George Lopez (born April 23, 1961) is an American comedian, actor, and talk show host. He is mostly known for starring in his self-produced ABC sitcom George Lopez. His stand-up comedy examines race and ethnic relations, including Mexican American culture.
Early life
Lopez was born on April 23, 1961, in Mission Hills, Los Angeles, California, of Mexican descent. He was deserted by his father when he was two months old and by his mother when he was 10 years old, but was raised by his maternal grandmother, Benita Gutierrez, a factory worker, and step-grandfather, Refugio Gutierrez, a construction worker. Lopez attended San Fernando High School, graduating in 1979.
Career
Radio
In 1999, Lopez hosted a major morning radio show for Clear Channel Communications in Los Angeles. He was the first Latino to have headlined the keystone morning radio slot on an English-language station in LA â€" the nation’s top radio market.
Television
In 2000, after several years of performing stand-up comedy, Lopez was approached by actress Sandra Bullock for Lopez to produce and star in a comedy. Bullock was concerned about the lack of Hispanic-oriented sitcoms on American television and pushed to get a sitcom on television that starred Hispanics without being exclusively about the Hispanic American community. Long criticized by Hispanic American groups for lack of Latinos on their television shows, ABC quickly picked up the television series. In 2002, Lopez became one of the few Latinos to star in a television comedy series, following in the footsteps of Desi Arnaz, Freddie Prinze, and John Leguizamo. George Lopez is an American situation comedy that originally aired on ABC from 2002â€"2007. Lopez is the co-creator, writer, producer, and star of the show.
On March 8, 2007, it was announced that George Lopez would join the Nick at Nite lineup. It first aired on Nick at Nite on September 10, 2007. On May 15, 2007, ABC announced that the series would be canceled after its sixth season. The show last aired on ABC September 7, 2007. The show also entered syndication in the fall of 2007. Never a big Nielsen hit in prime-time, the show became a surprise success in syndication.
Lopez was a cast member and commentator for HBO’s hit sports show Inside the NFL for the 2003â€"2004 football season.
Lopez guest starred as the mayor of Reno, Nevada in the fifth season of Reno 911! in 2008.
On March 28, 2009, it was announced that Lopez would be hosting his own late night talk show on TBS. Lopez hosted a late-night talk show entitled Lopez Tonight on TBS Monday through Thursday at midnight Eastern Time. The show debuted in November 2009. In November 2010, the show moved back to midnight ET to accommodate a new show with former Tonight Show host Conan O'Brien. Lopez supported and even advocated for the move, making it different from the 2010 Tonight Show conflict that saw O'Brien depart NBC after a proposal to push Tonight back 30 minutes for Jay Leno to return to the 11:35Â p.m. slot. On August 10, 2011 Lopez received a cancellation notice from TBS. The network decided not to renew Lopez Tonight for a third season.
On April 18, 2013, it was announced George Lopez would be starring in his own sitcom on FX called Saint George, which premiered on March 6, 2014. Saint George was produced under Debmar-Mercury and Lionsgate Television's syndication model, which states that if a show hits certain ratings thresholds in its first 10-episode run, it triggers an additional 90-episode order. Failing to do so, Saint George was canceled on June 25, 2014, after one season.
Film
Lopez earned praise for his performance in the HBO Films drama, Real Women Have Curves, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and received the 2002 Audience Award. Previously, Lopez was featured in the drama Bread and Roses. The film, directed by British filmmaker Ken Loach, received critical acclaim after its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. He recently starred in the ABC Wonderful World of Disney Christmas film Naughty or Nice. Lopez also starred in the Robert RodrÃguez-directed film The Adventures of Shark Boy & Lava Girl, which opened in June 2005.
Brown is The New Green: George Lopez and the American Dream is a 2007 documentary directed and produced by Phillip Rodriguez.
In 2010, Lopez appeared in The Spy Next Door with Jackie Chan, starring as a villain named Glaze.
In 2011, Lopez reprised his role as Papi for Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2, and was the voice of a toco toucan, Rafael, in the box-office animated hit Rio, alongside Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, will.i.am, and Jamie Foxx.
Books
Lopez wrote an autobiography entitled Why You Crying, which was published by the Touchstone/Fireside division of Simon & Schuster, and placed in the New York Times Bestsellers top twenty. The book is co-written by Emmy Award winning writer and sportscaster Armen Keteyian.
Other work
In January 2009, Lopez appeared in We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial.
He is a two-time host of the Latin Grammy Awards, and a co-host of the Emmy Awards.
He also hosted a Season 9 elimination episode of American Idol after donating the most money on Idol Gives Back.
Politics
On December 21, 2010, Lopez announced on Good Day L.A. that he would run for mayor of Los Angeles in about eight years.
In an interview with Piers Morgan, Lopez stated that if Sarah Palin ever becomes the President of the United States, he would emigrate to Canada.
