Best Posts in Forum: Television and Web Series

Black gay man is doing somethings out here. Not mad at him at all. In fact, just the opposite.

Congrats brother. I will definitely watch.

 

I'll take one of each please.

 

In all seriousness, cosign everything said about the web series situation. It really does sadden me to think that blk gay men keep showing up for this bullshyt. I guess for many, any reflection of themselves, no matter how ridiculous, terrible, or cringe-worthy is better than nothing at all.

And for what it's worth, I can imagine that for a lot of guys who aren't, haven't been or (let's be honest), prob never will be lusted after like some of the guys in these series, the appeal is living through them vicariously.

 

Ok. A few things.

1. Good initial episode. Other than the whole "no legacy if you don't have kids" bullshit, I think this has potential. Kinda bro-ey. But I'm like that with friends, and this is a group of 9 ostensibly 100% straight dudes. I'm gonna watch and see what comes of it.

2. The soundtrack is fire. NxWorries's (AKA Knxledge + Anderson .Paak) Yes Lawd! and samples from SiR's Long Live Dilla? I've been telling y'all about them for aggggesss! Praise Jesus they know what they're doing. Go check that ish out people.

3. Finally, what defines black brilliance? Will non frat dudes like me forever be left out in the cold? I mean, it seems like there's a higher concentration of well-rounded dudes trying to do stuff in formal fraternities because of initial self-selection and inviting of 'desirables'...but they're expensive as hell. My medical boards cost the same amount as the Alpha application fee- $1300. So I passed on joining the grad chapter. I'll live lol. One day in the future, I too will define myself as brilliant. I'll get there- but it'll be other people holding me up.

 

I love all the talk about nerds these days. I had it rough being from the hood, being a nerd and band geek. Now, nerds are cool. Lol.

Marcus is a good actor too...and too doggone handsome. #NoPedo

 

OMG, I LOVE videos like this. They are so entertaining So many random topics and facts. Does that make me a nerd? lol

 

I'm watching my 6-year old cousin. Why his lil ass pop over here as soon as he heard Peter's voice? lol. I'm up here tryna turn this shit off like it was porn. lmao!!!

 

I know some dudes are gonna be afraid to check this thread out, knowing full well that they used to do the spin.

 

I watched the pilot. I thought it was weird and trying way to hard for my tastes...but the oral scene was hot!

 

Wow...um ok. But I thought male witches were warlocks? These gay dudes stay wanting to emulate females. LOL

 

Michael Che gets extra cool points for his stance on religion as well.

 

Release Date: TBA 2019
Cast: Elizabeth Debicki, Michael K. Williams, Courtney B. Vance, Jamie Harris, Jonathan Majors, Aunjanue Ellis, Wunmi Mosaku, Jurnee Smollet-Bell
Writers: Misha Green, J.J. Abrams, David Knoller, Jordan Peele, Ben Stephenson, Yann Demange
Directors: Yann Demange

With names like J.J. Abrams and Jordan Peele behind the camera and a cast consisting of Elizabeth Debicki and Courtney B. Vance in front of it, “Lovecraft Country” would be a big freakin’ deal no matter where the core story sprang from, but familiarity with Matt Ruff’s 2016 novel of the same name only amps up the excitement. HBO’s hourlong horror/drama series follows sci-fi writer Atticus Black (Jonathan Majors) on a road trip across Jim Crow America during the turbulent 1950s. Black is looking for his missing father, an unbending, personal quest which makes the racist threats perking up around him worth tackling — not to mention the H.P. Lovecraft monsters springing to life all around him. If Abrams handles the sci-fi and Peele influences the racial overtones, “Lovecraft Country” could be an intellectually stimulating blockbuster — a la “Get Out” or “Super 8.”

 

Check out writer James Peoples’ clever new mystery comedy web series, “F’N YOUR LIFE UP!” produced and distributed by Dennis Dortch and his team over at Black & Sexy TV.

Synopsis:

A man wakes up, alone in an apartment with no way out. His only means of communication is via a web chat device. He works with his closest friends to figure out how he got there and why there’s a dead body in the bath tub.

