Bibliograph

Flip, the inside story of TV's first Black superstar, Kevin Cook

Type

Label

Flip, the inside story of TV's first Black superstar, Kevin Cook

Language

eng

resource.accompanyingMatter

technical information on music

Form of composition

not applicable

Format of music

not applicable

Literary text for sound recordings

biography

Main title

Flip

Music parts

not applicable

Oclc number

839272856

Responsibility statement

Kevin Cook

Sub title

the inside story of TV's first Black superstar

Summary

When The Flip Wilson Show debuted in 1970, black faces were still rare on television, black hosts nonexistent. So how did Clerow "Flip" Wilson go from Jersey City grade-school dropout to national celebrity, heralded on the cover of Time as "TV's First Black Superstar". Flip is a candid, entertaining biography of a consummate comedian who changed the face of American popular culture. Kevin Cook chronicles Flip's meteoric rise through the Chitlin' Circuit of segregated nightclubs to his breakthrough on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show to his hit variety show, on which he created such outrageous and hilarious characters as the sassy Geraldine and flock-fleecing Reverend Leroy. As one of the biggest stars of his time, he performed and partied with Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, and other stars of the 1970s. Drawing on interviews with family, friends, and celebrities, Cook delivers the inspiring story of a complex man who broke the prime-time color barrier, blazing a trail for generations of African American performers who followed him

Target audience

adult

Transposition and arrangement

not applicable

Classification