BLACK SITCOMSTHROUGH THE YEARS

“JULIA” – NBC (1968-1971)ALTHOUGH CRITICIZED AT THE TIME BY SOME

AFRICAN-AMERICANS FOR NOT BEING ‘RADICAL’ ENOUGH, THIS SITCOM DID BREAK GROUND AS THE FIRST NETWORK SHOW CENTERED ENTIRELY ON A BLACK CHARACTER WHO WASN’T A SERVANT OR A

STEREOTYPE. ACTRESS DIAHANN CARROLL WON AN EMMY AND A GOLDEN GLOBE FOR HER

PERFORMANCE IN THE TITLE ROLE.

“SANFORD & SON” – NBC (1971-1977)

THIS UPROARIOUS SHOW ABOUT AN AGING, IRASCIBLE JUNK COLLECTOR AND HIS PATIENT SON PROVED TO BE THE PERFECT VEHICLE OF COMEDY GENIUS OF RED FOXX. FOXX BECAME AN UNLIKELY

STAR IN HIS 50S, ALTHOUGH HIS CHARACTER’S TRADEMARK FAUX HEART ATTACKS BECAME LESS

FUNNY AFTER HE SUCCUMBED TO ONE HIMSELF IN 1991.

“FAT ALBERT AND THE COSBY KIDS” – CBS (1972-1985)

• LONG BEFORE HE WAS KNOWN AS CLIFF HUXTABLE, BILL COSBY WAS THE CREATIVE GENIUS BEHIND THE LEGENDARY ANIMATED SERIES “FAT ALBERT AND THE COSBY KIDS”. LOOSELY BASED ON COSBY'S EXPERIENCES GROWING UP IN NORTH PHILADELPHIA, THE FAT ALBERT CHARACTER ORIGINATED DURING A COSBY STAND-UP ROUTINE. WHEN NO ONE ELSE WOULD, FAT ALBERT DEALT WITH ISSUES FACING CHILDREN IN URBAN ENVIRONMENTS. EACH OF THE CHARACTERS—FAT ALBERT, DUMB DUMB DONALD, WEIRD HAROLD, RUSSELL, AND RUDY—LEARNED A LESSON THAT WAS EXPRESSED THROUGH SONG EVERY WEEK.

“GOOD TIMES” – CBS (1974-1979)• J.J. WALKER’S ANTICS (“DYN-O-

MITE”) IN LATER YEARS OVERSHADOWED THIS SITCOM’S INITIAL STRONGER SEASONS WHICH DID AN EFFECTIVE JOB OF HUMANIZING THE STRUGGLES OF AN INNER-CITY FAMILY IN THE PROJECTS.

“THE JEFFERSONS” – CBS (1975-1985)

• THIS SPIN OFF OF “ALL IN THE FAMILY” WAS ABOUT A SUCCESSFUL DRYCLEANER AND HIS WIFE “MOVIN’ ON UP” TO A LUXURY MANHATTAN APARTMENT. “THE JEFFERSONS” HAS THE DISTINCTION OF BEING THE LONGEST RUNNING SHOW WITH A PREDOMINATELY BLACK CAST IN TELEVISION HISTORY.

“WHAT’S HAPPENING!!” – ABC (1976-1979)• LOOSELY BASED ON “COOLEY

HIGH”, THIS SHOW FOLLOWED THE DAILY LIVES OF WORKING CLASS TEENS RAJ, DWAYNE AND RERUN AS THEY COME OF AGE IN WATTS. WHILE THE SHOW WAS NEVER A HUGE HIT, RERUN’S DANCING REMAINS LEGENDARY.

“DIFF’RENT STROKES” – NBC, (1978-1995) TO ABC, (1985-1986)

• THE PREMISE OF THIS SHOW (A RICH WHITE MAN ADOPTS TWO IMPOVERISHED BLACK KIDS FROM HARLEM) RUBBED A LOT OF BLACKS THE WRONG WAY. BUT THE SHOW WAS BIG ENOUGH TO LAND A FIRST LADY CAMEO, INSPIRE KNOCK-OFFS (WEBSTER) AND TO HAUNT ITS STAR GARY COLEMAN TO THIS DAY.