Trailer:



Premiere Episode:



For those of you that are fans of The Cypher Avenue Podcast, you may remember that James Peoples and I live-brainstormed the initial inspirational seeds of this show in a conversation about the state of LGBT web series back in 2014 (our pitch starts around the 49:00 mark).


To his credit, Peoples sifted out all of the bad ideas that we threw at the wall and fleshed the premise into a unique series with an ensemble of interesting characters and situations.

Directed by Fred Leach, the series stars Derrick King, Lauren Daggett, Israel Dixon and Kendall Johnson. While the quality of the writing, directing and acting are light years beyond most of what we see from many LGBT web series lately, there still seems to be a “focused grouped” feel in the pilot episode that we hope gets smoothed out as the series progresses.

“F’N YOUR LIFE UP!” is described (in ALL-CAPS by Black & Sexy TV) as a “THRILLER/HORROR” series, however nothing is thrilling or horrific in the premiere episode. It seems that it was determined that ‘comedy’ should be the main goal as the lead character Will, played by College Boyfriends’ Derrick King, hams it up in every scene. Even the simple acts of answering a cell phone or using a laptop are turned up to 10 by the actor.

Hopefully there’s room for subtlety as the series progresses…and hopefully the filmmakers allow for quiet moments in this mystery/horror/thriller show. In the pilot, when the soundtrack isn’t loudly banging hip hop beats during what should be tense & suspenseful moments, the actors are shown saying out loud what we are already seeing on screen.

In one early scene, Will sees his shoes on the ground:



He pauses and then says out loud, “My shoes.”



Thanks bro…we hadn’t notice them.

This is a minor quibble, but we don’t need to hear Will (and others) narrating all of these visual moments and clues that are already being told through the character’s eyes (and the camera). Cinema 101: Show don’t Tell.

This brings me to the three attractive supporting characters, Kendall, Netty and Kev (the implausible openly gay BFF in the group of only straight people), who are established as Will’s best friends. They are primarily seen through Skype-like chat windows that Will manages to pull up on a laptop while stuck in the strange apartment.



This is not a bad way to include more characters into a story about a man stuck in a single location, however their interactions add little support to the story besides warning Will that he should find a way out.

Its almost as if during the pitch meeting the producers said, “You remember that hit movie GET OUT? What if, instead of that boringly subtle Oscar nominated performance by Daniel Kaluuya, we made someone more funny like Lil Rel the lead character and what if…follow me…what if he had, not one but, THREE friends hilariously telling him to ‘Get Out’ the entire episode instead of just a few scenes? Hilarious, right? Who needs all that horror and thriller stuff, comedy is King on the web! I love it, it’s greenlit! Production starts next week!”



I don’t have any inside information on the pitch or production of this series, so this is all my tounge-in-cheek speculation. However, while I definitely feel the series and concept is full of potential, I’m looking forward to seeing how they smooth out the kinks of finding the story, style and characters of this new show as it goes on.

Read the whole post here.

 

every june, i take a trip to miami beach -- sometimes with a summer body, sometimes with just a body in summer -- for the american black film festival. about 10 years ago, i started traveling to film festivals (toronto, blackstar, los angeles, sundance, new voices in black cinema) across north america. before the black renaissance in film and television when you'd rarely find us on the big screen, these annual events (some black-focused, some not) helped me to watch fresh stories about us and see upcoming black actors in quality roles.

while i'm not the biggest blockbuster moviegoer and don't frequent the theater often outside of attending these events -- i just saw black panther last week -- i am a huge indie film lover and supporter of black filmmaking. my favorite event at festivals is generally the short film showcase, but i am looking forward to this year's talk with black panther director, ryan cooler. abff also has industry events such as master classes, show premieres, and industry parties, so it's an all around great time.

consider checking it out if you're ever looking for a summer event and a reason to visit miami in addition to the cuties.

 

Buyers in L.A. got a first look at “The Awoken” this week, a new pilot presentation emanating from Issa Rae’s drive to find TV writers from under-represented sections of society.

