She played Paula Patton’s mom and he directed & wrote “Baggage Claim.”
Video Content: David E. Talbert and Jenifer Lewis (2014)
SIDEWALKS host Cindy Rhodes interviews “Baggage Claim” director/writer and the actress about their comedy film, as well as starting in the business.
Mini-Biographies:
Born in Kinloch, Missouri, Jenifer Lewis is an actress and singer. Hailed by New York Times as a “Mega-Diva,” she has more than 300 film and TV appearances to her long resume. Some of her film credits include “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” “The Preacher’s Wife,” “Hereafter,” “Madea’s Family Reunion,” “Meet the Browns, and “Castaway.” Her voice is recognized in Disney films, as Flo in “Cars” and as Mama Odie in “The Princess and the Frog.” On TV, Lewis played Lana Hawkins in “Strong Medicine” and Dean Davenport in the final season of “A Different World,” as well as Aunt Helen in “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” She appeared in guest roles on “Friends,” ”That’s So Raven,” “Boston Legal” and “Girlfriends.” In the theater world, Lewis performed in “Hairspray,” “Mother Courage and Her Children,” and “Hello Dolly!” In 2012, she was in the self-produced webseries, “Jenifer Lewis and Shangela.”
The Los Angeles Times has called David E. Talbert “one of the most prolific theatre makers in America”, while The San Francisco Examiner said he is, “Something of a phenomenon.” He has won a number of NAACP awards for his work “The Fabric of a Man” and a New York Liteary Award for his musical, “Love in the Nick of Tyme.” Some of his plays include: “Talk Show Live,” “What Goes Around Comes Around,” “Tellin Like It TIZ,” “A Fool and His Money,” “Love Makes Things Happen,” “Mr. Right Now,” “His Women, His Wife,” “What My Husband Doesn’t Know” and “Suddenly Single.” Talbert produced the reality show, “Black Stage.” His first feature film, “First Sunday,” co-starring Ice Cube, Tracy Morgan and Katt Williams, was released in 2008.
[youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBKVy8Mhnkk&feature=share&list=PLWthn6pZiBNWQVtgkjFivLsqlV8LTf9zw’]Interview Credits:
Recorded: February 4, 2014
Host / Producer: Cindy Rhodes
Videographer (for Cindy Rhodes): Ray Alvarado
Editor: Richard R. Lee
Special Thanks To: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, Premiere TV