“THE COSBY SHOW” – NBC (1984-1992)

• AFTER RUNNING FOR EIGHT SEASONS AND RECEIVING ACCOLADES AS ONE OF THE BEST TV SHOWS OF THE 1980S, “THE COSBY SHOW” IS THE BEST BLACK SITCOM EVER PRODUCED. BUILDING ON THE STRENGTHS OF ITS TRAILBLAZING PREDECESSORS, “THE COSBY SHOW” REVOLVED AROUND THE HUXTABLES, A WELL-TO-DO AFRICAN-AMERICAN FAMILY LIVING IN A BROOKLYN BROWNSTONE. NOT ONLY WERE BOTH PARENTS PRESENT, THEY WERE EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL.

“227” – NBC (1985-1990)• EMMY WINNER JACKÉE HARRY (LISA

FROM “SISTER, SISTER”) WAS THE BREAKOUT STAR OF THIS HIGH-RATED SHOW SET IN A PREDOMINATELY BLACK DC NEIGHBORHOOD AND STARRING JEFFERSONS VETERAN MARLA GIBBS.

“A DIFFERENT WORLD” – NBC (1987-1993)

• A SPIN-OFF OF “THE COSBY SHOW”, THIS LIGHT-HEARTED PORTRAYAL OF LIFE AT FICTIONAL HILLMAN UNIVERSITY WAS A BIG HIT WITH WHITE AND BLACK VIEWERS. SOME HAVE CREDITED IT WITH INCREASING ENROLLMENT AT HBCUS (HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES/UNIVERSITIES) LIKE THE ONE PORTRAYED ON THE SHOW.

“FAMILY MATTERS” – ABC, (1989-1997) TO CBS, (1997-1998)

• WHILE IT PROBABLY STAYED ON THE AIR A FEW SEASONS TOO MANY, THERE WERE FEW COMEDIC CHARACTERS MORE BELOVED IN THE 90S THAN UBER-NERD STEVE URKEL, PLAYED BY THE TALENTED JALEEL WHITE. HE SINGLE-HANDEDLY STOLE THIS SITCOM CENTERED AROUND BLACK FAMILY BASED IN CHICAGO.

“THE FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR” – NBC (1990-1996)

• WILL SMITH IS CURRENTLY BEST KNOWN FOR HIS BLOCKBUSTER ACTION FILMS AND HIS ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATED WORK IN FILMS LIKE THE “PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS”. BUT TV FANS WILL ALWAYS CHERISH THE COMEDIC CHOPS HE DISPLAYED AS A FISH-OUT-OF-WATER TITLE CHARACTER ON THIS SHOW.

“IN LIVING COLOR” – FOX (1990-1994)

• THE BRAINCHILD OF COMIC ACTOR KEENEN IVORY WAYANS, THE FOX COMEDY VARIETY SERIES “IN LIVING COLOR” HAS BEEN DESCRIBED VARIOUSLY AS THE "BLACK SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE." WHATEVER THE CASE, THE SERIES GARNERED BIG LAUGHS AND BIGGER RATINGS BY APPLYING A HIP, CUTTING-EDGE, AFROCENTRIC SLANT ON MODERN AMERICAN CULTURE, WITH FREEWHEELING SPOOFS AND SATIRES OF POPULAR FILMS, TV SHOWS, COMMERCIALS AND MUSIC. THE SHOW ALSO SERVED AS A LAUNCHPAD FOR MOST OF THE WAYANS KLAN AND SOME CELEBRITIES TODAY SUCH AS DREW CAREY.

