© AP
Bernie Mac
Actor, comedian and exasperated dad Bernie Mac dies at 50
Aug. 9, 2008, 9:36 PM EST
CHICAGO (AP) --
Bernie Mac blended style, authority and a touch of self-aware bluster to make audiences laugh as well as connect with him. For Mac, who died Saturday at age 50, it was a winning mix, delivering him from a poor childhood to stardom as a standup comedian, in films including the casino heist caper "
Ocean's Eleven" and his acclaimed sitcom "
The Bernie Mac Show."
Though his comedy drew on tough experiences as a black man, he had mainstream appeal — befitting inspiration he found in a wide range of humorists: Harpo Marx as well as Moms Mabley; squeaky-clean Red Skelton, but also the raw Redd Foxx.
Mac died Saturday morning from complications due to pneumonia in a Chicago area hospital, his publicist, Danica Smith, said in a statement from Los Angeles. She said no other details were available.
"The world just got a little less funny," said "Oceans" co-star
George Clooney.
Don Cheadle, another member of the "Oceans" gang, concurred: "This is a very sad day for many of us who knew and loved Bernie. He brought so much joy to so many. He will be missed, but heaven just got funnier."
"This is a very sad day for many of us who knew and loved Bernie," said
Don Cheadle, a member of the "Oceans" gang. "He brought so much joy to so many. He will be missed but heaven just got funnier."
Mac suffered from sarcoidosis, an inflammatory lung disease that produces tiny lumps of cells in the body's organs, but had said the condition went into remission in 2005. He recently was hospitalized and treated for pneumonia, which his publicist said was not related to the disease.
Recently, Mac's brand of comedy caught him flack when he was heckled during a surprise appearance at a July fundraiser for Democratic presidential candidate and fellow Chicagoan Barack Obama.
Toward the end of a 10-minute standup routine, Mac joked about menopause, sexual infidelity and promiscuity, and used occasional crude language. Obama took the stage about 15 minutes later, implored Mac to "clean up your act next time," then let him off the hook, adding: "By the way, I'm just messing with you, man."
Even so, Obama's campaign later issued a rebuke, saying the senator "doesn't condone these statements and believes what was said was inappropriate."
But despite controversy or difficulties, in his words, Mac was always a performer.
"Wherever I am, I have to play," he said in 2002. "I have to put on a good show."
Mac worked his way to Hollywood success from an impoverished upbringing on Chicago's South Side. He began doing standup as a child, telling jokes for spare change on subways, and his film career started with a small role as a club doorman in the
Damon Wayans comedy "
Mo' Money" in 1992. In 1996, he appeared in the
Spike Lee drama "
Get on the Bus."
He was one of "
The Original Kings of Comedy" in the 2000 documentary of that title that brought a new generation of black standup comedy stars to a wider audience.
"The majority of his core fan base will remember that when they paid their money to see
Bernie Mac ... he gave them their money's worth," Steve Harvey, one of his co-stars in "Original Kings," told CNN on Saturday.
Mac went on to star in the hugely popular "
Ocean's Eleven" franchise with
Brad Pitt and
George Clooney, playing a gaming-table dealer who was in on the heist.
Carl Reiner, who also appeared in the "Ocean's" films, said Saturday he was "in utter shock" because he thought Mac's health was improving.
"He was just so alive," Reiner said. "I can't believe he's gone."
Mac and
Ashton Kutcher topped the box office in 2005's "
Guess Who," a comedy remake of the classic
Spencer Tracy and
Katharine Hepburn drama "
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" Mac played the dad who's shocked that his daughter is marrying a white man.
Mac also had starring roles in "
Bad Santa," "
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" and "
Transformers."
But his career and comic identity were forged in television.
In the late 1990s, he had a recurring role in "
Moesha," the UPN network comedy starring pop star
Brandy. The critical and popular acclaim came after he landed his own Fox television series "The Bernie Mac Show," about a child-averse couple who suddenly are saddled with three children.
Mac mined laughs from the universal frustrations of parenting, often breaking the "fourth wall" to address the camera throughout the series that aired from 2001 to 2006. "C'mon, America," implored Mac, in character as the put-upon dad. "When I say I wanna kill those kids, YOU know what I mean."
The series won a Peabody Award in 2002, and Mac was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Emmy. In real life, he was "the king of his household" — very much like his character on that series, his daughter, Je'niece Childress, told The Associated Press on Saturday.
