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Kevin Hart is an American actor and comedian, born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Kevin started his career by wining several amateur comedy competitions at clubs throughout the New England area, and he got his first real break in 2001 when he was cast by Judd Apatow for a recurring role on the TV series Undeclared. The series only lasted one season, but it was enough for him to get his name out and land other roles in movies like Paper Soldiers, Scary Movie 3, and Along Came Polly. His comedic fame began to really grow with the release of his first real stand-up album I'm a Grown Little Man in 2006. This was followed by Seriously Funny in 2010, and most recently Laugh at My Pain in 2011, which was arguably his most successful stand-up act in his career so far[1].
Kevin married Terrie Hart in 2003 and has a daughter, Heaven Leigh Hart, and a son, Hendrix Hart, with her. The couple split after eight years of marriage in 2011, but he has still found a way to find the humor in his life experiences and work it into his stand-up. His relationship with his father was rough in his childhood because he was in and out of jail, so he and his older brother were raised by their single mother.
With his career only growing, Kevin has landed big time gigs like hosting the 2012 MTV Music Awards and the 2011 BET Awards. He's also had several nominations for BET and Teen Choice Awards and also has won a BET Award for Best Actor in his own "Laugh at My Pain" in 2012.
Early Life
[edit]Kevin was born in North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on May 30, 1978. He had one older brother and was raised by his single mother, Nancy, because his father, Henry, was in and out of jail most of his childhood. His father was a cocaine addict, but Kevin used his natural ability to make people laugh as his coping mechanism to deal with his family struggles and to stay out of trouble[2]. His relationship with his father is much better now that he has recovered from his addiction. Kevin said in an interview with the New York Times, “My dad said, ‘I was supposed to be on drugs,’ ” Mr. Hart said. “I was like, ‘Dad, shut up,’ but then I thought about it, and it was stupid but it made sense. He was saying that, basically, he was my example to never go down that road.”[3]. After high school, he moved to New York City to attend Community College[4]. He attended college for two years, and after graduating, he lived in Brockton, Massachusetts working as a shoe salesman. It wasn't until he got his first big break, when he entered his own stand up act at an amateur night club in Philadelphia, that he began pursuing his career as a comedian[5].
Stand Up Career
[edit]Kevin's first comedic gig was at the Laff House in Philadelphia under the name of Lil Kev, which didn't go well at all[3]. He went through a slump at first when he was booed off stage several times. One man even threw a piece of chicken at him while he was on stage once[6]. After a few unsuccessful shows, Kevin began entering comedy competitions throughout Massachusetts and turned his luck around[4].
It took Kevin some time to come up with his own comedic style. After an early period of trying to imitate other comedians like Chris Tucker (the "Rush Hour" star), Kevin found his own rhythm by talking about his own insecurities and his own life experiences. In his own words, "Because of what I do, it has to be an open book,” he said. “But right now this is a book that is being written."[6] Kevin is known for making fun of himself before other's get the chance to. By keeping himself humble and relatable, and not becoming just another performer on stage, he has the ability to entertain any type of audience, whether it be professionals or a crowd full of college kids.[5]
Kevin draws his inspiration from role model comedians like Bill Cosby, Chris Rock, Eddie Murphy, and Dave Chapelle[6]. He has tried to combine the best qualities of all these men into his own act. "When you talk about your flaws, people gravitate towards you," Hart said in an interview with Rolling Stone, "I'm just not that manly-man,". This humble way of thinking is contributed to by his short stature. Kevin is a grown adult and stands only at five-foot-four[7]. His humility and his strong work-ethic are two main reasons for his success[1].
Kevin has had much success on tour with his comedy with several different acts. His first was in 2009 titled "I'm a Grown Little Man", followed by "Seriously Funny" in 2010, "Laugh At My Pain" in 2011, and most recently released, his latest special called "Let Me Explain" in the beginning of 2012[3]. Hart grossed over $15 million from "Laugh At My Pain", which for that year made it one of the top-selling tours[2]. He's had success promoting himself in other ways besides performing on stage or on camera as well. Kevin has a new game available through iTunes for download on the iPod and iPad called "Little Jumpman". It is a platform jumping game where the objective is to jump higher and higher. His Facebook page, Twitter account, and Youtube channel are all connected to this app and are accessible through it, so Kevin is able to keep all of his fans up to date non-stop.[5]
Filmography
[edit]| TV Shows/Program | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Show | Role | |
| 2001 | North Hollywood (movie) | Himself | |
| 2002 | Class of '06 (movie) | Tony | |
| 2002 | Undeclared | Luke | |
| 2004 | The Big House | Kevin | |
| 2005 | Dante (movie) | ||
| 2005 | Barbershop | James Ricky | |
| 2005 | Jake In Progress | Nugget Dawson | |
| 2006 | Love, Inc. | James | |
| 2006 | Help Me Help You | Kevin | |
| 2007 | The Weekend (movie) | Miles | |
| 2007 | All of Us | Greg | |
| 2009 | Party Down | Dro Grizzle | |
| 2009 | Kröd Mändoon and The Flaming Sword of Fire | Zezelryck | |
| 2010 | Cubed | Security Guard | |
| 2011 | Untitled Burr and Hart Project (movie) | ||
| 2011 | Little in Common (movie) | Ty Burleson | |
| 2011 | Modern Family | Andre | |
| 2012 | Workaholics | Kevin | |
Personal Life
[edit]In 2003, Kevin married Torrei and had two children, Heavenly and Hendricks. In February of 2010, the couple filed for divorce over "irreconcilable differences". Hart requested joint custody and looked to refuse Torrei of getting any support from him, due to the fact that she is a comedian herself with her own income. Because of this, the pair's relationship trouble made it's way into their acts fairly quickly. Even though rude remarks were made about one another over the course of the divorce, Kevin says their isn't any hard feelings, "We just didn't work out, but we're friends"[9].
