As evidenced by this Philadelphia mural, if there is anyone who deserves major sweatage it’s Patti LaBelle. What makes her freshest is the fact that she has made it her business to do everything under the sun, and in the process has become the woman we all want to be when we grow up by default. Always distinctive, Patti Labelle is the very mold for “the diva.” As lead singer of the group Labelle, Patti broke barriers by dressing in wacky space-age attire

I wish that I could account for as many bingo squares in the scratch-off lotto ticket version as I can in Non-Threatening Black Male’s brilliant “Blipster Bingo.” That kind of money would get my phone turned back on. Hat tip: Ill Mami

KellyBelle at Ephphatha enlightens us with an update on the original Aunt Viv from Fresh Prince of Bel Air. This is vital information that would otherwise go unnoticed!

Conscious comic and vigilante pundit Baratunde

While Blogger was holding my blog hostage I kept referring to it as “my baby,” a label that was met with a whole bunch of funny looks from my friends. By Sunday morning the scene below started running through my mind on a loop, hence the need for ths Grace Jones post.

Grace Jones is such a weirdo. I revere her diva-ness, intense beauty, androgyny, vanguard musical talents, and perhaps above all else, ability to scare people. If, say, she and I were in competition for the same man, or even worse, holding opposite ends of a…

I was in the middle of FBG’ing someone else when I heard that Edie Huggins, a Philadelphia institution and pretty spectacular lady, passed away today at the age of 72. She was the the first black female on the news in Philadelphia, a founding member of the National Association of Black Journalists, and a serious news veteran with 42 years of experience at the time of her passing. My Philly heads all know about her “Huggins Heroes” segments profiling people doing good deeds in the city; back in like…

After the meaningless nonsense of the past few days, in fact, past few years, I’ve finally accepted that Black Love is in a bit of trouble. I ADORE Black Love itself – as corny as it may sound, there’s something so intensely beautiful about the concept that has made me seek it almost exclusively. At my age I’m finally trying to take the idea of settling down seriously, but my usual approach to life has not been cutting the mustard. I’m far from desperate and haven’t had much trouble catching who I want. But I believe in fate, luck…

Why is it that almost every black sitcom has had at least one “talent showcase” episode, while such episodes on mainstream sitcoms have been few and far between? I’ve certainly never seen anyone seriously throwing on costumes to sing and dance on Friends or Seinfeld, and the “talent showcase” in black sitcoms certainly pre-dates reality shows like American Idol. Ever since I learned that “coonery” is one of the search terms that has brought people to WWTD, I’ve been thinking a lot about our tendency to cut a rug and start up some showtime just for its own sake. I believe that random talent showcasing on black sitcoms is due to two factors: first, black sitcoms have so many multi-talented performers that can do more than just act.

The other night I was watching What’s Love Got To Do With It?, a favorite of mine since high school. After over 20 viewings, every nuance of Angela Bassett’s performance still impresses me. In fact, if Angela Bassett were white she’d have star power along the lines of Julia Roberts, and if you don’t agree then you should pack your things and leave this blog. Homegirl can ACT, and she does so always, under any condition necessary. She is our go-to girl for first class acting and sure should…

For the first time, a friend of mine has inspired me to celebrate her freshness because she has realized the dreams of so many of us in like a quarter of a lifetime and is just getting started. It wasn’t enough that Nancy graduated from Harvard and then two weeks later went on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and practically made Regis Philbin empty his pockets. After giving a chunk of her winnings to the 4-H club, which she credits for much of her success, she turned herself…

Regina King is a perfect example of how black entertainers are simply not given their due – after over 20 years in the industry and roles in several big movies she still hasn’t headlined a film. Today I saw the commercial for the upcoming movie This Christmas featuring Regina King, Chris Brown, Idris Elba (yum), and a few young bland black girls with narrow features and really straight hair whose names I can never remember. In contrast to them, looking at Regina onscreen with all…