Rae, creator, co-writer and star of HBO’s “Insecure,” has spearheaded the Fresh Wave! initiative through ColorCreative, the production company she runs with producing partner Deniese Davis. New York-based producer Talos Films also backed Fresh Wave!, as did Sky Vision, the distribution arm of European pay-TV giant Sky.

Katelyn Howes beat 2,000 other entries to win the competition with “The Awoken,” about a teenage girl, Alabine Rivers, who is cryogenically frozen and brought back to life in 2103. She joins an underground group of rebels who have also been awoken from their deep-freeze and are fighting for human rights in the dystopian future world.

“We believe ‘The Awoken’ does what all great science fiction does: It moves the heart as well as the mind,” Talos Films co-presidents Elli Hakami and Julian P. Hobbs said in a statement. “It also give us a lens into our present by looking into the near future.”

Howes said that “the producers and mentors of ‘Fresh Wave!’ have provided a thoughtful and unique program that has allowed a female-created sci-fi world to come to life.”

ColorCreative is making the 10-minute pilot presentation, which was funded by Talos and Sky Vision. The latter has first option to distribute the project if it is picked up and taken to series and has also optioned several other Fresh Wave! entries.

Sky Vision boss Jane Millichip told Variety that it was attracted to the initiative as it tackled social mobility in the TV business and also generated fresh content that it hopes will work commercially.

“The point of the competition was to appeal to would-be writers who don’t normally get a look in and to create something tangible, and in so doing we might get a new perspective on a story,” she said. “From the outset this was designed to be a commercial venture as well and these projects need publicity and business backing.”

Issa Rae’s Talent Drive Leads to Sci-Fi Pilot ‘The Awoken’

 

The Black Gay Community:





Me:

 

Brutally honest and witty, 'A Whole New Irving' gives young Black men room to express themselves

Millennials have a bad rap. We’ve been called lazy, entitled and so forth – but in reality, I think most of us are exhausted. We’re trying to wade our way through life using rules that rusted over a generation ago, and when we get stuck – which many of us do especially coming right out of college -- things seem hopeless. We get angry, and perhaps we wallow and sink into what we feel is the injustice of it all. After all, it isn’t as if we haven’t done the work.

In his brutally honest and witty debut web series, A Whole New Irving, LA-based producer-director Terry Dawson examines the post-grad struggle from the perspective of a Black young man. Irving (Chase Anthony) is a recent grad who is submerged in debt and barely holding on to his job at a local health food store in Venice Beach. He lives every day trying not to let the bitterness and angst that he feels consume him.



Today more than any other time in history, what we do seems to define who we are. Not having a tangible goal to hold on to as a young, educated person can feel horrible, and those feelings of self-doubt and worthlessness can seep into every aspect of your being. Stretching away from the monotony of Irving's day to day life, A Whole New Irving explores how Irving's present circumstances affect both his mental health and spiritual well being. “Irving was crafted to be a portrait of a young black dude we haven’t seen before–he’s not a rapper, baller, or a thug, but a college educated millennial ‘average joe,'" Dawson explained. "His ‘normalcy’ is what makes him so relatable and realistic, similarly to Issa Rae’s Awkward Black Girl.”

More than anything, A Whole New Irving shows that life can and will come at you fast, and it's OK to be pissed off, but there is also no shame in asking for help -- something Black men haven't been allowed to do historically.

A Whole New Irving premiered June 16th. Four out of the ten episodes slated for Season 1 have already debuted. Fundraising is currently underway to complete production on the final 6 episodes. Watch the first episode below.

 

There’s a lot happening on Insecure this season. Issa is, unconvincingly, running a “hotation” as a means of getting over Lawrence. Molly is caught up in a steamy affair with Dro, her married childhood friend who’s in an open marriage. And Lawrence even has a new bae. But one thing you might have missed was the introduction of Issa’s gay brother, Ahmal (played by Jean Elie). And the reason you might have missed him is a good one—he’s not a stereotype.

