Tyler Perry's House of Payne

Tyler Perry's House of Payne
Created by	Tyler Perry
Starring	Allen Payne LaVan Davis Cassi Davis Lance Gross Larramie "Doc" Shaw Demetria McKinney Keshia Knight Pulliam China Anne McClain Denise Burse
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	6
No. of episodes	133 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time	21 minutes
Original release
Network	Syndication (2006) TBS (2007-present)
Release	June 21, 2006 (2006-06-21) – present
Release	director: Kim Fields
Release	director: Kim Fields
Release	director: Kim Fields
Release	director: Kim Fields
Release	director: Kim Fields
Release	director: Kim Fields
Release	director: Kim Fields
Related
Meet the Browns

Tyler Perry's House of Payne is an American sitcom created and produced by playwright, director, and producer Tyler Perry. The show revolves around a multi-generational family living under one roof in Atlanta, Georgia led by comical patriarch Curtis "Pops" Payne and his sassy but religious wife Ella. The family is often involved in hilarious and dramatic situations. The show premiered in syndication on June 21, 2006, and has been broadcast exclusively on TBS since June 6, 2007.

House of Payne has been picked up for another forty episodes, giving the series a total of 172 episodes in a span of five years. Micheal Wright, executive vice president, head of programming for TBS, TNT, and Turner Classic Movies (TCM), said, "We have a terrific relationship with Tyler Perry, and this deal means new episodes of House of Payne will continue to air on TBS well into the future."

Production history

The sitcom ran in first-run syndication for 10 episodes during the summer of 2006 on the broadcast version of WTBS, along with nine other broadcast outlets across the country, as a limited run, with additional episodes to be available for national distribution on TBS in June 2007. An order of 100 episodes was requested by TBS.

A cable record for sitcom airings was broken with 5.2 and 5.8 million for the two premiere episodes on TBS on June 6, 2007. However, the audience has declined to a recent 4.3 million as of the week ending September 30, 2007.

The principal cast remained the same (with the exception of Lance Gross being added), led by LaVan Davis. The original format of the series centered around C.J. (Allen Payne) and his family moving in with his Aunt Ella and Uncle Curtis, (Cassi Davis and LaVan Davis). Robinne Lee originally had a recurring guest stint as Malik and Jazmine's principal, Nicole Jamieson, whom C.J. soon began dating. In the test run, Ella and Curtis were originally C.J.'s parents, but in its current format, Calvin is their son and C.J. their nephew. Despite his top billing, Allen Payne is not considered to be the main actor of the series, especially due to his long absence in the fifth season.

The show is well-known for its frequent advertisements during NBA on TNT broadcasts. Since its initial association with the NBA on TNT during the 2008 NBA Playoffs, House of Payne has developed a symbiotic relationship with the NBA on TNT, and the two serve as ambassadors for each other's promotions.

At the beginning of the fifth season, China Anne McClain (Jasmine) and Denise Burse (Claretha) were removed from the series. The characters were written out, with Jasmine going away to a school for gifted children in North Carolina and Claretha marrying a prince and moving away. In real life, McClain left the series for undisclosed reasons. In the beginning of Season 6, both McClain and Burse have returned. Some of the cast members of Tyler Perry's House of Payne were on The Mo'Nique Show on October 2009.

Seasons

• The test run is included in the season one episodes.
• House of Payne Episode List

Season		# of Episodes	Original airdate
	1	49	June 6, 2007
	2	21	December 5, 2007
	3	15	March 5, 2008
	4	24	June 4, 2008
	5	26	December 3, 2008
	6	46	November 4, 2009

Characters

The show revolves around the misadventures of the multi-generational Payne family. They live in suburban Atlanta, Georgia.

Main characters

• Clarence James (C.J.) Payne, Jr. (Allen Payne) is the first of the program's main protagonists. He is a responsible adult whose house burned down after his wife, Janine, used drugs and accidentally started a fire. This led to moving his family in with his Uncle Curtis and Aunt Ella. C.J. is the father of Malik, Jazmine, and, Jayden, and Hayden Payne. C.J. originally was portrayed as Ella and Curtis' son, but his character was changed so that he is now a nephew. He has recently remarried his wife, Janine, who has given birth to their twin son and daughter, Hayden and Jayden. He recently found out in season four that he was adopted. C.J. works at the fire house with Curtis. At the end of Season 5; he, Janine, and the twins move to Chicago. He returned in Season 6, having been offered Curtis' job where he later finds a new home for his family and now they are neighbors with Curtis and Ella.

