Bernie Mac

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Bernard Jeffrey McCullough (October 5, 1957- August 9, 2008) better known by his stage name Bernie Mac, was an American actor and comedian. Born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, Mac gained popularity as a stand-up comedian. He joined comedians Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, and D. L. Hughley as The Original Kings of Comedy.

After briefly hosting the HBO show Midnight Mac, Mac appeared in several films in smaller roles. His most noted film role was as Frank Catton in the remake Ocean's Eleven and the titular character of Mr. 3000. He was the star of The Bernie Mac Show, which ran from 2001 through 2006, earning him two Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. His other films included starring roles in Booty Call, Friday, The Players Club, Head of State, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, Bad Santa, Guess Who, Pride, Soul Men, and Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa.

Mac suffered from sarcoidosis, an inflammatory lung disease that produces tiny lumps of cells in the solid organs, but had said the condition was in remission in 2005. His death on August 9, 2008 was caused by complications from pneumonia.

Early life

Bernie Mac was born in Chicago, Illinois, and was raised by a single mother, Mary, who died of cancer when he was 16. He put on shows for neighborhood kids on the city's South Side and eventually moved to Tampa, Florida. During his 20's he worked in a variety of jobs, including as a furniture mover and a UPS agent.

Career

One of Mac's earliest comic influences was from The Three Stooges and listening to stand-up comedians Richard Pryor and Redd Foxx. Mac started as a stand-up comedian in Chicago's Cotton Club. After he won the Miller Lite Comedy Search at the age of 32, his popularity as a comedian began to grow. A performance on HBO's Def Comedy Jam thrust him into the spotlight. He opened for Dionne Warwick, Redd Foxx and Natalie Cole. He played a small role in 1994's House Party 3 as Uncle Vester. He also had a short-lived talk show on HBO titled Midnight Mac. Later, Mac also acted in minor roles and got his big break as "Pastor Clever" in Ice Cube's 1995 film Friday. Following that role, Mac had his first starring role as "Dollar Bill", a silly, slick-talking club owner in The Players Club. Mac was able to break from the traditional "black comedy" genre, having roles in the 2001 remake of Ocean's Eleven and becoming the new Bosley for the Charlie's Angels sequel, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. In 2003, he gave an impressive performance in a supporting role as the villain "Gin Slagel, The Store Dick" in Bad Santa. He also starred in Guess Who?, a comedic remake of the film Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, and made an appearance in the 2007 film Transformers as the car salesman "Bobby Bolivia." In his later years he hosted Last Comic Standing (2007 TV Show). He also served as the voice of Zuba, Alex the Lion's long lost father in Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa. He co-starred with Samuel L. Jackson in the 2008 musical comedy Soul Men as "Floyd Henderson". His final film role was as "Jimmy Lunchbox", a flamboyant children's entertainer in the 2009 Disney film Old Dogs alongside John Travolta and Robin Williams.

In 2001, the Fox Network gave Mac his own semi-autobiographical sitcom called The Bernie Mac Show portraying a fictional version of himself. In the show, he suddenly becomes custodian of his sister's three children after she enters rehab. It was a success, in part because it allowed Mac to stay true to his stand-up comedy roots, breaking the fourth wall to communicate his thoughts to the audience. The show contained many parodies of events in Bernie's actual life. It was not renewed after the 2006 season. Viewers were left without a conclusion for the series, and no ending to the storyline of Bernie and Wanda trying to have a baby. Among other awards, the show won an Emmy for ‘Outstanding Writing’, the Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting, and the Humanitas Prize for television writing that promotes human dignity. His character on The Bernie Mac Show was ranked #47 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time".

In 2004, Bernie Mac starred as a retired baseball player in the film Mr. 3000. In the 2003 National League Championship Series, Mac sang "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" at Wrigley Field with the Chicago Cubs leading the Florida Marlins in the series 3 games to 2 and in Game 6 by a 2-0 score at the time (it would soon be 3-0 in the Bottom of the 7th). Instead of saying "root, root, root for the Cubbies" Mac said, "root, root, root for the champions!" The Cubs lost the game and the series, with some fans claiming that Mac helped jinx the Cubs. Mac later admitted that he had hated the North Side's Cubs his whole life, being a die-hard fan of the South Side's White Sox, and was seen during the White Sox' 2005 World Series victory at U.S. Cellular Field.

Mac was number 72 on Comedy Central's list of the 100 greatest standups of all time. On March 19, 2007, Mac told David Letterman on the CBS Late Show that he would retire from his 30-year career after he finished shooting the comedy film, The Whole Truth, Nothing but the Truth, So Help Me Mac. "I'm going to still do my producing, my films, but I want to enjoy my life a little bit," Mac told Letterman. "I missed a lot of things, you know. I was a street performer for two years. I went into clubs in 1977. ...I was on the road 47 weeks out of the year."

Death

Mac was admitted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago and was being treated for pneumonia, according to his spokeswoman. After a week of unsuccessful medical treatment, Mac died in the early morning hours of August 9, 2008 at the age of 50. A few years prior to his death, he publicly disclosed that he suffered from sarcoidosis, a rare autoimmune disease that causes inflammation in tissue, most often in the lungs.

Mac's public funeral was held a week later on August 16, 2008, at the House of Hope Church in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois with over 7,000 people in attendance. Notable mourners were Chris Rock, Chicago mayor Richard M. Daley, Samuel L. Jackson, his fellow Ocean's Eleven comrade Don Cheadle, the cast members from his series and his Kings of Comedy fellows D.L. Hughley, Cedric the Entertainer, and Steve Harvey. Mac's ashes were interred at the Washington Memory Gardens Cemetery in Homewood, Illinois.

Tributes

The first two of Mac's posthumous films, Soul Men and Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, were released three months following his death and received mixed reviews. His third and final posthumous film, Old Dogs, was released a year later and received negative reviews. The 2008 Bud Billiken Parade, held in Chicago on the day of his death, was also dedicated to his memory. On the day of Mac's public funeral, his hometown's local television station WCIU-TV aired an exclusive television special, A Tribute to Bernie Mac and had interviews with his former colleagues such as Camille Winbush, Tommy Davidson, Guy Torry and some of his family members and close friends. He was also honored during "In Memoriam" montages at various award ceremonies following his death.

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