''Uptown Comedy Club'', is a

sketch-comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and i ...

show filmed in the

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

neighborhood of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

that aired in

first-run syndication Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States where ...

for two seasons, from 1992 until 1994. The series was produced by Bob Banner. Repeats of the series eventually found their way onto

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

. Taped before a live audience at a club in Harlem, ''Uptown Comedy Club'' provided a mixture

stand-up comedy Stand-up comedy is a comedy, comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of One-line joke ...

, musical guests usually from the world of hip-hop, and

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and is ...

from a troupe of mostly

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

comics.

Jim Breuer James E. Breuer (born June 21, 1967) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, musician, and radio host. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 1998 and starred in the film ''Half Baked'' (1998). Early life Breuer was born i ...

and Rob Magnotti were the only regular

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

cast members. ''Uptown Comedy Club'' would in hindsight, provide a springboard for future ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

cast members In the performing arts industry such as theatre, film, or television, casting, or a casting call, is a pre-production process for selecting a certain type of actor, dancer, singer, or extra (acting), extra for a particular role or part in a scr ...

Jim Breuer and

Tracy Morgan Tracy Jamal Morgan (born November 10, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian and actor best known for his television work as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' (1996–2003) and for his role as Tracy Jordan in the sitcom ''30 Rock'' (2006 ...

and future ''

Mad TV ''Mad TV'' (stylized as ''MADtv'') is an American sketch comedy television series originally inspired by '' Mad'' magazine. In its initial run, it aired on Fox from 1995 to 2009. After a one-off reunion show in 2015 to celebrate the twentiet ...

Aries Spears Aries Spears (born April 3, 1975) is an American stand-up comedian and actor from New Jersey. Spears was a regular on Fox's sketch comedy series ''MADtv'', appearing in 198 episodes, making him the second longest-serving cast member on the sho ...

and

Debra Wilson Debra Wilson, also known as Debra Wilson Skelton or Debra Skelton, is an American actress and comedian. She is known for being the longest-serving original cast member on the sketch comedy series ''Mad TV'', having appeared on the show's firs ...

. Monteria Ivey served as the host for the first season, while the regular cast members rotated in that capacity for the second.

DJ Scratch George Spivey (born June 21, 1968), known professionally as DJ Scratch, is an American hip hop DJ and producer from Brooklyn, New York. DJ Scratch is the 1988 New Music Seminar Battle For World Supremacy DJ champion, the 2010 Master of the M ...

meanwhile, was the resident DJ. A recurring segment on ''Uptown Comedy Club'' was pitting stand-up comedians against each other in a game of

The Dozens The Dozens is a game played between two contestants in which the participants insult each other until one of them gives up. Common in African-American communities, the Dozens is almost exclusively played in front of an audience, who encourage the ...

. The audience picked the winner.

Cast

Flex Alexander Mark Alexander Knox (born April 15, 1970), better known as Flex Alexander or Flex, is an American actor, comedian and dancer. He has had a lot of guest-starring roles on many television sitcoms before portraying single father Flex Washington on ...

*Arceneaux & Mitchell *

*Ronda Fowler *Little Rascal (1993–1994) *Rob Magnotti *

(1993–1994) *Corwin Moore (1992–1993) *Domencio 'Macio' Parrilla *

(1992–1993)

Special guests

Stand-ups featured

*Mark Anthony *

D.C. Benny D. C. Benny, born Ben Wartofsky is an American stand-up comedian. Wartofsky was born in Washington, D.C., and lives and works in New York. Career Wartofsky has performed on ''Comedy Central Presents''. He has performed at many different comedy cl ...

*Brooklyn Mike * Xavier Paul Cadeau * Ian Edwards *

Pierre Edwards Pierre Edwards (born May 7, 1967) known as Pierre, is an American actor, director, writer, and stand-up comedian. Pierre is best known for producing, writing, directing, and starring as Dre Mitchell in ''For Da Love of Money'' (2002), and starr ...

*Talent Harris *T.P. Hearns * Robert L. Hines * "Hamburger" Jones *Kevin Jordan *Brad Lowery *

Faizon Love Faizon Andre Love (born Langston Faizon Santisima; June 14, 1968) is a Cuban-born American actor and comedian. He is best known for his roles in the comedy films '' The Meteor Man'', ''Don't Be a Menace'', ''Friday'', ''B*A*P*S'', ''Elf'', '' Th ...

Carlos Mencia Ned Arnel "Carlos" Mencía (born October 22, 1967) is a Honduran-American comedian, writer, and actor. His style of comedy is often political and involves issues of race relations, Latin American culture, criminal justice, and social class. He i ...

James McNair James McNair (October 1, 1951 – June 7, 2014), known by his stage names Jimmy Mack and Uncle Jimmy Mack, was an American comedian and writer. Career Early in his career, McNair worked a number of jobs, including caseworker at a homeless shelte ...

Mo'Nique Monique Angela Hicks (née Imes; born December 11, 1967), known professionally as Mo'Nique, is an American stand-up comedian and actress. She has received an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award. She ...

*Hugh Moore *Mark Overton *

Dwayne Perkins Dwayne Perkins (born March 21, 1971) is an American stand-up comedian from Brooklyn, New York, currently residing in Los Angeles. He has made appearances on '' Conan'', Comedy Central, and as a regular correspondent on ''The Jay Leno Show''. In ...

