The Chicago King of Comedy
Posted by LMReviewsSep 6
Welcome back!
Photo Credit: Claudette Barius, S.M.P.S.P.
Born in Chicago in 1957, Bernard Jeffrey McCullough made a promise to his mother as a young boy that she would never cry again.
McCullough, who once drove a Wonder Bread truck and married his high school sweetheart, was captivated by how comedy could transform his mother’s tears to laughter. With a platform that focused on fatherhood and race, the little boy who would become Bernie Mac accomplished just that.
After sell-out comedy theatres and a successful Original Kings of Comedy tour with Cedric the Entertainer, Steve Harvey, and D.L. Hughley, Mac’s career took off in movies such as Friday, Ocean’s Eleven, Guess Who and Bad Santa. An award-winning hit television sitcom loosely taken from an experience in his own life, showed the kind heart behind his expletive-laced bravado which resulted in a 5-year run and a broader audience appeal.
In 2001, Mac wrote his autobiography entitled I Ain’t Scared of You: Bernie Mack on How LIfe Is. The book chronicled the comedian’s views on everything from child-rearing to growing up poor, designed to make a bookworm laugh. Then in 2004, Mac followed up his first book with Maybe You Never Cry Again. In this book, a heart-felt autobiography, Mac recounted how he arrived at his calling and how the power of his mother’s wisdom saw him through difficulty even after her death when he was just sixteen.
While he died too soon in early August 2008 at the age of 50, we have his mother to thank. Although she would not live to see her son’s success due to cancer but enjoyed his childhood routines, it is through her support and wisdom that we have his comedic legacy that will continue to deliver a unique brand of laughter for a long time to come.
