Movies
While its logical home would be on a DVD bonus disc, Robert Townsend’s reflective “Making the Five Heartbeats” serves as an illuminating documentary detailing the considerable passion and perseverance that went into bringing his dream project to the big screen.
Nov. 29, 2018
With his 1987 debut now part of the Criterion Collection, filmmaker Robert Townsend looks back on its making and legacy: ‘I broke every rule.’
March 1, 2023
Have burger ads become actor-director Robert Townsend’s own version of the “Hollywood Shuffle”?
Jan. 15, 1995
Television
Eddie Murphy, whose popular street-wise persona was satirized by Robert Townsend in his film “Hollywood Shuffle,” will join Townsend as a special guest on Fox Broadcasting’s “The Late Show” tonight.
July 9, 1987
Not all that far away from New Jack City lives Meteor Man.
Aug. 3, 1993
Archives
Robert C. Townsend, 77, former Avis president and author of the bestseller “Up the Organization.”
Jan. 19, 1998
Entertainment & Arts
Canceled in a Heartbeat: Filmmaker and comedian Robert Townsend canceled his performance with the vocal group the Dells on Sunday because officials of Anaheim’s Celebrity Theatre allegedly did not pay him in the manner specified in his contract, Townsend’s publicist said Monday.
June 18, 1991
Robert Townsend, the triple-threat creative force behind “Hollywood Shuffle”--the 1987 groundbreaking satire of the movie business--is caught in a Sunday evening TV shuffle.
Dec. 9, 2000
Robert Townsend is working an agenda in his new film, “The Meteor Man,” which he directed, wrote and stars in.
Aug. 6, 1993
Actor, comedian and filmmaker Robert Townsend grew up on the west side of Chicago in the 1960s listening to R&B; groups like the Temptations, the O’Jays and the Spinners.
Sept. 9, 1990