Cedric The Entertainer Lands In New CBS Comedy Pilot Titled ‘Welcome to the Neighborhood’
Cedric the Entertainer has signed on to star in and executive produce the CBS multi-camera comedy pilot “Welcome to the Neighborhood”.
Formerly known as “Here Comes the Neighborhood,” the project follows the nicest guy in the Midwest, who moves his family into a tough neighborhood in L.A. where not everyone appreciates his extreme neighborliness.
Cedric will play Calvin, the next door neighbor to the Johnson family, whom he regards with disdain and as a pack of interlopers. Described as a natural contrarian, acerbic, even downright misanthropic, Calvin thinks these people will upset the delicate balance that exists in his neighborhood. He joins previously announced cast members Sheaun McKinney and Marcel Spears, who will play Calvin’s sons.
Cedric will executive produce with Eric Rhone under their A Bird and A Bear Entertainment banner.
Source Variety
On This Day In Comedy… In 1933 Comedian And Actor Godfrey Cambridge Was Born
On this day in comedy on February 26, 1933, Comedian, Actor, Godfrey MacArthur Cambridge was born in New York City, New York
If his parents had had their way, Cambridge would’ve become a doctor. He attended Hofstra College where he studied medicine for three years, then woke up one morning, dropped out and became an actor. That was probably a dramatic moment remembered by all who witnessed, but then the reality of being a struggling actor set in. Cambridge found himself doing less acting and more job bouncing. He was an ambulance driver, a gardener, bead-sorter, cab driver, popcorn bunny maker, airplane cleaner, New York Housing Authority clerk and judo instructor.
Cambridge’s hard work to keep food in his belly paid off. He took his bartending skills from real life and played a bartender in his first play, Take a Giant Step. It was off-Broadway, but in 1957 he made it to the big time. He debuted in the original production of Herman Wouk’s Nature’s Way. Four years later Cambridge earned an Obie Award for his work in The Blacks: A Clown Show. A year later he received a Tony nomination for his work in the original version of Ossie Davis’ Purlie Victorious in a cast that included Ruby Dee, Helen Martin, Beah Richards, Alan Alda, Sorrell Booke and Roger C. Carmel. His performance in 1965’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum was lauded as well. Cambridge proved himself to be an accomplished actor.
Godfrey Cambridge was also good on film. He played a government agent in The President’s Analyst (1967); a cab driver in Bye Bye Braverman (1968); a white racist who turns black in Watermelon Man (1970); a line-crossing cop in Cotton Comes to Harlem and its sequel Come Back Charleston Blue (1972) and a gay gangster in Pam Grier’s Friday Foster (1975). In 1970 he financed and produced the graphic anti-drug film, Dead is Dead, where actual addicts were shown shooting up and going through withdrawal. Cambridge also appeared in the films, The Busy Body, The Biggest Bundle of Them All, The Biscuit Eater, Beware! The Blob and Whiffs.
Godfrey Cambridge made his presence known on television. He guest-starred on Car 54 Where Are You?, The Dick Van Dyke Show, I Spy, The Phil Silvers Show and in Night Gallery playing a comedian who appeals to a genie to get his career back on track. Steven Spielberg directed that episode which co-starred Tom Bosley. Cambridge also did underwear commercials for Jockey.
Standup comedy was another Cambridge strength. In 1965 Time magazine recognized him as being one of the top four most celebrated Black comedians in the nation along with Dick Gregory, Nipsey Russell and Bill Cosby. Cambridge was universally accepted with a brand of comedy that though truthful, sarcastic and incisive, was unifying. He made appearances on The Tonight Show and was one of the country’s top earning nationally headlining standup comedians. In a career spanning several decades he released four albums; all from Epic Records.
Godfrey Cambridge died on November 29, 1976 in Burbank, California of a heart attack. It occurred while he was filming Victory at Entebbe, a movie where Cambridge was portraying Uganda’s brutal president, Idi Amin Dada. When the news was made public Amin was quoted as saying Cambridge’s death was “punishment from God”. Godfrey Cambridge was 43 years old.
On This Day In Comedy… In 1969 Comedian And Actor Edwin San Juan Was Born!