Prior to the first episode of the season, we had no idea Issa even had a brother, considering she behaves a bit like an only child. But he’s a welcome, and minor, addition to the cast. At Issa’s disastrous house party, she brings Ahmal as her “plus one”. When he greets the guys at the party, his voice drops and he plays it cool. But when he sees his female friends, his tone shoots up and he’s like one of the girls. It’s a “blink and you missed it” kind of moment, but it provides a window into black, gay life. The Advocate did a great job of deconstructing the scene here, so there’s no need to dive into code switching. But there is another element to Ahmal’s presence on the show.

Not that there’s anything wrong with Insecure, because it’s already repping an underrepresented Hollywood demographic. And I’m not expecting it to be everything to everyone. But given the show’s open discussion of male sexuality, I kind of expected a gay character to pop up somewhere.

I was happy to see Ahmal, and I was even happier to see Ahmal’s portrayal. He’s not onscreen long enough to show layers, but in the short time he shares the screen with Issa, he’s her brother—not her gay brother. There aren’t a lot of gay, black male characters on TV right now. If you think about it, other than Ahmal, the only other representation we have is Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s Captain Ray Holt (played by Andre Braugher) and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’s Titus Andromedon (played by Tituss Burgess). The portrayals are all comedic and, in some cases, overblown or one-sided portrayals of gay life. Insecureavoids that, which is great. But it gets my wheels turning—why haven’t we seen a full, HBO-quality series about our experience?

I’m not naïve—I understand why we haven’t seen a full series materialize. Certain elements of our culture (our sayings, drag, voguing) are more bankable than others. And Hollywood’s diversity push has focused almost exclusively on race. Not sexuality. But it’s high time our community got a little bit of that cable production money for a new, black LGBTQ statement.

Remember Noah’s Arc, Patrik-Ian Polk’s groundbreaking sitcom about the lives of four gay, black men? That series went off the air after 2 seasons—over 10 years ago. And we’ve seen nothing like it since. We’ve had to settle for playing second fiddle to other characters, if we’re present at all.

Gay TV in general is suffering right now. The last gay-centered show we had was Looking which suffered a similar fate as Noah’s Arc. So, it might seem presumptuous to ask for something so specific when there isn’t even one current show to use as a reference point. But I think we’re ready for it.

Queer visibility, like that of Ahmal, is two-fold. On one hand, it’s incredible that he’s black and gay, and no one is talking about it. He isn’t a stereotype, and he seems to be three-dimensional. But at the same time, being mixed into the cast of show, with several other characters who drive the dominant narrative, isn’t exactly visibility. Kudos to Insecure for writing a character like Ahmal into the show. But shame on everyone else for constantly forcing us to sit on the sidelines.

We’re ready for primetime.

 

I was watching some god-forsaken webseries and ran across a couple of interviews with g/b/t dudes currently living in NYC. For the most part, no one got on a big-ole soapbox to scream and cry. They all just talk about growing up, coming to terms with their identities, insecurities about feeling unwanted and unloved, and how their perspectives have changed after years of interacting with dudes like themselves. I thought this was refreshing, especially since they are short snapshots. And yes, some of them are ridiculously attractive- cause life isn't fair lol.

There are about 30 of these. Here are a few;

Super symmetric, deliciously dark-skinned, Jamaican finance dude



Bearded dude on navigating multiple identities.



Dude who realized, "oh shit, there are MORE of me!" and then stopped giving a fuck lol.



Um....yum. That is all.



Does anything here speak to you?

For me, one of the dudes spoke about his grannie policing his masculinity and how uncomfortable that was. That resonated with me- not since my Grannie has done that, but because shortly after I came out to my sister, she started asking me, "what's with your pants, why are you crossing your legs sometimes?" And that bugged me. It did. A bunch of you all have met me, and y'all know I come across as a regular dude- mildly humorous, understanding...and yeah, pretty masculine. The voice helps. Anyways, I just hate being other-ized and made to feel self-conscious. Just leave me be!!!

 

The Only 10 Things That Could EVER be Blacker Than the Luke Cage Experience.

