Comedian Bernie Mac (born Bernard Jeffrey McCollough) died at the age of 50 after an extended battle with pneumonia.
Mac was in Northwestern Memorial hospital when he died on Saturday (9 August) morning at approximately 2:00 am.
Bernie Mac, who started doing standup in clubs around Chicago in the 1970’s, was discovered after he won a Miller Lite comedy search, which led to regular appearances on Russell Simmons’ Def Comedy Jam in 1992.
“He was one of the sweetest funniest people on the planet,” Def Comedy Jam Founder Russell Simmons said. “We (Def Comedy team) knew he was a star the minute we saw him. He was loved by millions He will be missed.”
Bernie Mac will be remembered for his brash, but frank comedic style that was a staple in the Black community.
His on-stage musings quickly went mainstream through his television sitcom, “The Bernie Mac Show” and a storied music career.
Mac appeared in movies like Who’s the Man? (1993), House Party 3 (1994) The Walking Dead (1995), Friday (1995), Spike Lee’s Get On The Bus (1996) The Player’s Club (1998), and 1999’s Life with Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence.
The movies Ocean’s Eleven (2001) and Charlie’s Angels (2003) put him in a movie that catered to middle America, as did his hit television TV series, The Bernie Mac Show.