• Curtis Payne (LaVan Davis) is the second of the program's main protagonists. He is often referred to as Uncle Curtis by his nephew (C.J), his nephew's wife (Janine), and their children (Malik and Jazmine). Curtis is the self appointed "king" of the household, known for his selfishness, often lazy lifestyle, and reluctance to accept his nephew's family into his house (Curtis thinks the house is already crowded). He is overweight, and once fainted from a blocked artery. Fortunately, he lived, but Ella put him on a diet, though he neglects it for his usually fatty food. Comedic plot points come from Curtis' unusual and often disrespectful attempts to rid his house of his nephew's kin. This also became a running gag of the show. Despite his immaturity in this matter, his maturity and responsibility are apparent in his job as the chief of the local fire department. LaVan Davis won an NAACP image award in 2008 for Outstanding Actor In A Comedy Series for this role.

• Ella Payne (Formerly Ella Thompson, then in the episode:"Til Payne Do We Part" she was known as Ella Williams) (Cassi Davis) Curtis's wife. She is a stay-at-home mother who is the voice of reason. Curtis has been known to take advantage of Ella's good nature, although he is usually punished for doing so. She is the religious voice in the family, and always seems to be "the glue of the family", that holds it together. Ella is known as a good cook, and had a restaurant service in one episode. She is quick to support everyone in her family, such as when Janine returned home.

• Janine Payne (Formerly Janine Shelton) (Demetria McKinney), is C.J.'s wife and the mother of Malik, Jazmine, Hayden and Jayden Payne, and a seemingly responsible adult and mother at the very beginning of the series. However, she is later revealed to be a drug addict and the arsonist who burned down her and C.J.'s home. She and C.J. divorce after she leaves her family. For a short time, she is rarely seen in the series except in episodes where she associates with Ella Payne, who helps Janine enter a rehab program and return to the family. Later in the series, she is often criticized by C.J., Curtis, and her own son for her irresponsible actions. She is apparently impregnated by her current boyfriend, until an episode reveals that her boyfriend is sterile. Since C.J. is the only other person she has had intercourse with, she comes to the conclusion that C.J. is the father of the unborn child. C.J. and Janine remarry at Calvin and Miranda's wedding. Her water also unexpectedly broke, and she gave birth to twins named Hayden and Jayden Payne, a boy and a girl. Her parents are Larry and Liz Shelton.

• Calvin Payne (Lance Gross) is Ella and Curtis's college-age son who rarely attends college classes (the same ones Curtis often complains about paying for). He is also the program's third protagonist. Calvin likes to think of himself as a player until his marriage to Miranda. Much like his cousin C.J., Calvin spends a great deal of time working with his father at the firehouse until he becomes a partner at the barber shop. In Season 5, he gets a job working for the same company as Mercedes. Mercedes accidentally kisses him twice. The first time Mercedes kisses him is while the two were chaperoning a date between Malik and Alexandra. The second time is after a fight with Miranda. He finds out that his former girlfriend Tracy and him have a child together (but this will not be certain until a DNA test is done). He and Miranda are expecting a child when she decides for now to become separated. But then he and she go to a divorce mediator and gets stuck in the elevator. They solve their problems along with a little help from an "elevator lady" Edi who turned out to be the counselor Dr. Marcos at the marriage retreat. He is the only main character originally not included in the show.

• Miranda Payne (Formerly Miranda Lucas) (Keshia Knight Pulliam) is Calvin's girlfriend-turned-wife. She was first introduced in the 1st season as a sexy con artist who stole all of Calvin and Curtis' money for an art gallery. The character returned eventually, but what she did to Calvin and Curtis is only mentioned every so often but is very brief. In the conclusion to Season 4, she married Calvin. Miranda has a nephew that was very troubled that didn't listen to anything Calvin told him (He even ordered Calvin around) when he was keeping him. She and Calvin began to have problems in season 5. In the beginning of season 6, Miranda runs away, making Calvin nervous about her disappearnce along with her mother and Payne family. A couple of episodes later, Miranda says there no baby making, Calvin believe she had an abortion. Unfortunately, she didn't. She is actually thinking about giving the baby up for adoption. Then, while all three couples (C.J and Janine, Curtis and Ella, Calvin and Miranda) go to a marriage retreat, Miranda asks Calvin for a divorce. But when she and Calvin go to a divorce mediator and get stuck in an elevator, they solve their problems.