1- If Cicely Tyson and Wesley Snipe had a fish fry to raise money for Viola Davis’ new wig collection.
2- If Colin Kapernick ate a plate of fish and grits on the sideline as the anthem played.
3- If India Arie & Lauryn Hill sang a duet about getting their hair straightened at the stove on Easter.
4- If Barack Obama flipped over the table after Michelle hit him with two Draw 4’s and kept him from going out.
5- If Oprah Winfrey cornrowed Gayle King’s hair on her cousin’s steps while listening to Earth, Wind, & Fire.
6- If the Wu-Tang Clan was put in charge of the PTA for all Staten Island school activities.
7- If Lupita Nyongo got her gold earrings snatched right after getting them off layaway at 12th & Chestnut.
8- If Whoopi Goldberg sang the Black National Anthem at a Spades Tournament in Detroit.
9- If Malik Yoba shined his shoes and then used the rest of the Vaseline to moisturize his lips.
10- If Debbie Allen lead 1,000 black folks in the electric slide on MLK Boulevard in any city on any given day.

 

Marcus Scribner was made for his role as Andre Johnson Jr. in ABC’s hit series “Black-ish.”

Anthony Anderson, Kenya Barris, and then-executive producer Larry Wilmore knew this in 2014 when Scribner thought he could connect with the Los Angeles, California, natives by shouting “WEST COAST REPRESENT!” during his audition.

The 16-year-old confessed that he thought he was being cool, but flexing his hometown pride actually just came off as nerd-trying-to-be-cool, which was something Andre would definitely do.

“We definitely have our similarities,” Scribner told The Huffington Post of his character. “We love video games, we love superheroes, some of those kind of things that are classic ‘nerd’ kind of things. At the same time, we’re very different. I feel like I’m not as clumsy or gullible as Andre Jr. but that’s what also makes him so fun to play because it’s like a different character. It’s somebody you don’t get to experience on the daily basis.”


As “Black-ish” goes into its third season, premiering Sept. 21, Scribner said audiences have seen Junior (and himself) develop but, one thing remains the same, black nerds are missing from television.

“There are families like the Johnsons that exists in real life and it’s like a large part of our population, so why not show that on television instead of the stereotypical roles they would cast black people in,” the actor told HuffPost. “I mean, obviously, there are those positive roles, there are those nerdy roles but there’s not a lot of representation of that on television. So I feel like just getting to be a part of a show that actually is about it is a blessing.”

And Scribner’s blessing seems to have made an impact on the show’s viewers, too. With episodes like “Hope,” which painted an accurate picture of the harsh realities black families face when confronted with the issue of police brutality, shows that the comedic series is in a league of its own.

The young actor said talking real social issues is what makes “Black-ish” so special, and it has racked up three Emmy nominations this year: one for Outstanding Comedy Series, one for Outstanding Lead Actor in a comedy series (Anthony Anderson) and one for Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series (Tracee Ellis Ross, the first black woman nominated for this category in 30 years).

Scribner said he’s proud of how the show proves that black people aren’t one-dimensional. Through his character, audiences see a clumsy teen who’d rather play video games and referee than be on the basketball court shooting jumpers. Andre is the anti-hypermasculine young black male that TV doesn’t always show audiences.


DAMON DAHLEN/HUFFINGTON POST
Black nerds rock.
“I definitely want to [have] a super positive impact... making sure that nerds, black nerds in specific, are being represented on television. Cause I mean, to be honest, there’s just a ton of us out here,” he told HuffPost. He added that shows like “Everybody Hates Chris” and “The Bernie Mac Show” helped to put on black nerds, but he said he’s looking forward to making the black boy nerd more visible, notably in his latest movie role as a coder in “Alexander IRL.”

While he’s holding it down for the “blerds” in “Black-ish,” he wants to make one thing clear for Hollywood show-runners:

“We out here!”

Marcus Scribner Of 'Black-ish' Wants To See More Black Nerds On TV | Huffington Post

 

South Africa beams with Pride - ITWeb Africa

Excerpt:
South Africa's first LGBT video-on-demand (VoD) channel has launched, looking to provide content that unashamedly tells the stories of Africa's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities.

PrideTV, which provides South Africa and the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa with an affordable library of LGBT movies and series, told ITWeb Africa it does not expect its focus to provide any problems in certain African markets, as the service is fully online and can be accessed privately from any smart device.

