"I AIN'T SCARED A' YOU MUTHA-PHU&&AZ!"

Bernard Jefferey McCullough

"Bernie Mac"

(October 5, 1957 - August 9, 2008)

R.I.P.

On my MySpace page, there's a section called "Who I want to meet." There are pics of the people I most want to meet. Diddy, Rev. Run, Russell Simmons, Les Brown, Tony Robbins, Oprah, Donald Trump, Steve Harvey ... and of course ... Bernie Mac.

This morning I received a text from a friend telling me that Bernie Mac had died. Now let me paint the picture ... it was 7:47 in the morning and she sent me a text dropping the news. Knowing that a bunch of rumors had been squashed last week, I was like "yeah right!" then she told me she had just seen it on the news ... at the beauty shop. Okay ... then I was I was like "YEAH RIGHT!!" I couldn't find anything on the net confirming this news, and I even went to my friend's beauty shop and told her ... "You'll have to forgive me if I'm a little skeptical that the only news of this has come out of the beauty shop." About 10 minutes after seeing her I looked up the website for the Chicago Sun Times, I learned that in fact there was no more Mac.

I still want to meet Bernie Mac and let him know how much his comedy - which was based upon his honesty and pain - has positively affected my life. It's just going to take A LOT longer to meet him than I expected.

Brother Mac is in good hands. Right now, He's up in Heaven getting settled in the Mansion promised him by our Savior, and working out his place in the line up at God's "Laugh Factory." It's gotta be hard going from being a "King of Comedy" here on earth, but going up to the spot where you're with Redd Foxx, LaWanda Page (Aunt Esther), Richard Pryor, Freddie Prinze, George Carlin, Sam Kinnison, Rodney Dangerfield, Robin Harris ... WOW!! Bernie Mac may have been a "King of Comedy" here, but now he is amongst the Gods of Comedy!

Bernie Mac was a comedian who kept it REAL. You see there's a difference between a true comedian and a "comic." A comic will say whatever it takes to get a quick laugh. A true comedian takes his or her pain and they go about translating and expressing it in such a way that every single member in their audience - regardless of race, gender, status, or ethnicity can find a piece of their own pain and draw strength from it by laughing at it.

Thanks for the laughs Mr. McCullough ... and until I get to shake your hand in person ... while I'm still down here ... I'ma "stir it like muh-phu&&in' coffee!"

TOMORROW IS PROMISED
TO NO ONE.