• Malik Payne (Larramie "Doc" Shaw) is C.J. and Janine's son. He is a teenage boy whose interest in young women in his class is so extreme that he'll resort to desperate measures, such as trying out for the cheerleading squad, just to associate with them. He is often bullied in school as a result of his mother's past problems with drugs. As a result, he is reluctant to welcome her back to the household. When his family moves to Chicago he stays with Ella and Curtis because if he leaves school he will have to repeat the same grade.

• Jazmine Payne (China Anne McClain) is C.J. and Janine's daughter. She was the youngest in the household before Janine gave birth to twins, Hayden and Jayden. She constantly feels invisible and acts out to get her father's attention while her mother is in rehab, Jazmine even at one point had a love crush on Malik's best friend Kevin but got over him. Despite her apparent innocence and youth, throughout the series she was known to be cruel toward her brother and his friend Kevin and devises schemes just to make them miserable. She is also known to have sarcastic comments and sly plans to get what she wants. She was written out of the series when she goes off to school in North Carolina at the beginning of Season 5. She returned for Season 6.

• Claretha Jenkins (Denise Burse) is the Payne's former next door neighbor and Ella's best friend. Curtis constantly makes jokes about her annoyance at his presence. Claretha is a big gossiper, and always finds out what goes on with the Payne family. She even rats out the family business to the media in a crime misconception. She left at the Beginning of Season 5 after marrying a Prince. She returns for season 6 after she suddenly leaves the Prince because he wasn't really a prince and she now goes out with Floyd.

The Barbershop; Seasons 2-present

• Floyd Jackson (Palmer Williams, Jr) is the self absorbed, proud owner of the Barber Shop. He shows little affection towards individual people, but in times of great need will come out and show affection. His first wife disappeared on him, causing him to think she was dead so he remarried. Then the first wife came back looking for a divorce. Unfortunately when he did sign the divorce papers, it turned out she'd written a book, and since he's divorced from her he gets nothing. In season 6 Floyd comes back living with Curtis and Ella and surprisingly he goes out with Claretha.

• Kiki (Bobbi Baker) is a barber at the Barber Shop. She isn't afraid to ask questions that others are thinking and is very abrupt with matters. In Season 5, she helped hire her brother, He turned out to be a drug dealer and was dealing drugs in the Barber Shop. She finds out in a later episode that he was shot.

• Dana Carter (Denyce Lawton) does nails at the Barber Shop. She has her own stand next to the door in which she works. She is usually seen working with clients, usually making them mad with them storming off and her not knowing what she said to make them mad. In one episode her parents came by for a visit, thinking she was a doctor just on vacation. She is half-African American/Korean.

• Zack (Gary Owen) is the white barber at the barbershop that replaced Delante. He is a nice guy but he has trouble fitting in with black people but they still like him regardless. It was revealed that he had a date with Kiki prior to working at the barber shop. He is now interested in Floyd's daughter Olivia. He is somewhat similar to Isaac Rosenberg (Troy Garity) in the films Barbershop and Barbershop 2: Back in Business.

Recurring

• Larry and Liz Shelton (Dorian Harewood and Anne-Marie Johnson) are Janine's parents and have so far appeared in 4 episodes of the series. Curtis hates their visits. They are upper-class and at times appear snobbish towards the Payne family. Upon their first appearance, Claretha identifies Janine's father as a "dancer" known as Dimples, though no one believes her. Liz comes off as judgmental. Her relationship with her daughter is usually tested. In a Season 3 episode she stays with the Paynes after being kicked out her house, in which she starts annoying everyone, mostly Curtis and Janine. In another episode after Janine gives birth to the twins, she constantly criticizes Janine's parenting skills, even going as far to try and change their names. When Janine finally confronts her, Liz reveals that her mother was the same way with her.
• The Hernandez Family the Hispanic new neighbors of the Paynes that may have their own family problems, mostly with the oldest son, Diego. Malik becomes interested in the youngest daughter Alex, and Calvin accidentally kisses the oldest, Mercedes, and kept it as a secret from Miranda until Diego revealed the truth. They had not been seen or mentioned since Season 5.

