Eddie Murphy is in my thoughts one of our generations greatest comedians.
I have been a Eddie Murphy fan for many many years. The first experience I had was watching Eddie in Saturday Night Live.He had so many characters that he played. His quick wit and dazzling lines kept me laughing at every joke. As my eyes watered and my stomach hurt I craved more of the crazy one liners that he was famous for.
Eddie played Buckwheat in that skit and he was great.
I laughed every time I saw him play this character. As I think back I remember that I wouldn't watch the show unless Eddie was on that particular day.
He had another character he played that was so hilarious. He put his own spin on Mr Rogers neighborhood. This Character was called Mr Rogers. He was a street wise show host who just kept the laughs flowing.
The first really big splash came when Eddie performed in his stand up titled Delirious.
The stand up comedy in Eddie's show was so funny that even today his jokes will bring tears to your eyes. I remember hearing people quote his jokes everywhere. It was funny from beginning to the end. I haven't seen an act that was that funny since. I can't remember one part of the show that didn't have me laughing. If you think about it you probably can't think of one either. This is the classic blueprint for any comedian who wants to be successful.
After the success of the Delirious stand-up Eddie became a household name. He had movie roles coming in and we all could see his star rising in Hollywood.
Eddie had a role in 48 hours and you and I both know he killed it. He was edgy and very very funny in his role as Reggie Hammond. Nick Nolte was his partner and the studio couldn't have done a better job in picking the right team for this movie.
It was a huge hit and the movie opened the door for Eddie to be Hollywood's next leading man.
Eddie began starring in a string of movies that for the most part were incredible.
Coming To America was absolutely fabulous! I can watch that movie every week and not get tired of it. Eddie was great and the best part was that they put together a great cast and the story was one that we never see. Eddie was a Prince who was looking for love. To have the story told from the perspective that they chose made me smile. We also saw the acting genius of Eddie because he played multiple characters in the film and it was amazing.
Eddie had a nice run until Boomerang. I hated this movie because it took my favorite comedian and made him a whipping boy for the starry eyed vixen.
The worst part of the movie was that he broke Halle Berry's heart. The movie was overall very good if you can over look that whole whipped Eddie and destroy Halle thing.
That was the highlight of the cool Eddie. The next group of movies were not as successful as Eddies upward trek to stardom.
Don't get me wrong Eddie did do very well in Beverly Hills Cop 1 and 2.
This role was awesome and it was a highlight of Eddies Carrier. Unfortunately Eddie didn't have another movie like this. He had some successful films but he was never able to get back the cool guy/ heart throb image he had before.
Even though Eddie was no longer a heart throb he found a way to reinvent himself into a whole new market.
Eddie took on the role as donkey in the movie SHREK.
Can you say cha-ching? This was a huge win for Eddie in a time where he wasn't as popular as he had been in Hollywood. Eddie played in multiple movies, cartoons, video games, and TV shows as this character.
I applauded Eddie for this change because he showed his ability to be divers and creatively put out his brand of comedy in a new family environment.
He also had the Nutty Professor franchise.
The Nutty Professor Franchise has made close to $300 million dollars. We saw Eddies performance as he played multiple roles again. This time Eddie expanded his multiple roles and nailed it. The Nutty Professor was a hit and it resulted in a sequel. We all know how sequels go so I won't even get into that.
I will end this blog with Eddies performance in Dream Girls.
He played James Early and his performance put him in the conversation for an Oscar Nomination. He didn't win the award but he did get the respect of many of the power players in Hollywood.
Eddie hasn't gone back to doing stand up and he is still working on multiple projects. I will always look back on his past roles and his comedic style and smile because to me Eddie Murphy is and will always be a comedy Legend.
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