On this day in comedy on February 24, 1969, Comedian and Actor Edwin San Juan was born
When San Juan was coming up in comedy there weren’t a passel of clubs catering to the Asian audience. So the Filipino funny man cut his teeth in Latin clubs and bars alongside comedians such as Gabriel Iglesias, Felipe Esparza and Jeff Garcia. It was the perfectly rough circuit to get good and he did. Soon he was doing USO shows and headlining nationally. So San Juan was a seasoned pro when he gained notoriety as the creator and Executive Producer of SlantED Comedy, a showcase of Asian American stand-up comedians televised on Showtime.
As a standup comedian, San Juan appeared on all available shows. He was seen on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen, Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham’s, BET’s Comic View, Live from Hollywood, Latino Laugh Festival, Que Loco, Inside Joke, Latino 101, International Sexy Ladies Show (ummm), Loco Comedy Jam, Comics without Borders, The Payaso Comedy Slam and Destination Stardom.
Edwin San Juan appeared in the 2010 film, I’m Not Like That No More with Paul Rodriguez and he was the grand champion on the UPN show, Talent Agency. He later moved to Nevada to become the resident comedian at the Las Vegas Live Comedy Club and in 2015 San Juan won Las Vegas Weekly’s “Best Comedian on the Las Vegas Strip.”
On This Day In Comedy… In 1983 Comedian, Actor, And Writer Aziz Ansari Was Born!
On this day on February 23, 1983, Comedian, Actor, Writer, Aziz Ansari is born in Columbia, SC
Taking a different career path than his gastroenterologist father, the versatile Ansari got his start in comedy while still in school at the New York University. He performed in clubs in New York and furthered his comedic education at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theatre. To date he has headlined several national tours and released four comedy CD / DVDs. He takes the approach of talking about his own personal experiences, so no other comedians can steal his act or bits. He’s performed at such prestigious venues as Madison Square garden and Carnegie Hall.
His television credits include Uncle Morty’s Dub Shack, Reno 911!,Scrubs, MTV’s Human Giant, which he created as a vehicle for himself, HBO’s Flight of the Conchords, and NBC’s Parks and Recreation.
He created Master of None for Netflix and formed a strong relationship with MTV (he hosted the MTV Movie Awards in 201) and Comedy Central which yielded many of Ansari created projects and collaborations.
Ansari has worked in numerous films such as Funny People, I Love You, Man. Get Him to the Greek, Observe and Report and 30 Minutes or Less.
Ansari is also an author with his first book Modern Romance: An Investigation which dropped in 2015. It’s about dating and was co-written with Eric Klinenberg, an actual sociologist.
He has done voice-over work as the recurring, Darryl on Bob’s Burgers, Mub in Epic, Martin in The Ventura Bros., Billy Billions in Ben 10: Omniverse, DMO in Adventure Time, Charles in Animals and on music videos (“Otis” by Jay-Z and Kanye West). In the latter, he played himself (as in the film, This is the End, Comedy Bang! Bang! and the animated feature, Ice Age: Continental Drift)
Ansari has earned a lot of industry nominations and has won the Variety Power of Comedy Award, a Critics’ Choice Television Award and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing.
T.I. To Star In And Produce Girl Group Music Drama Titled ‘Glow Up’
T.I. will star in and produce a the musical drama, Glow Up, which will be directed by popular music video director, Justin Francis, and scripted by Chuck Hayward, who was the writer for Step Sisters and he is a story editor and writer for Netflix’s Dear White People.
Robbie Brenner, producer of Burden, which bowed at Sundance, is producing this with PepsiCo’s Creators League, Kevin McKeon and T.I.’s producing partner Brian Sher.
The description of the film: It follows the lives and struggles of an all-girl high school performance group at an underfunded Los Angeles United School District school, who use their talents to try and save their financially-strapped music program by competing in a national singing competition with a huge cash prize. But when the group’s leader can no longer participate, they struggle to see how their charismatic, yet unconventional, new lead singer can shepherd them to the height of their dreams.
Jeff Kwatinetz is executive producing.
T.I. can be seen next on screen reprising his role in the sequel to Marvel’s Ant-Man.
Universal Gives Release Date To New Marsai Martin (Of ‘black-ish’ Fame) Film Titled ‘Little’!
Universal has given release dates to three upcoming Will Packer Productions films, one of which is the Marsai Martin-starrer, Little.