Past characters

The Firehouse; Seasons 1-4

• Keenan Jared (Cedric Pendleton) was a co-worker of Curtis, C.J., Bart, and Angel at the engine 5 company firehouse. Keenan was married to Kim, who is shown to be mean to Keenan and everyone at the firehouse. She always had a tendency to make fun of Keenan because she wore the pants in the relationship. Kim eventually cheated on Keenan and he said she hadn't came back home since. The character has not been seen or mentioned since Season 4.
• Bart Holmes (Bart Hansard) was a 30-35 year old co-worker of Curtis, C.J., Calvin, Keenan and Angel at the Atlanta Fire Department engine company 5 firehouse. Bart is a dimwitted fool who still lived with his mother. His mother had never been seen on-screen, but she was known to bring food to the firehouse. It could have been assumed that Bart had never really had a girlfriend in his life. The character has not been seen or mentioned since Season 4.
• Angel (Joyce Giraud) was the co-worker of Curtis, C.J., Calvin, Keenan, and Bart at the engine 5 company firehouse. Angel is the only female of the firehouse and at times get upset with the guys for being inconsiderate of that fact. At one point she got so upset that she thinks about switching to another engine company. Angel and Calvin had a tendency to argue all the time according to Calvin it was because she loved him. When Angel was upset she usually began to speak Spanish. Angel was also known as the best firefighter as evidenced by her several awards and medals. When the guys first meet her they assumed she was going to be a man and threw water on her as a joke. The character has not been seen or mentioned since Season 4.

The Barbershop; Seasons 2-present

• Delante (Jason Dirden) used to cut hair at the barbershop. He was also one of Calvin's friends. In later episodes, Delante lived in the barbershop until Floyd found him and invited him to live with him. He had a brief relationship with Dana, but the relationship is no longer mentioned after one episode. He got married to some girl he met at the skating rink and moves away to Arizona at the beginning of season 5. He has not been seen since.

Setting

Locations in Atlanta, Georgia include the Payne's home, a firehouse located across the street from Curtis' house, a barbershop, and the school Malik and Jazmine attend. The Payne home is a one-story building, and 5 rooms are featured throughout the series: Curtis and Ella's bedroom, Malik and Jazmine's shared bedroom, the spare bedroom (which was Calvin's until he moved out), the kitchen, and the living room, and the outside patio. C.J. and Janine's rooms are never seen. The only part of the firehouse seen on camera was its day room. The firehouse and its characters have not appeared on any recent episodes. The barbershop is a setting often used in more recent episodes, and it is similar to that of the Barbershop movies.

Cast

Current cast members

• Allen Payne as Clarence James "C.J." Payne, Jr.
• LaVan Davis as Curtis "Pops" Payne
• Cassi Davis as Ella Thompson-Payne
• Demetria McKinney as Janine Shelton-Payne
• Lance Gross as Calvin Payne
• Larramie "Doc" Shaw as Malik Payne
• Keshia Knight Pulliam as Miranda Lucas-Payne (Seasons 3 - present)
• China Anne McClain as Jazmine Payne (Seasons 1 - 4, 6 - present)
• Denise Burse as Claretha Jenkins (Seasons 1 - 5, 6 - present)

Other cast

• Keke Palmer as Nikki Grady-Simmons (Season 1)
• Eva Pigford as Tracie (Seasons 1-2 and Season 5)
• Bart Hansard as Bart Holmes (Seasons 1-4)
• Denyce Lawton as Dana Carter
• Cedric Pendleton as Keenan Jared (Seasons 1-4)
• Bobbi Baker as KiKi
• Arvell Poe as Fishbone (Season 1)
• Clayton English as Peanut
• Quincy Bonds as Pookie
• Jamie Moore as Walter (Season 1)
• Jason Dirden as Delante (Seasons 3-4)
• Joyce Giraud as Angel (Seasons 1-4)
• Wilbur Fitzgerald as Bill (Season 1)
• Dorian Harewood as Larry Shelton (Seasons 1, 3, and 5)
• Anne-Marie Johnson as Liz Shelton (Seasons 1, 3, and 5)
• Kyre Batiste-Loftin as Kevin
• Michael Jai White as Bryan (Seasons 3)
• Dale Neal as Kyle (Seasons 1-2)
• Palmer Williams Jr. as Floyd Jackson
• Robin Givens as Tanya (Seasons 3-4)
• Robinne Lee as Nicole Jamieson (Seasons 1-2)
• Katie Rowlett as Beverly (Season 1)
• Rochelle Aytes as Nicole Jamieson (Pilot Run in 2006)
• Demille Cole-Heard as Calvin Jr. (Season 4)
• Femi Emiola as Sheila (Season 3)
• Marlene Forte as Rosalita Hernandez (Season 5 - present; supporting)
• Mel Rodriguez as Carlos Hernandez (Season 5 - present; supporting)
• Renee Victor as Consuela Hernandez (Season 5 - present; recurring)
• Susie Castillo as Mercedes Hernandez (Season 5 - present; supporting)
• J.R. Ramirez as Diego Hernandez (Season 5 - present; supporting)
• Veronica Sixtos as Alexandra Hernandez (Season 5 - present; supporting)
• Roberto Roman as Andy Rodriguez (Season 5)
• Boris Kodjoe as David (Season 5)
• Aloma Wright as Eunice (Season 5)
• Gladys Knight as Herself (Season 5)
• Valarie Pettiford as Sandra Lucas (Seasons 4, 5, & 6)
• Wendell Pierce as Jeffrey Lucas (Seasons 4 and 5)

