The Life and Death of Sherman Hemsley

Sherman Hemsley, most known from the popular 1970’s sitcom, “The Jeffersons”, has died at 74. According to Eonline.com, the star died of natural causes. An emergency call was made from his home early Tuesday morning in El Paso, Texas. Initially, the coroner determined the need of an autopsy, but reversed it later today. It’s refreshing to hear that a celebrity passed with out the effects of drugs, alcohol and or suicide. However, it is sad to hear bad news of such an awesome actor. 

                                              (Frank Micelotta/Getty Images)

Hemsley, better known as George Jefferson, strutted into our hearts; that signature strut, as the owner of a dry cleaning business. Initially, Hemsley had a recurring role on “All in the Family” as the heavy hitter to the abrasive Archie Bunker. The two would argue back and forth about each other’s race and their reservations about the opposite. The spin off ultimately became “The Jeffersons”. Along side Hemsley was the late Isabel Sanford who played Louise, also known as “Wheezie”.  The Jeffersons highlighted an African-American family that had moved into a …”deluxe apartment in the sky”. Hemsley’s character had to let it be known that he was wealthy, black and in charge, no matter how his fellow tenants felt about it. The show was full of laughter, truths and love through its tenure of 10 years.

                                                       (nydailynews.com)

Afterwards came “Amen”, where Hemsley played a lawyer and not so heavenly deacon, of First Community Church of Philedelphia. Personally, I LOVED this show! I still watch the reruns on TV One or who ever else has the show in syndication. The show only ran for five years, but it was full of memorable characters that are still on sitcoms and featured in films today.  According to latimes.com, Hemsley was also the voice on “Dinosaurs”, had a few cameos on “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”, Tyler Perry’s House of Payne and in commercials for the Gap, Old Navy (along side Isabel Sanford) and Denny’s. 

Sherman Hemsley will be greatly missed and I doubt another character actor that can fill his shoes in the world of entertainment. Rest in peace “George”, you will be greatly missed.

Where are my channels?

  If you have Dish or DirecTV, you may be asking “where are my channels?”  As a Comcast customer, I do not have to ponder. For the last month I have seen disclaimers scroll across my favorite show alerting me that if I were to remain with Dish or DirecTV (which I don’t, luckily) I would lose the channel I was watching. Those channels being Comedy Central (so long Boondocks), MTV, Nickelodeon, Vh1 and BET. I don’t know how many times I’ve said “There’s nothing on TV” and had to suffer through some mundane documentation of strangers learning to dance with celebrities or a talk show with topics of no interest to occupy me for the time being. With Dish or DirecTV there literally is NOTHING ON TV!

  I am a young person in the middle of these “banned” channels’ target audience. Furthermore I’m personally invested in the entertainment industry and I need my shows. There are ways around it, and I loathe admitting this, but with out the Viacom roster, I’d be one bored lady. The reality is, Viacom is a higher costing program that Dish and DirecTV distributors can’t afford to keep.  The three companies haven’t been able to reach a contractual agreement over content fees. Sadly subscribers have lost viewership while negotiations continue forward.

( Image from http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT8HWM46V_BjaxynfinzdP4b5gsW-Fjz9aZPWdwfqtf0csIunrU7BE4_zaOVQ)

  According to huffingtonpost.com, TV distributors pay media companies a few cents per channel per subscriber each month; therefore they attempt to sell packages of channels for more. As those cost increase, monthly service bills do the same.  Needless to say, the price of television is going up. In April and May, 1,369 Americans who were surveyed by the Leichtman Research Group reported that their monthly TV bill raised an average of 7 percent from a year ago, to $78,63. With Comcast, neither has my bill gone up, or have I lost my favorite channels. Comcast doesn’t always give me the best selection of shows, but I wouldn’t be able to deal if they cut the Viacom channels. The irony is uncanny, yet I say thank you Comcast and welcome to the new subscribers that come as a result of this blackout. 

Principal Big Sean?

One of my favorite Hip-Hop artist, Big Sean, acted as "Principal for the Day" at Lincoln High School in Detroit, Michigan this past Monday.

Lincoln High School incredibly beat out 16 other high schools and won the Get Schooled Detroit Challenge by improving their attendance by nearly 9 percent.  Not only am I excited to be seeing more of Big Sean (the more the merrier) but the fact that he’s promoting education, makes me love him even more.

Fellow celebrity Michigan natives Mike Posner and Shady Records artist, Royce da 5’9 came and encouraged the students. Royce da 5’9 also performed his verse from the Bruno Mars’ hit single, Sky Full of Lighters. MTV V.J. host, Sway and WJLB’s Coco, emceed the assembly.

Big Sean reportedly said the experience reminded him of his days at the city’s Waldorf School and Cass Technical High School where he graduated with a 3.7 GPA. He was also offered a scholarship to Michigan State University but apparently turned it down to make us all “Dance, dance, dance, dance, dance…”

Chevrolet, United Way for Southeastern Michigan, Viacom and Get Schooled joined together to present a Metro Detroit Attendance Challenge. In hopes to encourage schools to focus on perfect attendance in preparation for graduation, students earned points by participating in each activity and going to school every day, all day. It’s fantastic to see such big business come together for a great cause and incorporate entertainment as a means to do so.