 

Ever Since i was small, I have always been fascinated with Nature and Wildlife. Growing up in Nigeria my Mom will take us to the Zoo, or I will go to the market were you could see people selling Hyenas and Chimps and you could pet them. Then one day I saw this man, on a Rice Krispses box, surrounded by Chimps, Toucan and Snakes and a short tale about the Amazon Rain Forest. That man was Sir David Attenborough, he looked so happy in the midst of these creatures. I fell in love with his work instantly. He has narrated most of the iconic to date BBC nature docs, from Planet Earth to Natures Great Events to his most recent revisit to the Great Barrier Reef after 60 years. I own most of his wonderful docs, and remastered ones in 4k. They are just breathtaking! I used to wish there was a way for him to narrate my boring Uni books, lol, with that amazing voice of his
Here he narrates Adele's Hello, Enjoy;

 

So I have a Netflix account just like everyone else, but I haven't really binge watched a television series in a long time. Mostly because I actively avoid it. Once I watch a series I'm interested in, I get consumed by it and can spend hours watching it. It becomes my life. Productivity lost. YouTube channels from independent content creators are a good alternative because the videos are shorter and they're not sequential so you don't always have to watch it to find out what happens next. Plus, short 5-15 minute videos are nice study breaks. What are some of your favorite YouTube Channels? Here are some of mine:

One of my current favorites is Swoozie. He's an excellent storyteller. He has the ability to make the most mundane activities sound interesting. And he's quite attractive. I've seen a few of his videos over the years, but didn't start actively watching his channel until recently.



I love science, nerdy, intellectual shit, so anything that falls into that category, I'll probably watch. One of my favorites is Vsauce.



Crash Course is awesome as well. They have a bunch of different subjects, all of which I enjoy, but I especially love their history series.

 

The new show Hap and Leonard will premieres Wednesday March 2nd on the Sundance channel. As we previously covered, the 6 one hour episodes are based on the novels by author Joe Lansdale (who first introduced the duo in 1990 with Savage Season. My interest in the show was based upon reading the description of Leonard, “a Black crime fighting Vietnam vet who is also homosexual.” The series’ time period takes place in the 1980s.


Leonard will be play by Michael K. Williams, better known from his breakout role as Omar in HBO’s The Wire. Additional details on the main characters:

Leonard Pine is a gay, black Vietnam vet with serious anger issues. He was raised by his uncle who shunned him after learning he was gay. However, when his uncle passes away, he leaves his house and all his assets to Leonard. Leonard has zero tolerance for racist or anti-gay slurs. Although Hap dislikes guns, Leonard has no problem carrying or using them. Quick to anger, at times he cannot understand Hap’s aversion to violence or killing if necessary, even when provoked. His relationships are also short and tempestuous. Leonard is the much more aggressive of the two and repeatedly burned down a local crack house that used to be his new next door neighbor.​

Hap Collins (played by James Purefoy) is a white working class laborer who spent time in federal prison as a young man for refusing to be drafted into the military and serve in the Vietnam War. In his late forties, he is often haunted by the various unpleasant jobs he’s held over the years such as working at an aluminum chair factory and working the East Texas rose fields. The two now work for the former police officer turned private investigator Marvin Hanson. Hap tries his best to avoid violence and also tries his best to avoid the taking of another human life. Often lovesick, most of his relationships haven’t worked out. He is currently with his on-again-off-again girlfriend Brett Sawyer. Some of his past has been taken from Mr. Lansdale’s own past. The stories are told from Hap’s narrative point of view. Not as quick to anger as Leonard, he often finds himself attempting to talk Leonard out of committing serious violence.​

Check out the below trailers from the six episode run of Hap and Leonard.











Read the whole post here.

 

In my neverending quest to find myself I do a lot of looking both online, in books, and everywhere else in between to see where I fit in and one thing that I often hear more often than not is that I can't do something because "black folk don't" but clearly since we are human beings we do.

My question is why do we say that about ourselves, why do we limit the things we can do. Is it a fear thing, not understanding the mechanics of those things, or just no interest.

