Spare the Rod, Spoil the Jokes

Hades is not one of the settings for Fox’s new comedy “The Bernie Mac Show.” But those on location with the series during a recent shoot in the San Fernando Valley may have thought otherwise.

An unforgiving sun beat down mercilessly on the actors and crew during a shoot around the Encino home used as the Mac family residence. Shirts and blouses were drenched, and the makeshift shade from large umbrellas and awnings offered little comfort as hordes of flies and gnats attacked.

While others guzzled from water bottles and swiped at bugs, Bernie Mac filmed his scenes and moved through the proceedings without a drop of moisture on his face or clothing. He wore a heavy orange cotton short-sleeved shirt. Discomfort seemed a distant stranger. His eyes and smile sparkled.

“It’s a Chi-town thing,” the Chicago resident says when asked why he buttoned his shirt all the way. “It’s a Bernie Mac signature. Bernie Mac don’t sweat. He’s always in control.”

Mac has a habit of referring to himself in the third person, drawing a distinction between the more reserved married man, who is somewhat of a loner and likes sports, and the cigar-smoking, in-your-face comedian who built a large following with black audiences before gaining mainstream popularity as part of the Original Kings of Comedy tour that sold out arenas around the country in 1997. (The tour, which also featured Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer and D.L. Hughley, was a financial success and became the subject of a Spike Lee documentary in 2000.)

Despite his coolness, the heat is turning up on Mac. He is the star and driving force for “The Bernie Mac Show,” which premieres Nov. 14, featuring him as a comedian named Bernie Mac who is suddenly overcome by the trials of parenting when he takes custody of his troubled sister’s three young kids.

The concept is a variation of Mac’s true-life experiences taking in a niece whose mother suffered from substance abuse. He satirized the situation in “The Original Kings of Comedy.”

He has also just finished his first book, “I Ain’t Scared of You,” in which he puts his aggressive comic spin on sex, religion, celebrity and his youth.

In addition, Mac is featured in “Ocean’s Eleven,” the remake of the Rat Pack Las Vegas heist film being positioned as Warner Bros.’ big holiday offering. The new version stars George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon and Don Cheadle.

Mac is also starting production on an animated feature, “Lil’ Pimp,” and is preparing a comedy album.

For the moment, Mac is not sweating the heightened exposure, taking it all in his relaxed style. But a few executives have been spotted wiping drops of perspiration from their brows regarding Mac’s sitcom as they wonder whether Mac, with his take-no-prisoners demeanor and urban-flavored routines laced with explicit language, can make the transition from live adult comedy to family sitcom. Skeptics have made reference to the short-lived “Richard Pryor Show,” on which the legendary comedian clashed with NBC over his style.

“The Bernie Mac Show” also incorporates Mac’s outrageous mannerisms and style into a character rarely seen on prime-time network television: an adult who was raised in and believes in the old-school style of discipline, with “whuppins” and threats.

The joke in the world of “Bernie Mac” is that timeouts for misbehavior are of little value. “Tough love” is the only way.

“I’m here to tell you--I’m a kill one of those kids,” Mac announces to the audience during a scene that sets up the “confessional” formula of the show. Later he threatens to “bust” the oldest child’s head “till the white meat shows.”

In the next scene, he defiantly tells the audience, “I ain’t ashamed I said [that], and nobody’s gonna make me take it back!”

Despite the edge, Mac’s bark is much worse than his bite, and the pilot is filled with warm moments as he becomes closer to the children while realizing how overwhelmed he is in his new role. “Bernie Mac” is a babe in the woods as a New Age parent. As he explains his relative ignorance of childhood illnesses to an unsympathetic pharmacist, “Ma’am, I’m just trying to do the best I can.”

Still, the clash between old-school and new-school discipline will be a continual source of humor for the series, and several executives are quietly nervous about it.

Peter Aronson, president of Regency Television, which produces the series in association with 20th Century Fox Television, says, “This show is absolutely riskier because it is not politically correct in terms of its portrayal of parenting. And Bernie Mac is an actor and comedian who does edgy material. I know that term is overused, but it is entirely appropriate in this case.”

He says there also are concerns about Mac being perceived as mean, scary and unsympathetic. “My favorite story was I got a demand to cut the line, ‘I’ll bust your head until the white meat shows.’ The note said that America would never forgive him for saying that. But we left it in, and it’s been singled out in every review as the funniest line in the show.”

Mac contends that his show is what the country is looking for in examining the clash between the old and new ways of raising children: “This show is about Bernie Mac’s point of view--right, wrong or indifferent,” the comic says. “His way of doing things is what America has been lacking. A lot of parents wish they could revert back to that old way of discipline, they really do. So many people are afraid of what others will say. So instead of saving lives, we create monsters, and then we want someone else to fix it.

“Now parents can point to our show and say, even in a humorous way, ‘See there? You woulda gotten it back then!”’

Even more than that, say Mac and others, it’s a matter of timing. The country may finally be ready for a comedy like “The Bernie Mac Show”--and, more important, for Bernie Mac.

“Bernie is the funniest African American comic, if not the funniest comic, working,” says Walter Latham, who put together the Original Kings of Comedy tour. “For 10 years, Bernie has been trying to get on TV, but no one got him.” But after the success of the tour and the film, “they figured, how can we go wrong by putting him on TV?

“This might not have happened five years ago. But Bernie is very dedicated and very hard-working, knows exactly what he wants. I saw the pilot, and they allowed him to go there. He never wanted to be on TV unless he was allowed to go there. Maybe America is ready for that now.”