“MARTIN” – FOX (1992-1997)• COMEDIAN AND ACTOR MARTIN LAWRENCE PLAYED

MARTIN PAYNE, A DJ FOR WZUP (AND EVENTUALLY THE HOST OF HIS OWN TALK SHOW, "WORD ON THE STREET"). CENTRAL TO THE SHOW WAS MARTIN'S RELATIONSHIP WITH GINA WATERS, THE LARGE-HEADED (LITERALLY) LOVE OF HIS LIFE. THEY BROKE UP AND GOT BACK TOGETHER THROUGHOUT THE SERIES, BUT THEIR GENUINE LOVE PROVIDED A COMPLEMENT TO THE SHOW'S CONSTANT COMEDY. ALSO IMPORTANT WERE MARTIN'S RELATIONSHIPS WITH HIS BIGGEST ADVERSARY, GINA'S BEST FRIEND, PAM JAMES, AND HIS TWO BEST FRIENDS, THE COMICALLY INEPT COLE BROWN AND THE TALL, BALD, AND POSSIBLY UNEMPLOYED TOMMY STRAWN.

“LIVING SINGLE” – FOX (1993-1998)

• OFTEN REFERRED TO AS THE BLACK “FRIENDS”, “LIVING SINGLE” WAS ONE OF THE FEW MAJOR NETWORK SHOWS TO BE CENTERED ON AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMEN. LIVING SINGLE WAS ALSO ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR BLACK SITCOMS OF THE 90S AND IT PROVED TO AUDIENCES THAT QUEEN LATIFAH COULD ACT AS WELL AS RAP.

“SISTER, SISTER” – ABC/THE WB (1994-1999)

• WHAT ARE THE ODDS THAT TWIN SISTERS WHO WERE SEPARATED AT BIRTH WOULD WIND UP MEETING 14 YEARS LATER? THAT WAS THE PREMISE FOR “SISTER, SISTER”, WHICH STARRED TIA AND TAMERA MOWRY AS TIA LANDRY AND TAMERA CAMPBELL. THE TWO COULDN'T HAVE BEEN MORE DIFFERENT, BUT BLOOD IS THICKER THAN WATER. IN ADDITION TO BEING POLAR OPPOSITES, THE TWINS WERE NOTHING LIKE THEIR ADOPTIVE PARENTS, RAY AND LISA. THOUGH AT TIMES IT SEEMS LIKE THE WRONG TWIN ENDED UP WITH THE WRONG PARENT, THEY EVENTUALLY BECAME ONE BIG FAMILY IN RAY'S SUBURBAN DETROIT HOME.

“THE WAYNE’S BROS.” – THE WB (1995-1999)

• DOING IT ON YOUR OWN TERMS IS A WAYANS FAMILY TRAIT. VIEWERS TUNED IN WEEK AFTER WEEK TO WATCH THE TWO YOUNGEST BROTHERS WADE THROUGH LIFE'S TRIALS WHILE LIVING IN HARLEM. THE WAYANS BROS. ENJOYED A FIVE SEASON RUN ON THE WB BEFORE BEING UNCEREMONIOUSLY CANCELLED IN 1999. AS MENTIONED IN SCARY MOVIE, IT DIDN'T EVEN GET THE RESPECT OF A PROPER FINAL EPISODE. STILL, IT'S REMAINED POPULAR OVER A DECADE AFTER ITS CANCELLATION, AND FANS WILL STOP WHATEVER THEY'RE DOING WHEN THE SHOW COMES ON TELEVISION.

“MOESHA” – UPN, (1996-2001)

• IN 1996, MULTI-TALENTED R&B SINGER BRANDY STARRED IN MOESHA, A SITCOM ABOUT AN UPPER MIDDLE CLASS, AFRICAN-AMERICAN FAMILY LIVING IN LOS ANGELES. WHILE THE SITCOM FOCUSED LARGELY AROUND MOESHA, AN AMBITIOUS HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT AND HER HILARIOUS ENCOUNTERS WITH FRIENDS, HER OVERPROTECTIVE FATHER AND STEP-MOTHER—THE SHOW ALSO DEALT WITH REAL LIFE ISSUES LIKE TEEN PREGNANCY AND DRUG ABUSE.