The film is currently set for release on Friday, September 20, 2019. The Black-ish star will headlines and executive produces the Will Packer comedy, based on an idea the young actress pitched. Directed by Tina Gordon (Peeples), the film tells the story of a woman who—when the pressures of adulthood become too much to bear—gets the chance to relive the carefree life of her younger self. Packer will produce for his Universal-based Will Packer Productions with his production partner James Lopez and black-ish/grown-ish creator Kenya Barris Actress Regina Hall and Josh Martin will also executive produce.
Fresh off the Boat writer Camilla Blackett is currently rewriting the latest script draft, which is based on earlier work written by Gordon and Girls Trip writer Tracy Y. Oliver.
TRAILER WATCH: Whoopi Goldberg And La La Anthony Star In New Film Titled ‘Furlough’!
A trailer has been released for the indie comedy film, Furlough. It stars Tessa Thompson, Melissa Leo, Whoopi Goldberg, La La Anthony.
Distributed by IFC Films, it will be in theaters and VOD on March 16.
Furlough centers on a woman (Thompson) who lives with and cares for her aging mother (Goldberg), while working part-time at a jail. At work, she is given a chance to show off her abilities when she is assigned to accompany an unruly prisoner (Leo) on an emergency furlough to visit her dying mother. The trip does not go as planned.”
Anna Paquin, Edgar Ramirez and La La Anthony round out the cast.
Watch the trailer below:
TIFFANY HADDISH, DANAI GURIRA, LENA WAITHE AND TESSA THOMPSON HONORED AT THE ESSENCE BLACK WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD AWARDS
Kicking off Women’s History Month; ESSENCE turned the spotlight on four remarkable women, during Oscar week, with its popular “BLACK WOMEN IN HOLLYWOODAWARDS,” held Thursday, March 1, 2018 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA. Returning to its traditional daytime luncheon, the ESSENCE “BLACK WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD AWARDS” was hosted by actress Yvonne Orji. This year’s program honored actress and comedian Tiffany Haddish; actress Danai Gurira; Emmy-Award winning writer and director Lena Waithe and actress and activist Tessa Thompson. For the fourth consecutive year, the ESSENCE“BLACK WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD AWARDS” will air as a primetime special on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network on March 3, 2018 at 10 pm ET/PT.
Known as an exclusive and highly sought-after invite, this year’s luncheon was abuzz with the most gifted actresses, musicians, executives, beauty influencers and entertainers in the industry. After the intimate cocktail reception, some of the biggest names in Hollywood mingled in the lavishly decorated ballroom among legendary actresses Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine and Margaret Avery, as well as Ava DuVernay; Gabourey Sidibe,Janelle Monae, Jay Ellis, Amanda Seales, Mike Colter, Yvette Nicole Brown, Amandla Stenberg, Rep. Maxine Waters, Jussie Smollett, Susan Kelechi Watson, Angela Rye, LaLa Anthony, Essence Atkins, Kym Whitley, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Tina Knowles-Lawson, DeWanda Wise, Ruth E. Carter, Nina Shaw and #MeToo activist Tarana Burke.
Also in attendance were 2018 Academy Award nominees for “Film of the Year” Daniel Kaluuya, Lil Rel Howery and Betty Gabriel from “Get Out” and Dee Rees, nominated for Best Writing Adapted Screenplay for “Mudbound.”
Highlights of the luncheon included:
Lupita Nyong’o presenting the award to honoree, Danai Gurira who in turn surprised her friend by serenading her with a very special happy birthday and cupcakes on stage
Presenter Lil Rel Howery presenting to his dear friend Tiffany Haddish as she reminisced of their humble beginnings in Hollywood
Tiffany Haddish giving a heart-felt, intimate speech on remaining positive throughout all the highs and lows of life
Angela Bassett and “Dear White People” director Justin Simien presenting Emmy Award-winning writer and director Lena Waithe with the first 2018 Essence Black Women in Hollywood Ford Vanguard Award
Steven Spielberg sharing his love for Lena Waithe and her brilliant talent via highlight video
Lena Waithe’s powerful speech about being true to herself regarding her sexuality, and the importance of speaking your own truth
Janelle Monae presenting to her dear friend Tessa Thompson after sharing a story about meeting at an audition for the same part years ago; which neither of them landed
Tessa Thompson delivered a powerful and empowered speech about equality pertinent to the #TimesUp movement
Ava DuVernay introduced a special performance by pop stars Chloe X Halle, singing their song, “Warrior,” from the “A Wrinkle in Time” soundtrack.
