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Tracy Morgan

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Tracy Morgan
Morgan discussing his book I Am the New Black, New York City 2009
Birth nameTracy Jamal Morgan
BornNovember 10, 1968[1][2]
Brooklyn, New York
MediumStand-up, Television, Film, Books
NationalityAmerican
Years active1989–present
GenresBlack comedy, Musical comedy, Observational comedy, Character comedy
Subject(s)African-American culture, race relations, racism, marriage, parenting, self-deprecation, recreational drug use, sex, homosexuals, relationships, current events
SpouseSabrina Morgan (1985–2009; 3 children)
Notable works and rolesSaturday Night Live
Tracy Mitchell in The Tracy Morgan Show
Tracy Jordan in 30 Rock
Host of Scare Tactics

Tracy Jamal Morgan (born November 10, 1968)[1][2] is an American actor, comedian and author who is best known for his eight seasons as a cast member on Saturday Night Live and currently known for playing the role of Tracy Jordan on the NBC series 30 Rock.

Early life

Morgan was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, the second of five children of Alicia (née Warden), a homemaker, and James Morgan, Jr., a musician who left the family when Morgan was six.[3][4][5] Morgan grew up in the Tompkins Projects in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.[6] After attending De Witt Clinton High School in the Bronx, he was discovered in 1984 while doing stand-up at The Apollo.[7] Before Morgan began his career, he worked in New York City as a painter, for L&L Painting and Rose Company.

Early career

Morgan began his career on Martin, where he played Hustle Man. The character sold random items he had from the 'hood', always greeting people with his trademark "What's happ'n, chief?" and had a pet dog that he dressed as a rapper. In the 2003 Chris Rock film Head of State, Morgan appeared as a man watching television, often questioning why they are not watching Martin.

Morgan was also a regular cast member on "Uptown Comedy Club", a sketch comedy show filmed in Harlem which aired for two seasons between 1992 to 1994. He was also on the HBO show Snaps.

Saturday Night Live

Morgan joined the cast of comedy show Saturday Night Live in 1996, where he performed as a regular until 2003.

Recurring characters

He performed a variety of characters on the program, including:

  • Brian Fellow
  • Uncle Jem
  • Dominican Lou
  • Bishop Don "Mack" Donald
  • Astronaut Jones
  • African Andy
  • Benny the Bengal
  • Woodrow

Notable impressions

Morgan is also credited with impressions of:

On March 14, 2009, Morgan returned to SNL as host and reprised his roles of Brian Fellow and Astronaut Jones.

30 Rock

Morgan is currently a cast member of the NBC television show 30 Rock, playing the character Tracy Jordan, a caricature of himself. His work on 30 Rock has been well-received, being nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series at the 2009 Emmy Awards.

Other work

Morgan performing stand-up in 2008.

Morgan had his own show, The Tracy Morgan Show, in 2003, which was canceled after one season.

Morgan also had a stand-up special entitled "One Mic" that was shown on Comedy Central. He also was the host of the first Spike Guys' Choice Awards, which aired on June 13, 2007. In 2003, he was on an episode of Punk'd in which his car was towed from the valet parking. He can be heard as "Spoonie Luv" on the Comedy Central program Crank Yankers and as Woof in the MTV2 Animated Series Where My Dogs At?.

Morgan acted in commercials for ESPN NFL 2K, ESPN NBA 2K, and ESPN NHL 2K, where he co-starred with Warren Sapp, Ben Wallace and Jeremy Roenick. He appeared in the movie The Longest Yard, starring Adam Sandler, as a transvestite inmate.[8]

Morgan has hosted the VH1 Hip Hop Honors for 2 consecutive years and hosted the third season of Scare Tactics, the Sci Fi Channel's hidden camera show that pranks people by using their worst fears against them.

Morgan voiced Agent Blaster in Disney's G-Force. Morgan will voice a Bulldog in the upcoming Blue Sky Animation Studios film Rio.

Autobiography

On October 20, 2009, Morgan's autobiography I Am the New Black was released. The book includes stories from his life living in Tompkins Projects in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, to becoming a cast member on Saturday Night Live. Tracy appeared on National Public Radio's Fresh Air hosted by Terry Gross, at times tearing up about his former life in a New York ghetto.[9]

Personal life

Morgan claims to have a number of tattoos, including: a peace sign; a happy and sad face; a cross bearing the names of his wife and three sons; the name of a friend he played football with in high school who was murdered; the words ME, MYSELF, & I on his back; and the phrase Stove Top.[10]

Family

Morgan married his high school sweetheart Sabrina in 1985. They have three sons together.[11] Morgan filed for divorce at Bronx Supreme Court on August 7, 2009 after 23 years of marriage, although he and his wife had been already separated for eight years. A friend told the New York Daily News, "Basically they were divorced without the paperwork."[12] Morgan attributes one of his sons with having saved him from his drinking problems.[13]

