CHRIS TUCKER

'Christopher Tucker' (born August 31, 1972) is an American actor and comedian.

Contents

Biography

Early life

Career

Personal life

Filmography

References

External links

Biography

Early life

Tucker was born in Atlanta, Georgia to Mary, who was involved in church work, and Norris Tucker, who owned a janitorial service.^[1][2] His paternal ancestry was traced back to the Mbundu ethnic group of Angola and his mother's to Cameroon;^[3][4][5] Tucker has also managed to trace his family tree back to the 1830s.^[6] Tucker was raised in Decatur, Georgia. After high school, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in comedy.

Career

Tucker's first major movie role was alongside rapper Ice Cube in the 1995 cult favorite ''Friday''. He also starred with Charlie Sheen in 1997's ''Money Talks'' and alongside Bruce Willis in ''The Fifth Element'' in the same year. He later starred in the 1998 martial arts action comedy ''Rush Hour'' and its sequels, ''Rush Hour 2'' and ''Rush Hour 3'', in which he played James Carter, an abrasive, wise-cracking detective. Realizing the success of the first ''Rush Hour'' film, Tucker held out from studio bosses until they paid his price tag of $20 million for ''Rush Hour 2'', which also became an enormous success. The other star, Jackie Chan, received $15 million and gross points. In the recent film ''Rush Hour 3'' Tucker reprised his role as James Carter.
In 2005, Tucker participated in ''African American Lives'', a PBS program hosted by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. where his roots were traced back to the Mbundu tribe living in Angola. Tucker would also travel to Angola and Cameroon, the birthplace of his ancestors, with Gates.^[7]
Tucker's last two films were ''Rush Hour'' and its sequel. His latest apearance was the third film in the hit franchise, which was released on August 10, 2007. Despite a flurry at the start of his career, he has only made three film appearances since 1998, all as Detective James Carter. Tucker's career trajectory was unusual in that, while he has made such a relatively small number of films, he has already become a member of the unofficial "20 million per film" club, joining such actors as Brad Pitt, Denzel Washington, Tom Cruise and Will Smith. Tucker signed a two movie contract with New Line Cinema for 40 million dollars to star in ''Rush Hour 3'' and another unnamed film. He is also to receive 20% of the gross against his salary from the 3rd ''Rush Hour'' film.^[8]
Tucker continues to perform stand-up comedy. He also appears occasionally at charity concerts and functions and is dedicated to helping bring attention to African poverty and hunger issues in the U.S.

Personal life

Tucker is real life friends with ''Rush Hour'' co-star Jackie Chan and singer Michael Jackson, and appeared in Jackson's video "You Rock My World" (2001) and on the intro of the track on the Album (Invincible). He also appeared at the beginning of the music video for "California Love" by Tupac Shakur. He is also a friend of Bill Clinton and traveled with the former President overseas.
Tucker is a fan of his hometown Atlanta Braves.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role
1988	''Roseanne (TV Series)''	Himself
1992	''Hangin' with Mr. Cooper (TV Series)''	Rapper
1994	''House Party 3''	Johnny Booze
1995	''Friday''	Smokey
1995	''Panther''	Bodyguard
1995	''Dead Presidents''	Skip
1997	''The Fifth Element''	Ruby Rhod
1997	''Money Talks''	Franklin Hatchett
1997	''Jackie Brown''	Beaumont Livingston
1998	''Rush Hour''	Detective James Carter
2001	''Rush Hour 2''	Detective James Carter
2001	''Diary (TV Series)''	Himself
2006	''African American Lives (TV Series)''	Himself
2007	''Rush Hour 3''	Detective James Carter
2008	''Mr. President''	TBA

References

1. http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800023484/bio
2. http://www.filmreference.com/film/2/Chris-Tucker.html
3. African Ancestry & DNA Tests: The Results
4. http://newsblaze.com/story/20070731083811tsop.nb/newsblaze/REVIEWS1/Movie-Reviews.html
5. http://www.avclub.com/content/interview/chris_tucker_and_brett_ratner
6. African Ancestry & DNA Tests
7. Oprah, Bishop Jakes, Chris Tucker Trace Roots On PBS Accessed August 5, 2007 8:28PM
8. Chris Tucker signs onto Brett Ratner's Rush Hour 3 accessed August 5, 2007 8:31PM

External links

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