Marlon Wayans On Why His First Stand-Up Special Is Like Looney Tunes
Marlon Wayans is finally standing up for himself. After three decades of working in comedy, the actor and writer known for shows such as “In Living Color,” “The Wayans Bros” and “Marlon” is starring in his first stand-up special, which bows on Netflix Feb. 27.
“Everybody has their own time for doing things, and I just have a different, kind of weird road,” Wayans says.
Wayans was thrust into the entertainment business as a teenager, and while he had no formal comedy training then, he watched various members of his family — namely his brothers Damon and Keenan Ivory Wayans — grow as artists. He began working on “In Living Color” with his brothers in the early 1990s and partnered with his brother Shawn on a number of other movie and television projects. And in the past few years, he has branched out on his own.
“As much as I’ve done, I just want to get better. I want to be the best me, and I don’t want to skip steps,” Wayans says. “I started [stand-up] from the bottom and worked my way back up to see what type of artist developed.”
The result is “Woke-ish,” just over an hour of bits that range from the political to the personal. Before putting the special together, he workshopped jokes in smaller clubs, trimming down over seven hours of material. He toured the South to test out material about Donald Trump and Barack Obama because, he says, “if I was going to do a Trump joke, I needed the Trump supporters to be laughing the loudest.” But he also wanted to see how bits about the LGBTQ+ community would play, as well: In the special he tells a story about his daughter being attracted to girls.
“I had certain themes I wanted to talk about,” Wayans says. “I had to find the right combination of stories. You want to make sure you spread it out and have a little bit for everybody, not let the scale tip one side or the other.”
While humor can be found in every topic, he says it’s most important to take the time to decide the proper approach. “As comedians we have to have the freedom to explore,” he explains.
For Wayans, the key to creating the special was to take something topical — like the politics of Trump versus Obama — and make it evergreen so that it would be relatable to a wider range of audiences. “It’s intended to make people think, to make people feel, to make people see things from a different perspective and to unite people through laughter,” he says. “We may not always agree, but if I get you to laugh at least you’ll understand what I’m saying.”
He compares his approach to Bugs Bunny, who he calls “one of the greatest comedians of all time”: “He did characters, he was animated, he was political, he was silly, he was dark,” he says. “I’m a Looney Tunes baby, so I hope this is something [that] will transcend age, race, culture, and just be funny.”
And while he says he is “not afraid to go into dark tunnels and come out with a piece of light” when constructing jokes, he is cautious about how and where he tests them.
“A good joke takes a long time to construct,” he admits. “But the way social media works now, everything you do is put on Instagram or Snapchat. You’re trying a joke [in a club] and they’re putting it on Instagram, and you go, ‘Wait, that joke’s not ready for Instagram!’”
Source: Variety
Will Packer Readies New Action Comedy Film Titled ‘Fight Night’!
Universal Pictures and producer Will Packer have teamed for Fight Night. The studio has preemptively optioned the life rights package for an action comedy that Lars Jacobson will write based on a true story about the most daring of heists.
Fight Night is the story of Atlanta-based hustler Gordon “Chicken Man” Williams and Atlanta’s first black detective, JD Hudson. Set in 1970 on the eve of Muhammad Ali’s comeback fight in Atlanta, the film centers on a post-fight party thrown by Williams that was attended by the most dangerous gangsters in the country. They were all robbed at gunpoint of more than $1 million, making it to this day the largest heist in Georgia history.
Pic has been a passion project for Jacobson and Jeff Keating, latter of whom is the longtime rights holder. Packer will produce with James Lopez through the Universal-based Will Packer Productions. Kenny Burns, who first brought the project to Packer’s attention, will serve as executive producer. Keating will co-produce.
Packer’s coming off Girls Trip and before that the Ride Along and Think Like a Manfilm series. The producer, who recently won an NAACP Image Award, saw Girls Tripbecome the ninth film he has produced that finished first at the domestic box office on opening weekend.
Jacobson, who writes for both film and television, recently sold the spy drama Fodor — based on the secret life of legendary travel writer-turned-spy Eugene Fodor –with NBC International and David Heyman producing the series, and Patrick Dempsey attached to star. Jacobson also co-wrote the upcoming Day of the Dead remake.
Universal’s EVP Mark Sourian will oversee production for the studio.
Will Packer Productions is represented by CAA; Burns is repped by Studio43; Keating by APA; and Jacobson by manager Brian Lutz and attorney Ryan Nord.