Reynaldo Rey Reynaldo Rey (born Harry Reynolds; January 27, 1940 – May 28, 2015) was an American actor, comedian, and television personality. Career Rey moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he taught for seven years and became a member of the Karamu House Theat ...

* Keith Robinson *

Rickey Smiley Broderick Dornell Smiley (born August 10, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian, television host, actor, and radio personality, known for his prank phone calls. The calls feature Smiley disguising his voice and carrying on a conversation with t ...

Sommore Sommore (born Lori Ann Rambough; May 15, 1966) is an American comedian and actress. Known as the "Diva of Contemporary Comedy," her comedic style features a biting sarcasm and frank discussions about money, sex, and equality between the sexes. She ...

Chris Tucker Christopher Tucker (born August 31, 1971) is an American actor and comedian. Tucker made his debut in 1992 as a stand-up performer on the HBO comedy series ''Def Comedy Jam'', where he frequently appeared on the show during the 1990s. He app ...

Sheryl Underwood Sheryl Patrice Underwood (born October 28, 1963) is an American comedian, actress and television host. She first rose to prominence in the comedy world as the first female finalist in 1989's Miller Lite Comedy Search. Currently, Underwood is one ...

Musical guests featured

Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...

Brand Nubian Brand Nubian is an American hip hop group from New Rochelle, New York, composed of three emcees (Grand Puba, Sadat X and Lord Jamar), and formerly three DJs (DJ Alamo, DJ Sincere, and DJ Stud Doogie). Their debut studio album, '' One for All'' ...

Das EFX Das EFX is an American hip hop duo. It consists of emcees Dray (also known as Krazy Drayz, born Andre Weston, September 9, 1970) and Skoob (also known as Books and Boogie Bang, born William "Willie" Hines, November 27, 1970). They named the ...

Father MC Timothy Brown, also known as Father MC, is an American rapper who achieved success in the early 1990s on the Uptown Records label. Personal life Father MC appeared in the August 1996 issue of ''Playgirl'' in a photospread taken by Greg Weiner. ...

Fat Joe Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper from New York City. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), then forged a sol ...

Fu-Schnickens Fu-Schnickens were an American hip-hop trio from 1988 to 1995, based in Brooklyn, New York. History Fu-Schnickens was composed of Chip Fu (Roderick Roachford), Moc Fu (Joe Jones), and Poc Fu (Lennox Maturine). ''Fu'' stood for unity and '' ...

Gang Starr Gang Starr was an American hip hop duo, consisting of Texas record producer DJ Premier and Massachusetts rapper Guru. For the entirety of their association, they were based out of Brooklyn, New York. Gang Starr was at its height from 1989 to 20 ...

Kris Kross Kris Kross was an American hip hop duo that consisted of Chris "Mac Daddy" Kelly and Chris "Daddy Mac" Smith. Kris Kross was the youngest hip-hop duo to gain success, with gold and platinum albums at 12 and 13 years old. The duo was discover ...

KRS-One Lawrence "Kris" Parker (born August 20, 1965), better known by his stage names KRS-One (; an abbreviation of "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") and Teacha, is an American rapper from New York City. He rose to prominence as part of ...

Luke People *Luke (given name), a masculine given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke (surname) (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luke. Also known as ...

Mad Cobra Ewart Everton Brown (born 31 March 1968), better known by his stage name Mad Cobra or simply Cobra, is a Jamaican dancehall musician.Huey, Steve " Mad Cobra Biography, AllMusic, retrieved 2010-01-31Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia ...

MC Lyte Lana Michele Moorer (born October 11, 1970), better known by her stage name MC Lyte, is an American rapper, DJ, actress and entrepreneur. Considered one of the pioneers of female rap, Lyte first gained fame in the late 1980s, becoming the first ...

Pharcyde The Pharcyde (currently known as The Far Side) is an American alternative hip hop group, formed in 1989, from South Central Los Angeles. The original four members of the group are Imani (Emandu Wilcox), Slimkid3 (Trevant Hardson), Bootie Brown ...

* Redman *

Pete Rock & CL Smooth Pete Rock & CL Smooth were a hip hop duo from Mount Vernon, New York. They made their debut with their 1991 EP, ''All Souled Out'' and followed that with their 1992 LP ''Mecca and the Soul Brother''. Career 1991–1994: The Golden Age As a prod ...

Super Cat William Anthony Maragh (born 25 June 1963),Huey, Steve " Super Cat Biography, Allmusic, retrieved 18 July 2010 also known as Super Cat, is a Jamaican deejay who achieved widespread popularity during the late 1980s and early 1990s dancehall mo ...

SWV SWV (Sisters with Voices) is an American R&B vocal trio from New York City whose members are Cheryl (Coko) Gamble, Tamara (Taj) Johnson, and Leanne (Lelee) Lyons. Formed in 1988 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B g ...

* Christopher Williams *

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...

Yo-Yo A yo-yo (also spelled yoyo) is a toy consisting of an axle connected to two disks, and a string looped around the axle, similar to a spool. It is an ancient toy with proof of existence since 500 BCE. The yo-yo was also called a bandalore in ...

Stations

''Uptown Comedy Club'' aired mostly late at night on

UHF Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter (on ...

stations.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0108458
Uptown Comedy Club Archives - The Humor Mill
1992 American television series debuts 1994 American television series endings 1990s American black television series 1990s American sketch comedy television series 1990s American stand-up comedy television series 1990s American variety television series First-run syndicated television programs in the United States African-American television Hip hop television English-language television shows