“KENAN & KEL” – NICKELODEON (1996-2000)

• “KENAN & KEL” WAS CENTERED ON THE ANTICS OF TWO MISCHIEVOUS TEENAGERS, KENAN ROCKMORE (KENAN THOMPSON) AND KEL KIMBLE (KEL MITCHELL). KENAN IS A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT WITH A JOB AT A LOCAL GROCERY STORE, WHILE KEL IS HIS CLUMSY, ORANGE SODA-LOVING BEST FRIEND. EPISODES OF THE SERIES ALWAYS OPENED AND CLOSED WITH KENAN AND KEL BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL BY INTERACTING WITH THE STUDIO AUDIENCE, STANDING ON A STAGE IN FRONT OF A RED CURTAIN THAT IS PLACED IN FRONT OF THE MAIN SET, WHILE STILL IN CHARACTER. A FREQUENT RUNNING GAG OF THE OPENINGS WOULD BE KEL NEVER KNOWING WHAT THE NIGHT'S EPISODE WOULD BE ABOUT AND KENAN REFUSING TO TELL HIM. THE CLOSINGS WOULD FREQUENTLY FEATURE KENAN COMING UP WITH A NEW SCHEME – OFTEN ASKING KEL TO GET VARIOUS ASSORTED ITEMS AND MEET HIM SOMEWHERE. FRAZZLED, KEL WOULD EXCLAIM HIS CATCHPHRASE, "AWW, HERE IT GOES!"

“THE STEVE HARVEY SHOW” – THE WB (1996-2002)

• A LAUNCHPAD FOR SEVERAL OF TODAY’S BLACK COMEDIANS, INCLUDING CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER, THE STEVE HARVEY SHOW TOOK BLACK ENSEMBLE COMEDY OUT OF THE LIVING ROOM AND INTO THE WORKPLACE, WITH ITS PREMISE OF SECOND-CHANCES AND SELF-RENEWAL.

“THE JAMIE FOXX SHOW” – THE WB (1996-2001)

• IN THE MID-'90S, QUALITY BLACK TELEVISION EXPERIENCED A SIGNIFICANT BOOM. ONE SUCH PROGRAM WAS “THE JAIME FOXX SHOW”, BASED ON FOXX'S OWN EXPERIENCE MAKING IT IN THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY. AFTER MOVING TO L.A. TO PURSUE A CAREER IN MUSIC, JAMIE KING WORKS AT HIS AUNT AND UNCLE'S HOTEL TO SUPPORT HIMSELF DURING HIS QUEST FOR SUCCESS. FEATURING A THEME SONG SUNG BY FOXX HIMSELF, THE SHOW FOLLOWED HIS TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS WORKING AT KING'S TOWER, CHASING AFTER FRANCESCA "FANCY" MONROE AND CLOWNING HIS CO-WORKER BRAXTON.

“SMART GUY” – THE WB (1997-1999)

• “SMART GUY” CENTERS ON THE MISADVENTURES OF BOY GENIUS T.J. HENDERSON WHO, AT THE AGE OF 10, MOVES FROM ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND GETS TRANSFERRED TO PIEDMONT HIGH SCHOOL, WHERE HE IS A HIGH SCHOOL SOPHOMORE WITH 15-YEAR-OLDS AS HIS CLASSMATES. HE MUST ADJUST TO THE LIFE WITH OLDER BUT NOT NECESSARILY WISER HIGH SCHOOL TEENAGERS – INCLUDING HIS BROTHER MARCUS, MARCUS'S BEST FRIEND MO AND SEEMINGLY THE ONLY VOICE OF REASON, HIS OLDER SISTER YVETTE. EPISODES TYPICALLY DEAL WITH T.J.'S MISSTEPS OF TRYING TO FIT IN AS A KID GENIUS, WHILE BEING A SMALL KID IN HIGH SCHOOL, AS WELL AS THE CONTRAST BETWEEN HIS SMARTS AND HIS BROTHER'S UNDERACHIEVING NATURE.

