6- The Michigan Daily -- Weekend etc. - Thursday, December 8, 1994 'Low Down' with Keenan Ivory Wayans By ALEXANDRA TWIN and LIZ SHAW "It's not like I try to reinvent the wheel," said actor-filmmaker Keenan Ivory Wayans in a recent interview, "I just try to take what's familiar and give it some spice." Spice, indeed. From his momen- tous entry into the stand-up comedy circuit of the early '8os through the success of cult films like "I'm Gonna Git You Sucka" through the recogni- tion garnered by his TV show "In Living Color," Wayans has managed to build a career that, while filled with nothing but spice, is broad enough to have scattered itself to the four winds. Where would we be without the comedic stylings of Keenan Ivory Wayans? Who else could have brought us the hearty laughs of "I'm Gonna Get You Sucka?" From the first time he tossed Damon Wayans and Kadeem Hardison down the stairs to Dawnn Lewis' "CRAMPS!!" to Jack getting his own background music to follow him around, "Sucka" was an all around riot. Who could forget Jack taking the woman he met in the bar up to a hotel room, and watching as he let her "get a little more comfortable" by removing everything from her dress to her prosthetic leg? Who wasn't laughing when she started hopping after him as he made his hasty retreat? Wayans' talent for comedy writ- ing wasn't lost after his first stab at feature film-making. His touch could be seen in many of the sketches done each week on his Fox television show "In Living Color." Wayans tackled the belly-laugh issues such as dis- crimination against people who have large butts on their heads, and posed many an intellectual point to ponder, such as what would happen if Mike Tyson and Mohammed Ali were to try to raise a child together. His latest film, the action-comedy "A Low Down Dirty Shame," finds him teamed up with Jada Pinkett, star of last year's "Menace 2 Society" and the recently-released "Jason's Lyric." "I wanted this to be about a guy who plays by his own rules, has his own code of honor," said the die-hard Richard Pryor fan, "I thought about how to make that transition from television into mainstream film and this is it." The film concerns an ex-private in- vestigator named Shame, who has fallen from grace and now has his own private company, which tends to propagate suicide missions. Jada Pinkett plays Peaches, his sidekick. Says Wayans of the film: "It's about loyalty, betrayal, a~~- -1ms aw love. All universal themes. Somepeople may not like it but it won't be because they don't get it." The same may be said of Wayans, who left behind a potential engineer- ing degree and lifestyle topursue show business. "I knew I wanted to be a comedian, I just didn't know how. Once I figured it out, I was able to really get somewhere." He sights his early-on, one-man stand-up work as incomparable training for his current job as something of a one-man pro- duction team. He also sights these experiences as justification for helping the careers of a number of his younger siblings. "I practice nepotism, but only with the ones who are talented. There's 5 more at home who you don't see," he said laughing. Jada Pinkett began as a dancer. A prominent role on the TV series "A Different World" got her started. Unlike many young female actors, particularly those of color, Pinkett has been given the opportunity to play a wide variety of characters. "There are more opportunities com- ing in for all woman," said Pinkett carefully, "I think that White women have had their share. Slowly but surely, Black women are being rec- ognized for their talents and box-of- fice draw. Studios are beginning to focus more on black filmmakers." "Yet, any movie could be cast differently than it is," pointed out Wayans, "Whether something is about tragedy, comedy, gangs or drugs does not limit it to one ethnic group. Film- makers have to get beyond categoriz- ing themselves as Black filmmakers. So do studios and so does the media." Wayans feels that "The real key is to prove that your work is quality so that people will back whatever it is that you do. You can have (Black run) companies, but if you can't finance films, ultimately, you're going to be in a partnership with the studios. It doesn't matter if our agendas are the same. I use it all to my advantage" "I'm a product of the 7s, Wayans says, "fortunate enough to come up in a generation where you were taught that you could be any- thing and that you can take control of your own destiny. Yet, even with suc- cess, you constantly have to prove yourself. That's just the nature of the business. You can never take it for granted. You gotta get out there and do your thing." Michigan's only full tIme chess store and studio "500 titsofchess books " omete line of classic wood sets, boards, clocks "Cheslssons " Taleclock rentals " Childre''hess Club: Thursdays from 3:307:30 " Monthly tournaments Hours: Tue.