"But television handcuffs you, man," he said in a 2001 Associated Press interview before the show had premiered. "Now everyone telling me what I CAN'T do, what I CAN say, what I SHOULD do, and asking, `Are blacks gonna be mad at you? Are whites gonna accept you?'"
He also was nominated for a Grammy award for best comedy album in 2001 along with his "The Original Kings of Comedy" co-stars Harvey,
D.L. Hughley and
Cedric The Entertainer.
Chicago music producer Carolyn Albritton said she was
Bernie Mac's first manager, having met him in 1991 at Chicago's Cotton Club where she hosted an open-mike night. He was an immediate hit, Albritton said Saturday, and he asked her to help guide his career.
"From very early on I thought he was destined for success," Albritton said. "He never lost track of where he came from, and he'd often use real life experiences, his family, his friends, in his routine. After he made it, he stayed a very humble man. His family was the most important thing in the world to him."
In 2007, Mac told
David Letterman on CBS' "
Late Show" that he planned to retire soon.
"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."
Mac was born Bernard Jeffrey McCullough on Oct. 5, 1957, in Chicago. He grew up on the city's South Side, living with his mother and grandparents. His grandfather was the deacon of a Baptist church.
In his 2004 memoir, "Maybe You Never Cry Again," Mac wrote about having a poor childhood — eating bologna for dinner — and a strict, no-nonsense upbringing.
"I came from a place where there wasn't a lot of joy," Mac told the AP in 2001. "I decided to try to make other people laugh when there wasn't a lot of things to laugh about."
Mac's mother died of cancer when he was 16. In his book, Mac said she was a support for him and told him he would surprise everyone when he grew up.
"Woman believed in me," he wrote. "She believed in me long before I believed."
Mac's death Saturday coincided with the annual Bud Billiken Parade in Chicago, a major event in the predominantly black South Side that the comedian had previously attended.
"It's truly the passing of one of our favorite sons," said Paula Robinson, president of the Black Metropolis National Heritage Area. "He was extremely innovative in putting his life experiences in comedic form and doing it without vulgarity.
"He was an ambassador of Chicago's black community, and the national black community at large."
A public memorial is planned for noon Aug. 16 at The House of Hope church in Chicago, said Smith, Mac's publicist.
Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Comments (1795)
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Bernie Mac has always been a
good actor to me . I loved him in
oceans 11 and
guess who . He is a great comedian who
never failed to make me laugh . It was quite a shocking news to hear that he has passed on .
Bernie Mac wasn't just any Hollywood actor he was
D Hollywood actor that every stand up comedian wanted to be. He also had a strong voice that represented his community. He
cared and made sure what he said had a good effect
reflected on him and everyone too. I guess life has to go on BUT
nevertheless awesome actors such as Bernie Mac and Heath Ledger will always remain in our hearts as we go on remembering them for the people that they really were. May they Rest In Peace and God Save their Soul . Amen
delmissacent.blogspot.com
the i got my sis to take a snap shot with me
got my bro the take a snap shot with me 
then. .................. the story begins .......
this snap shots were taken in the morning before the ceremony . me and div
me and div .
me and taufan
me div and tsu .
the flowers that dad bought me
me and tsoon kit . haven't seen him in a loong time ..
naleena and me
my dad and me
naleena me and my aunt 
me and tsu yi
from the right : miss Z , me , tsu , div , and miss peggy
me and my classmate 
me and my course mates . 
me and tsu at the ceremony . 
me and div with our flowers bought my our dads 
kevin came and drop by . paid us a visit .
me and arthur
me , tsu , div and arthur
and there you have it the story .. of the graduand adele melissa vincent .
the ceremony was great . But what was best is i had the people closest to my heart there . my dad , aunt and cousin . sadly My mum could not be there cause she had her exams. best of all i graduated with my best friends , It was sad that some did not make WELL actually majority did not make it but hey we we don't need this ceremony to remember each other at heart. it is a ceremony of a lifetime. it was also the tears of joy moment for all of us on the inner side. we know we have done our best , achieve our goals , got the greds , made our parents proud , and most important HAD FUN doing all of it :) well to all my friend in diploma . This journey was awesome . with you all and i thank you for being there with me throughout this whole time ;)i love you guys 
me and may pin after lunch 
the ford or some people ( Arvind Devadasan ) called it the wall :P
