincidently he made his film debut as a voice over of the latter club’s host, Robin Harris in the motion picture based on Harris’ routine, Bebe’s Kids. Harris passed away suddenly of a heart attack as his career was on a fast ascension and Love was there to lend his vocal talents for th project. From then on we heard less of Love and saw more of his face and the rest of him.
Faizon Love has amassed an impressive array of hood flicks and mainstream films throughout his career. His first film appearance was in Robert Townsend’s Meteor Man followed up with Fear of a Black Hat and his signature role as Big Worm in Friday. The year was 1995; the same year he signed up to co-star in the Townsend sitcom, The Parent ‘Hood. That gig lasted until 1998, but Love kept busy as the time passed. He was seen in Don’t be a Menace in South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood, A Thin Line Between Love and Hate, B*A*P*S*, Money Talks and The Players Club,
Once The Parent ‘Hood was canceled, Love stayed on the set. He made 3 Strikes, The Replacements, Made, Mr. Bones, Blue Crush, Wonderland, Elf, Idlewild, Who’s Your Caddy?, The Perfect Holiday, Animal, Torque, Couples Retreat and Big Momma’s: Like Father Like Son just to name a bunch. He also did TV: My Name is Earl, Real Husbands of Hollywood, Black-ish and more voice-overs: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, Zookeeper. He appeared on “Freaky Thangs from Ludacris and “Put Yo Hood Up” by Lil Jon & The East Side Boys. Love starred in the theatrical version of Thornton Wilder’s classic, Our Town and did commercials for Boost Mobile.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
Check out this clip:
On this day in comedy on June 13, 1962, Comedian, Actor, Voice-Over Artist, Alonzo Bodden was born in Queens, New York.
Prior to achieving any type of comedy notoriety, Bodden worked on the assembly line at Lockheed and McDonnell Douglas moving heavy equipment. This was big man work; which is probably why little has ever been said about Alonzo Bodden and hecklers. He was just another working comedian with day job experience and a few films under his belt (8 Guys, Bringing Down the House, The Girl Next Door) when he got his national break.
Last Comic Standing, the NBC ratings darling was entering its third season. Bodden had been a runner-up on Season 2 and 3 was billed as the “Battle of the Best” with top contestants from seasons 1 & 2 competing. When the 2004 competition was done Alonzo Bodden had won out over Geoff Brown, Corey Holcomb, Rich Vos, Tammy Pescatelli, Gary Gulman, Ralphie May, Tess, Jay London, Todd Glass, Tere Joyce, Rob Cantrell, ANT, Jessica Kirson, Sean Kent, Dat Phan, Cory Kahaney, Dave Mordal, John Heffron and Kathleen Madigan. The prize was $250,000 (not the talent contract and televised special awarded to the previous two season’s winners). The winning episode also wasn’t broadcast with the hoopla of the previous two seasons.
Regardless, Bodden made the most of it. He released his comedy DVD Tall, Dark and Funny in 2005. That same year he returned to Last Comic Standing as a celebrity host along with Kathleen Madigan and ANT. He made more films (Scary Movie 4, National Lampoon’s Totally Baked A Potumentary and Why We Ride); appeared on all available late night shows (The Tonight Show with jay Leno, The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn, Late Night with Conan O’Brien) stand up showcases (It’s Showtime at the Apollo, Make Me Laugh, Comedy Central Presents) and guest starring ops (Angel, Californication). As a car and motorcycle enthusiast, Bodden was a natural to host several automotive driven shows: Speed TV’s 101 Cars You Must Drive and America’s Worst Driver. Alonzo Bodden has been a panelist on BBC America and Game Show Network, a co-host on WGN America, a recurring guest on NPR and The Adam Carolla Show and done voice-overs on Power Rangers: Lightspeed Rescue, Masked Rider and O’Grady.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
Check out this clip:
On this day in comedy on June 11, 1976, Comedian, Actor, Felipe Esparza was born in Sinaloa, Mexico.
Esparza wasn’t born in East L. A., but he was raised there and those experiences are the basis for his material. His comedy is raw, unflinching and filled with universal cultural references. You don’t have to be Latin to know what’s he’s talking about even though that’s what he’s talking about. With his signature wild hair and infectious catchphrase, “What’s up, fool’, Esparza got immediate attention as soon as he jumped into comedy.
Esparza received television exposure in record time. Within a year and a half of telling his first joke he was on Showtime; on the “Diamonds in the Rough” segment. From there he went on to appear on Showtime’s Comics Without Borders, Byron Allen’s Comic’s Unleashed, Comedy Central’s Premium Blend, BET’s Comic View, Russell Simmons Presents Stand-Up at the El Rey and Que Locos on Galavision. On the latter program he made more showings than any other comedian in the show’s history. The culmination of all this TV hopping was his 2010 win on NBC’s Last Comic Standing. In 2011 Showtime aired his special, They’re Not Gonna Laugh at You.
He was featured in two films in 2009: The Deported co-starring Nick Turturro, Paul Rodriguez and Talia Shire as well as I’m Not Like That Anymore, a movie based on Esparza’s stand-up and also co-starring Rodriguez (playing Esparza’s father). In 2014 he launched his hit podcast on the All Things Comedy Network entitled what else? – “What’s Up Fool?”