Also starring in the show is Kellita Smith as Bernie’s wife, Wanda; Camille Winbush as the smart-mouthed 13-year-old Vanessa; Jeremy Suarez as the coughing 8-year-old Jordan; and Dee Dee Davis as 5-year-old Bryanna.

The series executive producer is Larry Wilmore, no stranger to controversial comedies as one of the forces behind “The PJ’s,” the animated series about an African American housing project. The comedy angered some community leaders because of his humorous approach to racial stereotypes and poverty.

Following his work on “The PJ’s,” Wilmore wanted to develop a comedy that could incorporate the reality-series style of MTV’s “The Real World.” He thought Mac’s Original Kings of Comedy routines would make the perfect fit.

“In this show, Bernie is trapped in the new world of political correctness,” Wilmore says. “What’s funny is seeing him grapple with these two worlds. And you really get to see his soft side.” He also believes Mac’s “tough love” philosophy will be a reference point for a generation of adults, no matter the race, who grew up with restrictive parents.

Wilmore points out that “Bernie Mac” is one of the few comedies that is not filmed before a studio audience. And the fact that it is grounded in gritty reality lifts it above the standard sitcom fare: “It’s an anti-sitcom,” he says.

Mac contends that he is not concerned with how the series will be received by audiences, or whether it will be controversial.

“To do this show any other way--well, I wouldn’t have done it,” says Mac, as he relaxed in his dressing room on the CBS-Radford Studios lot. “If they had tried to make me a Sinbad, I wouldn’t have done it. If they had tried to make me a Jerry Seinfeld, I wouldn’t have done it.

“This show has a different look, a different style. It’s a real story, it’s not punch line, joke, cute kids. It’s based on a real situation that families can relate to. It’s not a sitcom, it’s a real com.”

Smith adds, “It’s not an automatically funny situation, but we make it funny.”

“I understand there are some skeptics, and there [were] concerns,” Mac says. “Every time you do something different and new, you have them. Does that bother me or make me nervous? No. Because I’m giving you my best.”

He insists TV will not soften his edge. “This is what put Bernie Mac in the seat he’s driving now.... Once you take away the essence of the comedian, you take away his voice.”

Fox Entertainment President Gail Berman says the network has no intention of diluting Mac’s or Wilmore’s vision. The comedy is being programmed on Wednesdays alongside comedies with other quirky families, such as “Titus,” featuring a son’s relationship with his alcoholic father, and “Grounded for Life,” which examines the friction between parents and their out-of-control teenage daughter.

Says Berman, “Our audiences want us to come at the family-show genre from off-center. So Bernie will be perfect for that.”

Anger is a staple of Mac’s comedy. It is there in the title of his book. It also pops up during “The Original Kings of Comedy” documentary when Mac is joking around with his colleagues--all of whom star or have featured roles on sitcoms--about not having his own show.

Staring straight at the camera, Mac says, “Do I have a TV show? No, ‘cause you’re scared of me. Scared I’m gonna say something. Yeah, you’re

But in a quieter moment near the end of the film, Mac provides a more insightful look into his personality.

The final concert of the tour is over, and Mac is walking backstage. Asked by an unseen questioner about how it feels at the end, he smiles slightly and says, “How do I feel? I don’t even know.”

Away from the stage, Mac often takes on the spirit of a motivational speaker. He speaks of inspiration, of values, of the importance of family, with the rhythms of a pastor.

He says he doesn’t put much focus into thinking about his status or patting himself on the back about his growing success.

“Maybe there’s something wrong with me,” he says quietly in his dressing room. “My family asks me after shows how I feel. I say I’m happy, and they say, ‘Why don’t you show it?’ I don’t know. I ain’t into that. When it’s all over and people are standing up cheering, I take it the same as if they’re booing. I don’t believe either of them. Because I’ve got to play again tomorrow. I think about how I can do better.”

He is taking the same approach to the TV show: “With the people on the show, we talk about chemistry. It’s not about chops, it’s about chopping together. We have to win. If you don’t believe that, you become mediocre. If you don’t believe that, you’re like another fish in the pond. If you don’t believe that, man, you can’t run with me.”

Mac, 43, started his career working the small comedy clubs of Chicago as he studied Redd Foxx, Pryor, Moms Mabley and other black comedians who continually pushed the comedy envelope. His big break came when he appeared on the HBO comedy series “Russell Simmons’ Def Comedy Jam.” That eventually led to scene-stealing roles in several films during the ‘90s, such as “Life,” “Mo’ Money,” “House Party 3” and “The Players Club.”

Part of his detachment from the significance and trappings of fame can be attributed to the fact that “Bernie Mac” takes over Bernie Mac.

“The two Bernie Macs are part of each other but so different,” he explains. “Bernie is so relentless, so aggressive, pound for pound. He drains me. It takes me 20 to 30 minutes to come back to me.”

The other Bernie Mac appears after about a 30-minute ritual that includes prayer. “Then he starts coming, and he tells me to get ... back. Get out of the way. Bernie Mac has no stage fright.”

If the sitcom, for whatever reason, doesn’t work, Mac says he will not be discouraged: “I’ll keep punching. I’ll go back on the road, back to the drawing board. And when I reflect back, I’ll be able to say, ‘Dag, he was in there.”’

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“The Bernie Mac Show” premieres Nov. 14 at a special time, 8:30 p.m., followed by a second episode in its regular time slot of 9 p.m. The network has not yet rated it.