Ralphie May
Encyclopedia
Ralphie O. May is an American
stand-up comedian.
, but raised in Clarksville, Arkansas
. When he was seventeen years old, he won a contest to open for comedian Sam Kinison
, whom he considered his idol. Kinison suggested he move to Houston, Texas
to further develop his comedy routine. May then studied at the Performing Arts in Houston and graduated. He then moved to Los Angeles
to pursue a career in entertainment.
winning first place. After that, he started appearing in numerous comedy shows like The Wayne Brady Show
and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
. In 2005, he was the only white comedian to perform on The Big Black Comedy Show, which also featured Mo'Nique, Rodman, and Vince Morris.
In 2005, May released his comedy album, Just Correct. After that, he has recorded three Comedy Central
specials: Girth of a Nation (2006), Prime Cut (2007), and Austin-tatious (2008). He has also appeared on films like For Da Love of Money.
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
stand-up comedian.
Early life
May was born in Chattanooga, TennesseeChattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...
, but raised in Clarksville, Arkansas
Clarksville, Arkansas
Clarksville is a city in Johnson County, Arkansas, United States. The population was approximately 9,300 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Johnson County.. Clarksville is nestled between the Arkansas River and the foot hills of the Ozark Mountains and Interstate 40 and US Hwy 64...
. When he was seventeen years old, he won a contest to open for comedian Sam Kinison
Sam Kinison
Samuel Burl "Sam" Kinison was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Kinison was known for his intense, harsh and politically incorrect genre humor...
, whom he considered his idol. Kinison suggested he move to Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
to further develop his comedy routine. May then studied at the Performing Arts in Houston and graduated. He then moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
to pursue a career in entertainment.
Career
In 2003, May was chosen to participate in the first season of Last Comic Standing. He finished in second place in the competition, with Dat PhanDat Phan
Dat Phan , is a Vietnamese American stand-up comedian.-Early life:When he was a child, he, his mother, and nine of his siblings emigrated from South Vietnam to the United States. They suffered financial hardships throughout his childhood...
winning first place. After that, he started appearing in numerous comedy shows like The Wayne Brady Show
The Wayne Brady Show
The Wayne Brady Show was a variety show hosted by Wayne Brady that originally ran from August 8, 2001 to March 11, 2002 on ABC. Due to low ratings, the show was cancelled by ABC and reformatted into a daytime variety talk show for syndication...
and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that initially aired from May 25, 1992 to May 29, 2009, and resumed production on March 1, 2010. The fourth incarnation of the Tonight Show franchise made its debut on May 25, 1992, three days following Johnny...
. In 2005, he was the only white comedian to perform on The Big Black Comedy Show, which also featured Mo'Nique, Rodman, and Vince Morris.
In 2005, May released his comedy album, Just Correct. After that, he has recorded three Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
specials: Girth of a Nation (2006), Prime Cut (2007), and Austin-tatious (2008). He has also appeared on films like For Da Love of Money.
Filmography
- 2002: For Da Love Of Money
- 2003: Just Correct
- 2005: Celebrity Fit ClubCelebrity Fit ClubCelebrity Fit Club is a reality television series that follows eight overweight celebrities as they try to lose weight for charity. Split into two competing teams of four, each week teams are given different physical challenges, and weighed to see if they reached their target weights...
- 2005: Big Black Comedy: Vol. 2
- 2005: Big Black comedy: Vol. 4
- 2006: Girth of a Nation
- 2007: Prime Cut
- 2007: Bangin' With Ralphie May
- 2008: The Best of Comics Unleashed With Byron AllenComics UnleashedComics Unleashed is a half-hour comedic talk show produced by the Entertainment Studios production company and hosted by Byron Allen, with John Cramer as announcer and ' providing music support. The show features a panel of four guest comedians performing their standup bits thinly disguised as a...
- 2008: Austin-Tatious
- 2011: HNIC (filming in fall 2011)
Discography
- 2005: Just Correct
- 2006: Girth of A Nation
- 2007: Prime Cut
- 2008: Austin-Tatious
Personal life
May married comedian Lahna Turner on July 3, 2005. They have two children: April June May (born September 5, 2007) and August James May (born June 24, 2009). In January 2011, May injured his rotator cuffRotator cuff
In anatomy, the rotator cuff is the group of muscles and their tendons that act to stabilize the shoulder. The four muscles of the rotator cuff, along with the teres major muscle, the coracobrachialis muscle and the deltoid, make up the seven scapulohumeral muscles of the human body.-Function:The...
.