In 2014, Esparza was in a Honda ad campaign to sell more Hondas to the Latin market. The way he did the commercial was to make fun of ads that try to sell products to the Latin market. He also did some ads with comedienne, Lauren Lapkus for Target Mobile services. In 2017 his special Translate This premiered on HBO. Esparza is a consummate personal appearance attraction and performs to capacity crowds.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
Check out this clip:
On this day in comedy on June 11, 1937, Actor, John “Johnny” Brown was born in St. Petersburg, Florida
Brown established himself professionally as a Broadway performer in the Sammy Davis, Jr. musical, Golden Boy. He played the part of Ronnie and was featured in one of the show-stopping numbers. Once he got that attention he landed the lead in a high profile national commercial for Papermate’s Write Brothers pen. Brown-headed the musical number where he had the role of the teacher showing his students why they should use the Write Brothers pen. He also found film work in the movie The Out of Towners in 1970.
Known for his amiable persona, quick wit and easy-going comedy style, Brown soon found himself on Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In. That gig turned out to be a career break and killer. Norman Lear had originally considered Brown to play the part of Redd Foxx’s son Lamont in Sanford and Son, but because of his Laugh-In commitment, Lear had to look elsewhere and cast Demond Wilson.
Brown earned his sitcom success on Good Times. The CBS Esther Rolle / John Amos vehicle was a smash hit and the character of building superintendent, Bookman, was a standout. That wasn’t easy with Jimmie Walker stealing most of the show. Walker’s scenes were always guaranteed extra laughs though, whenever Bookman entered the apartment and became the butt of a lot of fat boy, big butt jokes. However, Bookman also knew how to issue out jokes too and managed to often give as good as he got.
Once Good Times was canceled in 1979, Johnny Brown made the guest-starring rounds. He’d been seen previously on The Flip Wilson Show and he also did The Jeffersons, Family Matters, Martin and The Jamie Foxx Show. Johnny Brown later appeared in the Eddie Murphy / Martin Lawrence film, Life in 1999.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
Check out this clip:
On this day in comedy on June 10, 1895, Comedienne, Actress, Songwriter, Singer, Radio Personality, Hattie McDaniel was born, 1895
The Wichita, Kansas native followed her brother, Sam into show business. He was a minstrel and she honed her songwriting skills on his show. Next she inadvertently became a pioneer when she landed a spot-on radio as Hi-Hat Hattie, the maid who often got out of line. This made McDaniel the first African-American female to perform on radio.
Historical achievements were fine, but the radio show paid so little McDaniel had to get a job as a real maid to pay the bills. Nevertheless, she didn’t let a little hard work stop her dream. She sang on the local radio station in Denver and recorded several records for Okeh Records and Paramount Records in Chicago. Then the stock market crash of ’29 hit and all that came to a screeching halt. McDaniel was forced to work as a bathroom attendant and waitress at Club Madrid in Milwaukee, where she was eventually allowed to take the stage and perform.
In 1931 McDaniel moved to Los Angeles where she found radio work and appeared in a number of uncredited film parts. In 1934 she joined the Screen Actors Guild and got parts as maids. During this period the black community lashed out at McDaniel for taking maid roles. No matter how sassy the maids she played were, blacks didn’t like it. Then came the casting process for the much publicized “Gone with the Wind”. With help of friend Clark Gable (they’d worked on a film together previously and he wanted her for the part), McDaniel got the coveted role.
However, getting the role was one thing, being able to watch her work at the premiere was another. “Gone with the Wind” made its debut in Atlanta, Georgia. None of the black actors from the film were invited to attend. As a matter of fact, they were expressly told not to attend. Clark Gable heatedly refused to go under those circumstances. That is until McDaniel pulled him to the side, thanked him for his friendship and loyalty, but informed him that she wasn’t surprised, and he needed to go to promote the film. She’d make the Hollywood premiere. Reluctantly Gable relented and made the journey to Georgia.
For her troubles, Hattie McDaniel was the first African-American to be nominated for an Academy Award and the first to win (for Best Supporting Actress). In her speech she graciously thanked the Academy for the honor and sporting pulled back hair laced in gardenias expressed her gratitude and thanked God. Many in attendance were moved to tears.
Following “Gone with the Wind”, McDaniel played other maid parts in films starring Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart and working under the direction of John Huston. She always turned in fine performances and received glowing reviews. However, by the late 1940s the place for domestics on screen was becoming passé. Regardless, McDaniel stayed busy on radio and later in television starring in “Beulah” (both mediums), where she earned $2,000 per week. She’d taken over from Ethel Waters after the first season of the show, but after discovering she had breast cancer, McDaniel had to bow out and was herself replaced by Louise Beavers.
When Hattie McDaniel died from breast cancer at the age of 57 it was her wish was to be buried in the Hollywood Cemetery, but that wish was denied by the owner, Jules Roth because black people were not allowed there. So, she found a final resting home at Rosedale Cemetery. Then in 1999 the Hollywood Cemetery reversed its decision under new owner Tyler Cassity, but it was too late. The family refused to have her remains moved so to make amends Cassity built a memorial at the Hollywood Cemetery in McDaniel’s honor.
By Darryl “D’Militant” Littleton
Check out this clip: