With depressing news about the economy being released every day, we all could use a good laugh.
Seeing John Witherspoon definitely is a sure way to trigger contagious laughter.
The hilarious comedian and actor will appear in Indianapolis during four nights at Crackers Comedy Club in Broad Ripple, from Thursday Dec. 18 to Sunday Dec. 21.
Chris Miller, manager of Crackers Comedy Club, said Witherspoon represents the kind of interesting and quality style of entertainment the venue has provided for years.
“We’re excited to have him back because of his style of comedy and his draw” Miller said. “He’s very good at what he does.”
Witherspoon doesn’t have a household name, but his face is recognized by people who remember his silly antics in films such as the “Friday” trilogy and “Soul Plane.”
Indeed, the image of Witherspoon as a wacky father simulating sexual activity at the dinner table and shouting “Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang” is hard to forget.
Witherspoon, 66, isn’t new to the public eye, and has been working in the entertainment field in some capacity for almost 40 years.
In the early ‘70s he began modeling men’s clothing for various department stores in his native Detroit, before moving to New York then California, where he encountered a competitive edge in the modeling field.
“I fell off the totem pole right away,” Witherspoon said in a recent interview. “The guys were taller and much better-looking than I was. I figured out I had to do something else.”
With his natural talent for comedy Witherspoon went on the stand-up circuit, performing in clubs throughout the country.
In the late 1970s and early ‘80s he appeared as a character actor in sitcoms such as “Good Times,” “What’s Happening?” “WKRP in Cincinnati” and “Hill Street Blues.” By the late ‘80s he had scene-stealing roles in classics such as “Hollywood Shuffle” and the comedy “I’m Gonna’ Git’ You Sucka.’”
Witherspoon, however, did not achieve universal fame until the ‘90s, playing mostly grumpy, funny fathers in rap videos and movies such as “Boomerang” (1992) and “Friday” (1995) with Ice Cube and Chris Tucker, as well as the sitcom the Wayans Brothers (1995-99).
More recently he has appeared as a blind man in “Soul Plane” (2004) and as a grandfather in “Little Man” (2006).
This year has been a good year for Witherspoon, with the Showtime network’s launch in March of his first hour-long comedy special “You Gotta’ Co-Ordinate,” which is now available on DVD.
Witherspoon now has, of all things, a rap album called “63 Cents,” with lyrics based largely on popular catchphrases he created.
“It’s not the best rapping in the world, but it’s funny as hell,” he said.
He has also released a collector’s line of greeting cards just in time for the holidays, which are available at his Web site, www.bangbangbangbang.com.
“I’ve made about 80,000 of those cards, but only sold 10,” Witherspoon said, laughing. “I tried to get Hallmark to carry them and they said, ‘Whoa, these are too heavy for us.’ I guess people would rather buy their cards at Kroger or Ralph’s or something. Somebody better buy these cards! People look at them and say ‘Man, this is so funny! Now take it back.’”