Health problems

In 1996, he was diagnosed with diabetes, but says he never took it seriously, refusing to take medication or change his diet. After running a 104-degree fever on the set of 30 Rock, Morgan decided to finally comply with his doctor's orders. He is now very cautious when it comes to the condition. With his consent, many of Morgan's own troubles have been incorporated within episodes of 30 Rock.[14]

Around December 10, 2010, Tracy Morgan received a kidney transplant. It was announced on December 22, 2010 that he was resting and will miss "at least two episodes" of "30 Rock" in 2011.[15]

Controversies

On January 27, 2011, Morgan appeared on the NBA on TNT pregame coverage of the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks nationally televised basketball game. During the appearance, commentators Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith asked Morgan to choose between Sarah Palin and Tina Fey on who was better looking (Fey portrays Palin on Saturday Night Live and is a coworker of Morgan). Morgan said Palin was "good masturbation material". The comment led TNT to apologize for his remarks on live camera.[16]

In June, 2011, during a standup performance in Nashville, Tennessee, Morgan made inflammatory comments about gay people, reportedly including that, if his son were gay, he would "pull out a knife and stab" him. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) called for an apology and prompted NBC Chairman Robert Greenblatt and Morgan’s 30 Rock co-star Tina Fey to condemn his remarks about anti-gay violence. Morgan apologized, saying that he had "gone too far," and GLAAD continued to call on him to meet with parents who lost their children to anti-gay violence.[17][18] NBC Entertainment head Bob Greenblatt stated, “I speak for NBC and myself personally when I say we do not condone hate or violence of any kind, and I am pleased to see Tracy Morgan apologizing for recent homophobic remarks in his standup appearance... Unfortunately, Tracy’s comments reflect negatively on both '30 Rock' and NBC — two very all-inclusive and diverse organizations — and we have made it clear to him that this kind of behavior will not be tolerated.” Tina Fey (Morgan's boss both in fiction and in real life) said, “I'm glad to hear that Tracy apologized .... but the violent imagery of Tracy's rant was disturbing to me at a time when homophobic hate crimes continue to be a life-threatening issue for the GLBT community...the Tracy Morgan I know, ...is not a hateful man and [would never] hurt another person. I hope for his sake that Tracy's apology will be accepted as sincere by his gay and lesbian co-workers at '30 Rock,' without whom Tracy would not have lines to say, clothes to wear, sets to stand on, scene partners to act with or a printed-out paycheck from accounting to put in his pocket."[19]

Awards/nominations

  • Emmy Awards
    • 2009, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: 30 Rock, nominated
  • Image Awards
    • 2008, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: 30 Rock, nominated
    • 2007, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: 30 Rock, nominated

Filmography

References

  1. ^ a b "Tracy Morgan: Biography".
  2. ^ a b "Tracy Morgan".
  3. ^ Lipton, Michael A. (January 12, 2004). "Bowling 'em Over – Saturday Night Live, The Tracy Morgan Show, Tracy Morgan". People.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  4. ^ "I Am the New Black by Tracy Morgan, with Anthony Bozza – Abridged Compact Disc – Random House – Read an Excerpt". Random House. October 20, 2009. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  5. ^ Fretts, Bruce (November 27, 2003). "Is Tracy Morgan NBC's next breakout star? | Tracy Morgan | Television News | TV | Entertainment Weekly". Ew.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  6. ^ "The Things They Say: at". Hollywood.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  7. ^ "20 Things You Don't Know About Tracy Morgan". VH1. September 11, 2008. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  8. ^ New York Times article on Tracy Morgan
  9. ^ "Tracy Morgan On Being 'The New Black'". Fresh Air. October 22, 2009. NPR. {{cite episode}}: External link in |transcripturl= (help); Unknown parameter |transcripturl= ignored (|transcript-url= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ Tracy Morgan: Naughty Boy Maxim, January 15, 2009
  11. ^ "Tracy Morgan". Nndb.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  12. ^ Joyce Eng (August 10, 2009). "Report: Tracy Morgan Files for Divorce". TVGuide.com. Retrieved August 10, 2009.
  13. ^ YouTube – ‪TAVIS SMILEY | Guest: Tracy Morgan | PBS‬‏
  14. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (October 28, 2008). "For Tracy Morgan, Every Day Is a Show". The New York Times. Retrieved March 5, 2009.
  15. ^ Ariano, Tara (December 21, 2010). "Tracy Morgan receives kidney transplant, will miss at least two episodes of 30 Rock". The Set. Retrieved December 22, 2010.
  16. ^ "Tracy Morgan Calls Sarah Palin 'Good Masturbation Material,' Network Apologizes". Fox News. January 28, 2011.
  17. ^ Tracy Morgan Apologizes for Anti-Gay Comments
  18. ^ Tina Fey:Tracy Morgan is 'not a hateful man'
  19. ^ Yvonne Villarreal (June 10, 2011). "'30 Rock's' Tina Fey and NBC honcho Bob Greenblatt respond to Tracy Morgan's homophobic comments". LA Times.
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