Kevin's relationship with his father as a child was almost non-existent due to the fact he was in and out of prison most of Kevin's life. His father, Henry, was a coke addict, and Kevin has shared that with his audiences many times over. Now as an adult, Kevin's relationship with his father is much better since he got clean and began to get his own life on track. Kevin has said there were positives and negatives to this fact of his father's behavior, one positive being that "There is no such thing as a bad idea to a coke-head," but a negative being "When your dad shows up to a spelling bee stoned and roots for it like a sporting competition."[3]
Since his father was hardly around, Kevin was raised by his mother Nancy. He talks about his mother a lot in his stand-up, portraying her as a loving, intimidating woman. In 2006 though, she lost her battle with cancer and passed away[3]. Showing that humor runs in the family, at her funeral, Kevin's uncle came up to him and said "Kevin, I just want to let you know whoever did this is going to die tonight." Kevin's response was "Cancer did it. It was Cancer." To this, his uncle's reply was, "Well, you tell Cancer I'm looking for him, and when I find him, I'm going to shoot him in the face.... twice."[10]
Awards and Honors
[edit]Kevin has appeared in several notable gigs outside of his stand-up career and the big screen. In 2012, Kevin was voted MVP of the NBA Celebrity All-star game, regardless of the fact he was ejected in the fourth quarter for cursing at the ref and taking off one of his shoes and throwing the other across the court. He had eight points and six assists in the game[11]. Kevin also hosted the 2012 VMA Awards, sponsored by MTV. His long time friend Judd Apatow, who was the director that gave him his first big break on-screen with the TV series Undeclared, was the one who recommended him for the gig[7]. Stephen Friedman, the MTV president, said that it’s “that combination of being intimately connected and yet still a little bit like, ‘Oh, my God, what am I doing here? That allows our audience to have a really powerful connection to someone that feels more like a friend, versus someone who’s a distant talent up on the stage.” Kevin hopes that this will project him further into the hosting career, “Hopefully after MTV, of course we’re talking Emmys, Oscars, whatever.”[3]
In 2005, he was nominated for the BET Platinum Mic Viewers Choice Award. In 2012, Kevin actually walked away with a trophy from BET in 2012 for Best Actor in his own stand-up special Laugh At My Pain.
References
[edit]- ^ a b Cummings, Jozen. "Career Breakdown: Kevin Hart's Long, Complicated, Hit-and-Miss-and-Hit-Again Path to Stardom". Grantland. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved 05 October 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ a b Pullen, Doug (18 October 2012). "Kevin who? Comedian Kevin Hart's soaring career emerges from under the radar". El Paso Times. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f Itzkoff, Dave (18 October 2012). "Life Sends Lemons? Make Comedy". New York Times. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ a b Johnson, Keosha. "TheGrio's 100: Kevin Hart, Philly comedian sees the humor in life experiences". NBC. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ a b c "About Kevin Hart". Comedy Central. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ a b c Gomez, Luis (18 October 2012). "Interview: Kevin Hart not shy about past flubs". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
- ^ a b Weiner, Jonah (31). "VMA 2012 Host Kevin Hart Is Judd Apatow's Favorite Vertically Challenged Comic". Rolling Stone. No. Rolling Stone's Big Issue. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
{{cite magazine}}: Check date values in:|date=and|year=/|date=mismatch (help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ "Kevin Hart: Actor". Amazon.com. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
- ^ "Kevin Hart Divorce: Talks Split On 'The Rosie Show'". Huffington Post. 20 January 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
- ^ "Kevin Hart: Mother's Funeral". Comedy Central. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
- ^ James, Michael. "Kevin Hart ejected from NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, still named MVP". Holdout Sports. Retrieved 22 October 2012.