-Fri. 12.8. Sat.: 12.5 Appointments also Available (313) 665-0612 S. i~. a1 Wayans showcases his many talents in "A Low Down Dirty Shame." A lot of vacant kids are shown in the is photo. No bacon or 'eh' jokes, please. S 1C nd.S lkea'Vacanit Lot'h _ J ROLLERBLADE0 GET WM ""vO 061 $10 r4ALIN awlmIhW REBAME e WIN A loss rW.5 UWRA B Wn, -M Buy Rollerblade skates with Rollerblade protective gear and receive a ten dollar mail-in rebate. Fill out a sweepstakes entry form and enter to win a sporty new 1995 Geo Metro LSi Coupe or LSi Sedan? O nnArbor Cyclery ARoferbIade. Gee. 1224 Packard 761-2749 By ALEXANDRA TWIN Canada 0 Canada, where would our sore TV eyes be without you? You took our generation of early '80s mo- ronic TV losers and gave us Michael J. Fox. You took our generation of late '80s moronic TV losers and gave us Mike "Wayne's World" Myers. You took our generation of early '90s neu- rotic TV losers and gave us the coolest thing to hit cable since the repeatdouble showings of the "Private School"/"Pri- vate Resort" marathon, namely "The Kids in the Hall." And now, in what some may consider your most gener- ous boon to date, you've given us "The Vacant Lot," the self-proclaimed "'Res- ervoir Dogs' of comedy," and America's latest Canadian export. What a bargain. "We like American audiences," said castmember Nick Mckinney in a re- cent group phone interview, "They're " DE- i Ftness 5tudto N: + Boutiqu RELIEVE EXAM TENSION WITH A RELAXING THERAPEUTIC MASSAGE $5 OFF* FOR UM STUDENTS WTH TH1S AD UNTIL 12-15-94 *VAlD FOR 1-HOjR MASSAGE SESIONS. ONE COUPON PER PERSON PER THERAPIST. "t @ PUIAU WkNflO4 THS CR WRN YOU CALL a lot more receptive than Canadians. Whether they like you or hate you, they're not shy about letting you know." Nor are the Lots' castmembers. 27- year old Rob Gfroerer, 29-year old Paul Greenberg and 29-year old Vito Viscomi met at college in Toronto and began performing in areaclubs almost immediately. "We had no experience," said Gfroerer, "We just watched alotof TV." "Then they met me and I really pulled them up from the ground and made them into what they are today," said Mckinney. What they are today is one of the bolder, more interesting comedy troupes to appear on television (attn: MTV's "The State"). Skits range from the Jesus in school sequences-Jesus sucks at home economics but watch him in the speed swimming sequences -to an evil attackonBalkieandLarry of "Perfect Strangers," who sing a cheesy song about getting laid and then accidentally kill themselves - to the constant barrage of pseudo music vid- eos, including "Pamper Me," in which a guy just wants to know the extent of his girlfriend's admiration. "No, re- ally, put me in diapers, pamper me," the guy sings to a montage sequence of himself in various pamper-clad poses. What sets "The Vacant Lot" apart from groups like "The State" is their pure, non-gimmicky approach to easy- access comedy. "We don't have an agenda that we're trying to fill," said Viscomi, "we just want to entertain people and have a good time." While the "Saturday Night Live" and "Kids in the Hall" connections are apparent - "Lot" producer and dis- coverer Lorne Michaels also produced and discovered the other two groups - "The Vacant Lot" is arguably both more daring and more tasteless than either of the other two. There are count- less severed limb references. When asked how they managed to snag the attention of the prominent LorneMichaels, Mckinney replied "We* sent him a severed head." In addition to being the group's most vocal member and resident wise- ass, Mckinney is perhaps best known for being the brother of "that other Mckinney," Mark, of "Kids in the Hall" fame. So, what is it about Canada? "Nothing," replied Grfoerer. Do Americans have misconceptions about Canadians? "They think that it's very cold here and that we're all obsessed with the weather," said Viscomi. "They think we're strange," said Mckinney "And they think that we're all really dumb, when really, just I am," con- cluded Grfoerer. Although they swear that their fa- vorite "Muppet" is Bill Clinton, the* "Vacant gang is relatively serious about their work. "We've been together for seven years and we want to keep working together," said Grfoerer. "I was a taxidermist," said Viscomi "and n'ow I'm acomic. How couldI go back?" It would appear that the self-pro- claimed "Canadian Fab Four" are as whip-smart as they are smart-alecks 0 "I remember after one of our live shows," said Mckinney fondly, "an enraged woman came up to me and said that using a real dead chicken in a skit was wrong, that someone could have eaten that chicken. Well, yes, but it still would have been a dead chicken." U Um r7 i P1.N..J'Rat'i4a k3RttVi}R:YRFSS:SRd:+:its,2GRt:d6 'h} *d.¢+.v' ,lkH?0:"7C2i.SlU5tftt."t7a'YL\fidYi'J£:bNANG.4k ."iG.+'f t++'AK2SANNid'i%?%d>4:F' :35'if83k'" idl.+tit i:: i:: %::t?:tbnv:v3"ui 6lN :::: -. a.:dx.:v.\ ghix.-£.4a.JG%'v%3 ?%J::6%u"%l:aTMftS}RJ:i d .::'::.::T"q.'iRUL'Fk'fA:V' k29n #.C