“THE FAMOUS JETT JACKSON” – DISNEY CHANNEL (1998-2001)

• JETT JACKSON PREVIOUSLY LIVED WITH HIS ACTRESS MOTHER IN LOS ANGELES, BUT MISSED HIS HOME AND HIS FRIENDS. LONGING FOR A RELATIVELY NORMAL LIFE, JETT SUCCEEDS IN GETTING THE PRODUCTION OF SILVERSTONE MOVED TO THE FICTIONAL WILSTED, NORTH CAROLINA, THUS PROVIDING JOBS TO TOWNSPEOPLE WHILE AFFORDING JETT THE CHANCE TO LIVE WITH HIS FATHER, SHERIFF WOODRICK "WOOD" JACKSON, AND HIS GREAT-GRANDMOTHER, MIZ CORETTA. JETT NOW SPENDS PART OF HIS TIME WITH FAMILY, FRIENDS AND SCHOOL, AND THE REST LIVING THE LIFE OF A WORKING ACTOR AND CELEBRITY.

“THE PARKERS” – UPN (1999-2004)

• “MOESHA” SPIN-OFF, “THE PARKERKS” CENTERS AROUND A MOTHER AND DAUGHTER WHO BOTH ATTEND SANTA MONICA COLLEGE. NIKKI PARKER WAS FORCED TO DROP OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL WHEN SHE DISCOVERED SHE WAS PREGNANT WITH HER DAUGHTER, KIM. AFTER KIM REACHES ADULTHOOD, NIKKI FINALLY DECIDES TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL. KIM IS INITIALLY MORTIFIED WITH THIS DECISION, BUT EVENTUALLY ACCEPTS THE SITUATION. NIKKI AND KIM'S MOTHER-DAUGHTER RELATIONSHIP EVOLVES AS ROOMMATES AND AS STUDENTS. NIKKI ADJUSTS TO THE FACT THAT HER DAUGHTER IS OLD ENOUGH TO LIVE ON HER OWN, WHILE KIM REALIZES THAT NIKKI HAS MORE GOING ON THAN JUST BEING HER MOM. THE SERIES ENDS WITH NIKI FINALLY MARRYING PROFESSOR OGLEVEE, THE MAN OF HER DREAMS (AND WHOM SHE HAS STALKED THE ENTIRE SERIES).

“GIRLFRIENDS” – UPN, (2000-2006) TO THE CW (2006-2008)

• OFTEN CALLED THE BLACK SEX AND THE CITY, GIRLFRIENDS STRUCK A BALANCE BETWEEN FUNNY SCENARIOS AND ROMANTIC MELODRAMA, AND OFFERED A FRANK, STEREOTYPE-FREE PORTRAYAL OF A DIVERSE GROUP OF BLACK WOMEN FRIENDS. UNFORTUNATELY, THE SHOW FACED ITS UNTIMELY END DUE TO THE 2008 WRITER’S STRIKE.

“THE PROUD FAMILY” – DISNEY CHANNEL (2001-2005)

• 14 YEAR-OLD PENNY PROUD HAS ONE WACKY FAMILY: OVER-PROTECTIVE FATHER, OSCAR, LOVING MOTHER, TRUDY, LITTLE BROTHER CECE AND SISTER BEBE, AND HARD-CORE GRANDMOTHER SUGA MAMA. HER WILD FRIENDS: DIJONAY, STICKY, ZOEY, AND LACIENEGA. AND THE BULLIES THE GROSS SISTERS. THE THINGS I LOVED ABOUT THIS SHOW WAS DEFINITELY ITS ALL-STAR CAST, CELEBRITY GUEST STARS, CHARACTER PARODIES, DESTINY’S CHILD THEME SONG AND BLACK AMERICAN INFLUENCES.

