It looks like a change really is coming.
Not only in politics – but also on prime-time television.
Or at least, that's wishful thinking.
Mara Brock Akil has been drafted into the big leagues.
The celebrated creator and producer of the recently canceled sitcom 'Girlfriends' and the must-see TV series, 'The Game,' is on board to write the script and executive produce a buddy comedy based on the 2006 book 'Making Friends With Black People,' Variety reported.
About the state of race relations in the U.S., the project is being developed as a sitcom for NBC, and Salim Akil, her husband, is also on board too.'Making Friends' will center on two guys -- one African-American and one white -- who become close friends, but who don't necessarily see things the same way. Nick Adams, a standup comic, wrote the book as a humorous look at how people dance around issues of race. He'll serve as a co-producer on the project.
He hopes the show can capitalize on how the election of Barack Obama as the country's first African-American president has changed the nation's dialogue on race.
"From time to time, race bubbles up in the consciousness of the country and then dissipates," said Adams. "Now, with Obama, people are talking about race a lot more. We hope to capitalize on that and not let the dialogue die down. ... It seemed like a good opportunity to strike while the iron is hot."
Comments: (13)
Add a comment
By: WATCH US EXPLODE! on 11/19/2008 8:45PM
Good for her! I certainly hope the show delivers, and doesn't resort to the hackneyed ideas. I'll be watching...
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Maisha on 11/19/2008 10:34PM
Come on white people, be friends with us.
We're nice unless you use the n word!
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: MilesEllison on 11/20/2008 9:03AM
I predict that there will be 'creative differences' that will boil down to NBC wanting the writers to coon the show up. NBC has always been run by idiots. The most popular shows on that network were only aired via pure dumb luck. Their executives didn't think Seinfeld was funny and didn't think The Cosby Show was 'realistic' enough. They'll probably wind up buying House of Payne from the Tyler Perry minstrel show factory.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Beth on 11/20/2008 10:13AM
I think it is time for all to realize that caucasions actually like colored people. The problems between the races are only with a few but because of the chip on the shoulders of some (both races), it gets elevated to become anger and hurt for all. There is no higher honor then President and it took both races to put a colored man in the White House. If this doesn"t prove that the caucasion community has accepted the colored community, then nothing ever will. I really hope those few who want to continue the hurt realize that the need is gone. Both races need to play nice, not just the caucasions. If the colored people don't forgive the caucasions for the hurt inflicted, THEY will continue the hurt and the hate will never die. When you are a person just trying to heal, being hurt again and again without the realization that you are trying is like cutting open the wound again and again. The colored community has achieved the dream of equality, now please let the caucasion community have the same. Forgive people! Move on. Both races have elected a colored President. That means the caucasions have chosen to be lead by a colored man. There will always be rude caucasions as there will always be rude colored people, this does not mean one race hates another. There are caucasions who are rude to caucasions, not just colored. Some people are just rude and mean. Caucasions don't hate all caucasions just because some of them are rude. It should be realized that the same is true with the colored communtiy. A few rude caucasions do not speak for all caucasions in the same way that a few rude colored people don't speak for all colored people. Equality people!
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: jason Clark on 11/20/2008 12:00PM
hmmm, maybe she should go back to bringing "Girlfriend" back before hopping on another show, after all it didn't get a proper series finale and they are releasing DVDs like it wasn't canceled midway through the 8th season.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: MilesEllison on 11/20/2008 2:32PM
Colored? What is this, 1960?
This show will suffer from "creative differences" with the network. That means that NBC will demand that the black people be caricatures rather than intelligent people. Then they will buy House of Payne or some other nonsense from the Tyler Perry minstrel machine that better fits with the way they want to portray black people.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Truth! on 11/21/2008 3:12PM
Colored??????? The more things change, the more they stay the same! Beth, imagine how many people think you're an idiot. So, are these colored people colored white or colored pink?
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: chas jr on 11/22/2008 10:18AM
I accidently watch "the house of pain" now I see why its called that, that has got to be the worse show ever .I mean it was not funny at all . we're suppose to evolve to be better this show sets black comedy back 40 years. you cant tell me the actors themselves dont know they are doing bad comedy just to have a job.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Jes on 11/23/2008 3:32AM
Poor Beth. She sounds like a nice fair minded person; but, it's hard to take anything she says seriously when she uses the word "colored." My parents grew up during the depression and they don't even use the word anymore.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Uriah Jordan on 11/24/2008 1:25AM
I saw girlfriends once and hated it, and I never even attempted to watch The Game. I think the problem with television and the industry as a whole is that they can't just write about a character that happens to be black (used to determine a race Beth, everyone has a color). There is an extrat effort by writers to try to 'make' a charater black. Nearly every black woman on televison over the past 40 years has been loud and abrasive. The same personality has been given to everyone of them. Starsky and Hutch's boss was inept so too was the character John Amos played in Hunter and neither of them commanded respect from their charges. Enter The Dragon taught me not grow any attachment to any black character in a movie/telivision show because they won't be there long. Then there are the tolkens that stand-out in every show including reality show--How many of you thought that the black woman who was in the group of girls attempting to marry that farmer/cowboy had a shot? Its so absurd that it's funny. Finally, as a Black man I can tell you I was not too impressed with Ms. Akil's previous works so I'm not expecting too much.
Reply to this Comment | Report This