Tracy Morgan
(born November 10, 1968) is an American actor and comedian, best known for his work on the TV series Saturday Night Live
and 30 Rock
on which he plays Tracy Jordan.
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Early life and career
Morgan was born in
Brooklyn,
New York, the son of Jimmy Morgan, a musician.
[1] After attending
De Witt Clinton High School in the Bronx, he was discovered in 1984 while doing stand-up at
The Apollo.
[2] Before Tracy began his career he worked in New York City as a painter working for L&L Painting and Rose Company.
Tracy Morgan began his career on
Martin
, where he played Hustle Man. The character sold random items he had from the 'hood, always greeting people with his trademark "What's happ'n, chief?" and had a pet chihuahua that he dressed as a rapper. In the 2003
Chris Rock film
Head of State
, Morgan appeared as a man watching television, often questioning why they are not watching
Martin
.
Tracy was also a regular cast member on "Uptown Comedy Club", a sketch comedy show filmed in
Harlem, New York City which aired from 1992 to 1994 on various channels. He was also on the HBO show
Snaps
.
Saturday Night Live
Morgan joined the cast of comedy show
Saturday Night Live
in 1996, where he performed as a regular until 2003. Morgan performed a variety of characters on the program, including Brian Fellow(s),
Dominican Lou, Bishop Don "Mack" Donald (from
Pimp Chat
), Astronaut Jones, African Andy, Benny the Bengal, and Woodrow (a homeless man who lives in the sewer, and, despite his mental illness, is nice to the female celebrities [Britney Spears and Kate Hudson] he invites to his "home"). Morgan is also credited with impressions of
Aretha Franklin,
Harry Belafonte,
Maya Angelou,
Samuel L. Jackson,
Louis Armstrong,
Mike Tyson, Judge
Greg Mathis,
Lou Bega,
Mr. T,
Tito Jackson,
Petri Hawkins-Byrd,
Star Jones, and
Al Sharpton. On March 14, 2009, Morgan returned to SNL as host and reprised his roles of Brian Fellow and Astronaut Jones.
30 Rock
Morgan is currently a cast member of the NBC television show
30 Rock
, playing the character
Tracy Jordan, a caricature of himself. His work on
30 Rock
has been well received, being nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series at the 2009 Emmy Awards.
Other work
Morgan had his own show,
The Tracy Morgan Show
, in 2003, which was canceled after one season.
Morgan also had a stand-up special entitled "One Mic" that was shown on
Comedy Central. Morgan was the host of the first
Spike Guys' Choice Awards, which aired on
June 13 2007. In 2003, he was on an episode of
Punk'd
in which his car was towed from the
valet parking. He can be heard as "Spoonie Luv" on the
Comedy Central program
Crank Yankers
and as Woof in the MTV2 Animated Series
Where My Dogs At?
.
Morgan acted in commercials for
ESPN NFL 2K, ESPN NBA 2K, and ESPN NHL 2K, where he co-starred with
Warren Sapp,
Ben Wallace and
Jeremy Roenick. He appeared in the movie
The Longest Yard
, starring Adam Sandler, as a transvestite inmate.
Morgan has hosted the
VH1 Hip Hop Honors for 4 consecutive years.
Morgan hosted the third season of
Scare Tactics
, the
Sci Fi Channel's hidden camera show that "punks" people by using their worst fears against them.
Personal life
Morgan claims to have a number of
tattoos, including: a peace sign; a
happy and sad face; a cross bearing the names of his wife and three sons; the name of a friend he played football with in high school who was murdered; the words ME, MYSELF, & I on his back; and the phrase Stove Top.
[3]
Morgan married his high school sweetheart Sabrina in 1985. They have three sons together, Tracy Jr. (b. 1986), Malcolm (b. 1987), and Gitrid (b. 1991).
[4] Morgan has filed for divorce after 23 years of marriage, New York Daily News reports.
Although they had been separated for eight years, Morgan filed a petition at Bronx Supreme Court on Friday, August 7th, 2009, the newspaper says. "Basically they were divorced without the paperwork," a friend tells the paper.
[5]
In 1996, he was diagnosed with
diabetes, but refused to take medication or change his diet. After running a 104-degrees fever on the set of
30 Rock
, Morgan decided to finally comply with his doctor's orders. He is now very cautious when it comes to the condition. With his blessing, many of Morgan's own troubles have been incorporated within episodes of
30 Rock
.
[6]
Alcohol abuse
On December 3, 2005, Morgan was arrested in
Hollywood and charged with D.U.I. as well as possession of a dangerous narcotic. He later pled
no contest to a
misdemeanor drunken driving charge and disturbing the peace.
[7] On
November 28,
2006, Morgan was again arrested and charged with
DWI, this time in
Manhattan.
[8]
On May 10, 2007, a female disc jockey in
Miami filed a misdemeanor battery complaint against Morgan, saying he groped her in a radio station studio, though no charges were ever filed. Morgan's shows for that night and the next night at the Improv Comedy Club in Coconut Grove were cancelled.
[9] According to reports from the scene, Morgan smelled of alcohol, a potential violation of his probation for a
DUI charge. Morgan had already been scheduled to be fitted with a
Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitoring (SCRAM) ankle bracelet on May 25 in Los Angeles, to test his skin for alcohol vapors every 30 minutes for 90 days. On September 19, 2007 Morgan was ordered to wear the monitoring bracelet for another 80 days as a result of the comedian admitting that he had violated a prior agreement to abstain from alcohol.
[10] Repeat violations can result in a jail sentence.
[11] While being interviewed by
TV Guide
prior to the 2009
Golden Globes, Morgan stated that he had not "had a drink in over a year".
Awards/Nominations
- Emmy Awards
- *2009, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: 30 Rock, nominated
- Image Awards
- *2008, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: 30 Rock, nominated
- *2007, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: 30 Rock, nominated
Filmography
- Half Baked
(1998)
- How High
(2001)
- Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
(2001)
- 30 Years to Life
(2001)
- Head of State
(2003)
- The Longest Yard
(2005)
- Are We There Yet?
(2005)
- Little Man
(2006)
- VH1's Totally Awesome
(2006)
- Farce of the Penguins
(2006)
- First Sunday
(2008)
- Superhero Movie
(2008)
- Beer for My Horses
(2008)
- Scare Tactics
(2008)
- G-Force
(2009)
- Nailed
(2009)
- A Couple of Dicks
(2010)
References
- Is Tracy Morgan NBC's next breakout star? | Tracy Morgan | Television News | TV | Entertainment Weekly
- 20 Things You Don't Know About Tracy Morgan| VH1
- Tracy Morgan: Naughty Boy Maxim, January 15, 2009
- [1]
- Report: Tracy Morgan Files for Divorce
- For Tracy Morgan, Every Day Is a Show
- `30 Rock' Star Charged With DWI
- wcbstv.com - Former 'SNL' Star Arraigned On DWI Charges
- http://www.miamiherald.com/776/story/104515.html
- SFGate: Daily Dish : Morgan Punished for Violating Probation
- E! News - Tracy Morgan a Wanted Man in Florida