“ONE ON ONE” – UPN (2001-2006)

• THE SHOW FOLLOWS THE LIVES OF FLEX WASHINGTON AND HIS TEENAGE DAUGHTER BREANNA BARNES. THE SERIES BEGINS WITH BREANNA WANTING TO STAY WITH HER FATHER, FLEX, WHOM BREANNA USED TO SEE ONLY TWO WEEKS A YEAR. WHEN HE BLEW OUT HIS KNEE DURING AN NBA GAME, FLEX HAD HIS COMMUNICATIONS DEGREE TO FALL BACK ON AND BECAME A SPORTSCASTER. FLEX WORKS FOR THE FICTIONAL WYNX-TV IN BALTIMORE, RESIDES IN THE ULTIMATE BACHELOR PAD, AND LIVES THE LIFE OF LUXURY. HE IS A LADIES' MAN WHO WANTS TO BE BOTH A RESPONSIBLE PARENT AND A BEST FRIEND TO BREANNA.

“THE BERNIE MAC SHOW” – FOX (2001-2006)

• THE LATE BERNIE MAC’S CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED SITCOM (THE SHOW WON WON THE PEABODY AWARD, THE HUMANITAS PRIZE AND AN EMMY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A COMEDY SERIES, JUST TO NAME A FEW) PROVED THAT THE COMIC LEGEND’S DISTINCT BRAND OF NO-NONSENSE STRAIGHT-TALK COULDN’T BE STIFLED BY THE FAMILY SITCOM GENRE.

“MY WIFE AND KIDS” – ABC (2001-2006)

• ANOTHER WAYANS BROS PRODUCTION, “MY WIFE AND KIDS” REVOLVES AROUND THE EXPERIENCES OF A MAN NAMED MICHAEL KYLE AND HIS FAMILY WHO LIVE IN STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT. AFTER IMPREGNATING HIS WIFE JAY AS A TEENAGER, MICHAEL HAS GROWN PARANOID OF HIS CHILDREN EVENTUALLY SPOILING THEIR OWN VIRGINITY, BUT ASIDE FROM THESE CONCERNS HE POSSESSES A NUMBER OF ODD, OFTEN IRRITATING ECCENTRICITIES THAT HE VIRTUALLY NEVER AVOIDS CONCEALING REGARDLESS OF THE SEVERITY OF THE SITUATION. AMONG HIS CHILDREN ARE MICHAEL KYLE, JR. (NICKNAMED "JUNIOR"), MICHAEL'S DIMWITTED ELDEST SON; CLAIRE, HIS VAIN, CONCEITED TEENAGE DAUGHTER; AND KADY, HIS LOVEABLY ENDEARING YOUNGEST DAUGHTER. LATER ON IN THE SERIES, MICHAEL'S NIGHTMARES COME TRUE WHEN JUNIOR IMPREGNATES HIS GIRLFRIEND VANESSA, RESULTING IN THE ADDITION OF A SON FOR JUNIOR. THE SERIES ENDS WITH MICHAEL IMPREGNATING HIS WIFE, AFTER PRETENDING TO GET A VASECTOMY.

“HALF & HALF” – UPN (2002-2006)

• CENTERS AROUND THE LIVES OF THE TWO HALF SISTERS, MONA AND DEEDEE, AND THEIR GROWING RELATIONSHIP. MONA, THE ELDEST, IS AT FIRST RESENTFUL OF DEEDEE, WHOM THEIR FATHER NOW SPENT MORE TIME WITH. MONA, ON THE OTHER HAND WAS LEFT TO LIVE WITH JUST HER MOTHER AND THUS BECAME TO MORE LEVEL HEADED OF THE TWO. DEEDEE WAS THE SECOND BORN AND WAS SPOILED UNCONDITIONALLY. SHE GREW TO BE THE MORE FASHIONABLE, UP-SCALE, MATERIALISTIC OF THE TWO, AND SOMETIMES ALSO A BIT DIM-WITTED. THE TWO SISTERS, THROUGHOUT THE SERIES, BEGIN TO GROW ON EACH OTHER AND LEARN THE FEELINGS EACH HAS HARBORED FOR THE OTHER SINCE CHILDHOOD, GET OVER THEM, AND DEAL WITH THE HERE AND NOW ISSUES INCLUDING DATING MEN, DEALING WITH CO-WORKERS AND BOSSES, AND DEALING WITH EACH OTHER AS PEOPLE.