Personal life
In 1993, Lopez married Ann Serrano. The couple have a daughter, Maya Lopez. On September 27, 2010, Lopez announced that he and his wife had decided to end their marriage. Serrano filed for divorce on November 23, 2010, citing "irreconcilable differences." The divorce was finalized on July 1, 2011.
Health problems
Lopez has a genetic condition that caused his kidneys to deteriorate. His doctors had told him in April 2004 that he was going to require an organ transplant but he postponed the operation until finishing the fourth season of George Lopez. In 2005, his wife Ann donated one of her kidneys to Lopez. The transplant was successful; Lopez lost 45Â lbs. after the operation due in part to the improvement in his health. He brought awareness to the issue on his show; his character's son Max was diagnosed with a similar illness.
Charity work and honors
Lopez was a featured celebrity golfer in the 2004 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and the 2004 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Lopez and his pro partner finished third in the Pebble Beach event. George was the top-ranking celebrity at completion of the tournament. Since 2006, Lopez has served as host of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. He is a member at Lakeside Country Club in Burbank, California, and has a 13 handicap.
A native of Los Angeles who grew up in the San Fernando Valley's Mission Hills, Lopez devotes much time to the community. He heads his own charity, The Ann & George Lopez Foundation (www.thelopezfoundation.org). He is a recipient of the Manny Mota Foundation Community Spirit Award and was named Honorary Mayor of Los Angeles for his extensive fund-raising efforts benefiting earthquake victims in El Salvador and Guatemala. In February 2004, Lopez was presented the 2004 Artist of the Year and Humanitarian Award by the Harvard Foundation at Harvard University, presented by its president and dean for his artistic work and charitable endeavors.
Lopez has received several honors for his work and contributions to the Latino community. In September 2004, George was honored with the "Spirit of Liberty Award," presented by People for the American Way. In August 2005, Time magazine recognized George as one of "The 25 Most Influential Hispanics in America." On October 18, 2011, Lopez's elementary school, San Fernando Elementary School, honored him for his beneficent efforts by naming their auditorium after him. Lopez has ensured through his annual toy giveaway that every child at the school receives a gift during the holidays.
Feuds
Jay Leno
Lopez criticized Jay Leno, someone he once considered a "close friend," during an interview on radio station WOMX-FM in Orlando, Florida on January 24, 2007, stating, "He's the biggest two-faced dude in TV." He also called him a back-stabber, and said he is not a proficient interviewer.
Carlos Mencia
Lopez is also known for his conflict with Carlos MencÃa. In an interview on The Howard Stern Show, Lopez accused MencÃa of appropriating 13 minutes of his material in MencÃa's HBO special. He also claimed he had a physical altercation with MencÃa over the alleged appropriation.
Erik Estrada
Lopez frequently mentions his dislike for Erik Estrada. According to Lopez, he met Estrada when he was a teenager and Estrada was at the zenith of his career. Estrada refused to shake the teenager's hand, and Lopez has disliked him ever since. Lopez related the story while guest-hosting The Jim Rome Show, then saying, "Fuck that puto!" In his comedy special America's Mexican, Lopez uses this story to warn celebrities to always be good to their fans, because they never know who their fans might grow up to be.
ABC Entertainment
After receiving the news that his show was cancelled in 2007, Lopez criticized president of ABC Entertainment Steve McPherson for using racially motivated reasons for his decision. The actor told the Los Angeles Times that "TV just became really, really white again," and lashed out against ABC by saying, "So a chicano can't be on TV, but a caveman can?" in reference to the short-lived sitcom Cavemen, which was replacing George Lopez on the schedule. Cavemen garnered a sharply negative reception from critics and viewers, and was cancelled after just 13 episodes. Lopez blamed ABC for causing over a hundred of his show's staff to become jobless.
Kirstie Alley
On March 24, 2011, George Lopez called Kirstie Alley a "pig" during her stint on Dancing with the Stars. Kirstie responded on Twitter, "Don't worry about George's comments…just remember what happens to the big bad, drunk woolf…falls in a boiling pot of vodka. Piggy laughs." George later apologized on Twitter, saying, "I misjudged the joke. No malice was intended and I apologize to Kirstie." After the apology, Kirstie fired back on Twitter, "@georgelopez I don't need or want ur apology…I want your kidney dude..on behalf of ur X and all the women uv insulted…give it back."
Joe Arpaio
On July 14, 2012, during one of his HBO specials, Lopez lashed out in a diatribe against controversial Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, in which Lopez ranted "Sheriff Joe in Arizona, fuck you, you fucking puto! How about that? Fuck you! You fat motherfucker, fuck you!" Lopez took exception to Arpaio's endorsement of Arizona's anti-immigration policies, which has been widely criticized among the Hispanic community.
Filmography
References
External links
- Official website
- George Lopez at the Internet Movie Database
- "Brown is the New Green: George Lopez and the American Dream". - PBS
