Baseball Toaster was unplugged on February 4, 2009.
Bernie Mac, a very funny fellow, died early this morning from complications due to pneumonia. He was just 50-years old. Mac had a blue act, but also had a great vulnerability that made him a success on TV. He was never afraid to bust on himself. I thought the first few seasons of The Bernie Mac Show were especially winning. More than anything he was authentic, true to himself. He was the real deal. He made me laugh a lot, and he made me laugh hard.
Man, this is just lousy news. Here is the routine that became the basis for his show:
"Don't touch my old school, my new school, my slow jams, my party jams, my happy rap, and you bet not touch my James Brown...or somebody is really going to get hurt."
i love the milk and cookies bit - whenever the kings of comedy came on i waited for berne mac's segment.
Not everyone will agree; he wasn't always comfortable to deal with in terms of his humor, but that's fine. Good comedians will challenge you or your notions one way or another without have to seek a common denominator, swipe from other creators or apologize for what they say (because they actually meant what they said), and his wealth of experiences, good and bad, inspired some thoughtful and challenging material.
He expressed a desire to retire from performing and acting just last year so he could enjoy the fruits of his success with his family, and it's a terrible shame he wasn't left much time to do that. If nothing else, I hope we all take that as a notion to stop for a moment and at least acknowledge the good things we have going for ourselves.
Blessings, brotha, thank you for the laughs and hope you can finally rest peacefully.
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