Big Sean’s last album, Finally Famous, spent 16 weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 Albums of the Year in 2011. With hits like “I Do It”, “Marvin & Chardonnay” and “Dance (A$$)” I can see how. But it is songs like “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me” and “Get It (DT)” that make me jam this album every time I ride more than 15 minutes in my car. Finally Famous told stories of memories, good times and good people over an original Hip-Hop/Pop/Rock track.

Presently, summer anthem “Mercy” featuring Pusha T, 2 Chainz (more on him later) and Kanye West is reverberating through streets everywhere.  I wait in great anticipation for any music from him, but ultimately an album is what I need in my radio these days. Preferably, he’ll be breaking the summer one-hit wonders with an album to set me until next summer.

Fire at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta

Tyler Perry’s mega studio complex in Atlanta, Georgia caught on fire late Tuesday night.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that over 100 firefighters responded to the blaze and managed to extinguish the fire within an hour, but stayed on the premises to put out hot spots in the building. Several units were still there around midnight conducting a damage assessment, including salvage and overhaul.

Fire officials say there was a partial collapse to the façade of the 200,000 square-foot facility, but its structure was not effected.

Neighbor Dorothy Ware, whose apartment building is right next to the complex, told the press, “Whatever the fire was hitting, was blowing up. There were plenty of sparks coming over here where we are.”

“Flames shot as high as nearby trees, which are about as high as a six-story building,” Ware said.  She first learned about the fire from a guard who came to alert residents.

The cause of the fire and the extent of damage to the studio are not known, but are under investigation. No one was harmed as a result of the fire.

Tyler Perry himself reportedly surveyed the damage at the scene, but neither him nor his staff has made any official statements.  

The 200,000 square-foot facility has five sound stages, and a 400-seat theater. It includes a chapel, dining hall, gym and a five-acre pond. 

The complex also includes an art department, where sets for shows are created. A post-production facility where “Meet the Browns” and “House of Payne” is shot are on the grounds as well.

Perry has worked as director, writer, producer, actor and playwright. His film credits include “A Family That Prey’s,” “I Can Do Bad All By Myself” and “Madea’s Family Reunion.” His latest movie, “Madea’s Witness Protection,” is scheduled to open June 29, according to Ajc.com.

(Huffingtonpost.com)

Rent A Car Official Movie Trailer

Make sure you check out Rent A Car. It's as if Friday and The Wash had a baby. The hilarious story of a rental car business owner named ‘D-Stacks’ and his dedicated, but sometimes demented, employees. Business is booming and even ‘Little Man’ is taking his job as “Manager” seriously, until one fateful day when big-shot ‘Boogie White’ rents a car and mistakenly returns it with $10,000 dollars in the trunk. Now ‘D-Stacks’ has only 72 hours to replace the money. Lucky for him, one of his employees is a talented musician, but will his single be amazing enough to make $10,000 in 72 hours? Maybe not, but with friends, hookups, and a killer hood concert, it just might.


Rent A Car stars BET comedian, Shawn Harris. Frank White, Chantal Nicole and comedian Rodney "Lil" Yarbrough round out the rest of this amazing cast.


My experience on the set was great! I met some exceptionally talented people and learned a great deal about production, marketing and management.


Watch, Rent or buy Rent A Car now at BlockBuster, Amazon.com, BestBuy or Youtube.


Check it out for yourself! You may find a familiar face.

Mona Scott-Young

Mona Scott-Young is a top industry executive, multi-media broker and the driving force behind many of today's successful entertainers. As former President and Co-founder of Violator Management, she has headed careers of such artists as Missy Elliott, Busta Rhymes, Maxwell and Fantasia. Monami Entertainment LLC provides Talent Management and Career Direction, Film/Television/Music Production and Product and Brand Development as services. 

Mona’s management, marketing and business insight secures television and endorsement deals for clients. 

                            

She inspires me because she is a woman making a huge impact on the entertainment industry. I personally feel her best work is brand development. She takes already established artists and assists them in “crossing-over”. She gives her clients mass audience appeal that ultimately takes their specific careers to higher heights.

Monami Entertainment LLC is also Executive Producer of the docu-series “Love and Hip-Hop”, a reality television show that airs on VH1. The second season was highly successful and as a result viewers are in great anticipation for the third season, "Love and Hip-Hop: Atlanta", which is currently in production.  

Last month The Riverside Theatre hosted a panel discussion “Women Of Excellence In the Arts”, where Mona shared her personal experiences, success strategies and advice.

She owns a restaurant called J’s Southern Express in Lower Manhattan where the Twin Towers were located. “Opening the restaurant is a natural extension for me. Food, like music, is all about passion, flavor and feeling, and I try to impart that in every venture I undertake,” said Young. Mona got the restaurant name from the first initial in both of her children’s names.

Mona has been honored by The National Association of Black Female Executives in Music Entertainment, Marketer of The Year by Ad Age Magazine and was recognized by the National Congress and Convention of Haitian Americans. She presently sits on the board of The Haitian Roundtable and The RSQ Foundation.