“THAT’S SO RAVEN” – DISNEY CHANNEL (2003-2007)

• TEENAGER RAVEN BAXTER IS A GIRL WHO CAN SEE THE FUTURE. SHE AND HER FRIENDS EDDIE THOMAS AND CHELSEA DANIELS ALWAYS HAVE WACKY MISHAPS TRYING TO FOLLOW THE VISIONS. HER FAMILY LIFE IS ALSO WACKY WITH HER PARENTS TONYA AND VICTOR AND HER YOUNGER BROTHER NAMED CORY. RAVEN'S GOT A LOT ON HER HANDS!

“ALL OF US” – UPN/THE CW (2003-2007)

• ALL OF US IS INSPIRED BY THE DOMESTIC ADVENTURES OF ENTERTAINMENT SUPERSTARS WILL SMITH AND JADA PINKETT-SMITH AND REFLECTS A NEW GENERATION'S ENLIGHTENED ATTITUDE TOWARD THE EXTENDED FAMILY DYNAMIC WITH HUMOR, SENSITIVITY AND HEART. THIS HUMOROUS AND HEARTWARMING COMEDY IS A FRESH, TIMELY LOOK AT MANY YOUNG PARENTS' NEW, COMPASSIONATE ATTITUDE TOWARD HOW DIVORCED PARENTS RAISE THEIR CHILDREN TOGETHER.

“ROMEO!” – NICKELODEON (2003-2006)

• THE SHOW REVOLVES AROUND THE ANTICS OF ROMEO MILLER, AN ASPIRING RAPPER, HIS MUSICAL FAMILY, AND HIS RECORD-PRODUCING FATHER, MASTER P. ROMEO IS A MEMBER OF A HIP-HOP GROUP, ALONG WITH HIS SIBLINGS LOUIS, GARY, AND JODI, AND THE SHOW PRIMARILY FOLLOWS THE ADVENTURES THAT THE FAMILY, ALONG WITH ROMEO'S NANNY AND STEPMOTHER, BECOME INVOLVED IN.

“EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS” – UPN (2005-2006) TO THE CW (2006-2009)

• THIS SWEET, CRITICALLY PRAISED THROWBACK SITCOM RECREATES COMEDIAN CHRIS ROCK’S CHILDHOOD GROWING UP IN BED STUY, BROOKLYN DURING THE 1980S. THE SHOW ENDED ON THE SAME NOTE ROCK’S TEEN YEARS DID—THE LEAD CHARACTER DROPS OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL TO BECOME A STAND UP.

“THE GAME” – THE CW/BET (2006-2009 & 2011-PRESENT)

• A SPIN-OFF OF “GIRLFRIENDS”, “THE GAME” CENTERS AROUND MELANIE BARNETT, A FIRST YEAR MEDICAL STUDENT WHO HAS GIVEN UP ADMISSION AT JOHNS HOPKINS TO FOLLOW HER BOYFRIEND, DERWIN DAVIS, A PROFESSIONL FOOTBALL PLAYER TO SAN DIEGO, AGAINST THE ADVICE OF HER PARENTS. MELANIE IS QUICKLY INTRODUCED TO THE SUN BEAMS, THE CHARITY ORGANIZATION AND SUPPORT GROUP FOR THE SIGNIFICANT OTHERS OF THE TEAM’S PLAYERS AND THINGS SLOWLY BUT SURELY SPIN OUT OF CONTROL.