Midnight Meditations by Roger Bennett

Midnight Meditations by Roger Bennett

Raised in the South Bronx projects, Jimmie Walker made his way out of the perilous ghetto thanks to an ability to make people laugh. Performing in small clubs alongside friends such as Richard Pryor, Freddie Prinze, David Brenner, and Richard Lewis; opening for Black Panther rallies; and emceeing at the Apollo and for Motown tours, he was a young, brash stand-up comedian for a new generation. By landing the role of J.J. Evans on Good Times, Walker became an icon of the 70s and beyond. The first young black sitcom star dubbed the black Fonzie his catchphrase Dyn-o-mite remains an often-quoted indicator of the era. As the show s breakout star, he navigated the pressures of a pop culture popularity that rendered J.J. into a talking doll (pull the string ). At the same time, he was the epicenter of a major controversy over black stereotypes. Walker candidly remembers the communication breakdowns on the set that contradicted the show s image of a close-knit, blue-collar family. Meanwhile, he worked at his craft, including hiring then-unknowns David Letterman and Jay Leno to write jokes for him. When the Late Night War erupted, Walker had a uniquely personal perspective that he writes about here for the first time. In Dyn-o-mite he also reveals, in characteristic bemused if lacerating fashion, the lessons he s learned along the way about self-reliance, freedom of speech (the n-word and more), and belief in the individual subjects he frequently talks about on talk radio and television. Imparting a vivid, insiders look at the edgy scene of the 70s and 80s, perhaps the most groundbreaking and vibrant era in comedy history, Walker paints a portrait of the life and times of a quintessential road comic.

SKU	Nicht verfügbar
ISBN 13	9780834198333
ISBN 10	0834198339
Titel	Midnight Meditations
Autor	Roger Bennett
Buchzustand	Nicht verfügbar
Bindungsart	Paperback
Verlag	Lillenas Publishing
Erscheinungsjahr	1998-11-01
Seitenanzahl	64
Hinweis auf dem Einband	Die Abbildung des Buches dient nur Illustrationszwecken, die tatsächliche Bindung, das Cover und die Auflage können sich davon unterscheiden.
Hinweis	Nicht verfügbar