August 9, 2014

Rest in Peace: Bernie Mac (1957-2008)

Bernie Mac was a comedic genius. He took his stand-up comedy skills to the limit with concerts, movies and a top-rated television show.

Bernie Mac died on Aug. 9, 2008, at age 50, of heart failure during a bout of pneumonia. We still miss Bernie Mac ... may he rest in peace.

Many of us learned about Bernie Mac from Def Comedy Jam show that used to play on HBO. Here are clips from those early days when I first learned of his remarkable talent. Be warned: Bernie Mac's language and topics are RAW in this clip!





Bernie Mac was a once-in-a-generation entertainer. Don't you agree?

9 comments:

LISA VAZQUEZ said...

Hello there! {waves}

It is so very sad that Bernie passed on... a young man who was still attempting to branch out into new avenues professionally... he will be deeply missed....

He added a lot to the comedy circuit and many comics who came after him were imitators...

I do hope that he is resting with God...

Thank you for mentioning him with respect and admiration...

Peace, blessings and DUNAMIS!
Lisa

Anonymous said...

Hey Villager.

This is one brother who will truly be missed. And those were some great clips. I almost laughed til I cried. Too early in the morning to be laughing that hard..

blackgirl on mars said...

Thanks for honoring Bernie Mac.

Hagar's Daughter said...

Mac Man RIP. It is so refreshing to hear so many talk about how much Bernie loved and cared for his family.

Unknown said...

BlackWomenBlowTheTrumpet, Keith, Stacey & Blackgirl on Mars - Terrible weekend with passing of both Bernie Mac. It is a reminder to us never to take our lives for granted. Tomorrow is not promised to anyone...

Martin Lindsey said...

I remember him first from the Black comedy tours of the early 90's when they used to come through Louisville. He went from being one of the comics to being the emcee of the show and even then he was better than the featured performers.

I was pleased to see him elevate from there to the small screen and silver screen. Those who bever saw him live and in living color truly missed his RAW comic genius. He had to tone it down for T.V. and movies (LOL) so thanks for the adding the video clips.

He and Issac Hayes will be sorely missed. (Remember when he used to call Jim Rockford, "Rockfish", on The Rockford Files?

Have a good one Villager.

Unknown said...

Martin - I was a big Rockford fan back in the day. I do recall Isaac Hayes. I remember when he got out and began to look for his lover ...finding out he had a son and daughter that he never knew. I remember him partnering up with another famous Black actor (name escapes me) as private eyes...

Isaac Hayes will be missed!

SjP said...

I just made a very crucial mistake. I listened to the first clip while at work! No matter how many times I hear this routine, it always ends with me crying from laughing so hard!

Bernie has truly been missed!

Unknown said...

Sojourner - You've been missed! And you're right ... Bernie Mac's stand-up routine wasn't for playing at work. His sitcom scenes were a'ight for the office though.

I noticed that the second video had to be replaced. Did it today. Thanx for your comment as it caused me to re-listen to both videos! They were his first two national appearances on television (Def Comedy Jam).