And sorry if this is in the wrong thread

 

Ok...so I'm sure most know that the "blacktress" Janet Hubert who played Aunt Viv on the Fresh Prince of Bel Air called out Jada and Will Smith on their boycott of the Oscars? So watch the first video, then the second.

 

Some of you may know 32-year-old stand up comedian Michael Che as as staff writer and anchor on Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update news segments. In addition to pulling off great comedic timing, even when improvising lines with his co-host Colin Jost, Che looks very good in a suit (I can’t lie, he’s my type of dude. If Che has a gay brother, send him my way).



As many readers already know, I’ve been very critical of black comedians in the past when it came to Homophobia. From Kevin Hart to Tracy Morgan even to The Carmichael Show star Jerrod Carmichael, black comedians often show a disdain for gay people, especially when it comes to gay people in their family or circle of friends.

This 2013 stand up comedy bit from Michael Che on homophobia and gay marriage is hilariously spot on and refreshing. Instead of showing disgust for gays, he jokes about how incomprehensible it is for anyone to be homophobic in the first place (starts around the 3:40 mark).



Props to Michael Che for taking what shouldn’t be a controversial stance in the world of black stand-up comedy: Making funny “gay jokes” that both makes fun of and supports homosexuality.















Read the whole post here.

 

I hate when I see plans for a new TV show or movie, get my hopes up and nothing comes to fruition. It’s worse when you hear the news and tell others, who also get excited and they come to you later and ask…“what ever happened to that show you told me about?” This is the reason I’ve been reluctant to share certain projects (live action Akira or Ninja Scrolls) that peck my interest with the Cypher Ave audience.

Back in 2014 I heard about possible development of a show based on the adventures of Hap and Leonard. Having never heard of the book series by author Joe Lansdale (who first introduced the duo in 1990 with Savage Season) my interest in the show was based upon reading the description of Leonard, “a Black crime fighting Vietnam vet who is also homosexual.” As not to get my hopes up (just in case the TV show may never come) I did at least want to read one of the novels.



This past summer more blurbs come out stating that the project had been greenlit, casting was in progress, shooting was to begin later in 2015 and the series would premier on Sundance channel…meh. I still needed more evidence. Well, the additional evidence is here as we get our first look at Hap and Leonard.

Leonard will be play by Michael K. Williams, better known from his breakout role as Omar in HBO’s The Wire. Set in the 1980’s, the Sundance channel will premier 6 one hour long episodes reportedly in early 2016.

Additional details on the main characters;

Leonard Pine is a gay, black Vietnam vet with serious anger issues. He was raised by his uncle who shunned him after learning he was gay. However, when his uncle passes away, he leaves his house and all his assets to Leonard. Leonard has zero tolerance for racist or anti-gay slurs. Although Hap dislikes guns, Leonard has no problem carrying or using them. Quick to anger, at times he cannot understand Hap’s aversion to violence or killing if necessary, even when provoked. His relationships are also short and tempestuous. Leonard is the much more aggressive of the two and repeatedly burned down a local crack house that used to be his new next door neighbor.​

Hap Collins (played by James Purefoy) is a white working class laborer who spent time in federal prison as a young man for refusing to be drafted into the military and serve in the Vietnam War. In his late forties, he is often haunted by the various unpleasant jobs he’s held over the years such as working at an aluminum chair factory and working the East Texas rose fields. The two now work for the former police officer turned private investigator Marvin Hanson. Hap tries his best to avoid violence and also tries his best to avoid the taking of another human life. Often lovesick, most of his relationships haven’t worked out. He is currently with his on-again-off-again girlfriend Brett Sawyer. Some of his past has been taken from Mr. Lansdale’s own past. The stories are told from Hap’s narrative point of view. Not as quick to anger as Leonard, he often finds himself attempting to talk Leonard out of committing serious violence.​

Glad to see there will be a homosexual man of color on TV in 2016 (albeit for only 6 episodes) that will add to a small but growing list of non-stereotypical characters. Cypher Avenue will provide more details of actually air dates of Hap & Leonard when they become available. Props to the Sundance channel.




Read the whole post here.