Special appearances

• Tyler Perry as Mabel "Madea" Simmons (Seasons 1-3)
• Tamela Mann as Cora Simmons (Season 1 and 6)
• David Mann as Mr. Leroy Brown (Season 1 and 6)
• Lamman Rucker as Will Brown (Season 1)
• Gladys Knight as Herself (Season 5)
• Boris Kodjoe as David (Season 5)
• Christian and Caitlin Beadles as Kids in Hospital Lobby (Season 6)

Actors who worked with Perry

Many of the actors in the main cast have been affiliated with or worked with Tyler Perry in the past. LaVan Davis and Cassi Davis appeared in the stage play Madea Goes to Jail together; Cassi also appeared in the play Diary of a Mad Black Woman. Demetria McKinney appeared in the plays Meet the Browns and Why Did I Get Married? (the latter also featured LaVan Davis) and had a non-speaking role on Daddy's Little Girls. Cassi Davis was featured in the films Madea's Family Reunion and Daddy's Little Girls. China Anne McClain began working as an extra on the film version of Madea's Family Reunion before being cast in Daddy's Little Girls alongside her real-life sisters. Actress Keke Palmer played a role in the show's first episode. Keke Palmer appeared in Tyler Perry's movie Madea's Family Reunion. Keshia Knight Pulliam appeared in the film Madea Goes to Jail. Lance Gross starred in the film version of Meet the Browns.

Syndicated reruns

• The CW Television Network began airing reruns of Tyler Perry's House of Payne on its CW Plus stations on September 22, 2008.
• My Network TV, a branch of the Fox Network, has begun airing reruns of the series in some cities as well.
• Peachtree TV, a branch of TBS, has also begun airing syndication of House of Payne

NOTE: House of Payne was actually the only situation comedy to be sold into broadcast syndication for the 2008-2009 television season.

Episodes

Main article: List of Tyler Perry's House of Payne episodes

Madea connections

Tyler Perry's claim to fame is with the popularity of character Mabel "Madea" Simmons, who has appeared in numerous Tyler Perry plays and their film adaptations. When the series debuted on TBS in June 2007, Perry made a guest appearance as Madea. Actor David Mann reprised his Mr. Brown role, and Keke Palmer returned as Nikki, a bully who stole $20 worth of Malik's lunch money over a period of time, money which Madea, Nikki's foster mother, used at a casino. Perry returned as Madea for a Christmas episode of the show on December 5, 2007. Perry again returned as Madea to act as Curtis's wife on March 5, 2008. She has appeared in one episode every season, save seasons 4 and 5.

In the series, Janine's drug problem and going to rehab are possible references to Diary of a Mad Black Woman. The events of the episodes "Sad, Sad, Leroy Brown" parts 1 and 2 came directly before the movie Meet the Browns, when Brown learns his father has died. The events of the episode "Weeping May Endure for a Night" happened somewhere in the middle, directly after the funeral and the reading of the will, where Brown found out that his father left him a broken-down house which Brown turned into a retirement home. Even though in the episode "Weeping May Endure for a Night" the Paynes claim to have attended the funeral of Brown's father, in Meet the Browns they are nowhere to be seen. This may be because Lance Gross, who plays Calvin Payne in the series, plays a character named Michael in the film and LaVan Davis, who plays Curtis Payne, plays a bus driver. Curtis claimed Brown made them wait in the cemetery for two hours while he gave his father a tour of Atlanta (his last request), but in the movie, Brown stayed the entire time.

Meet the Browns crossovers

There have been crossovers on House of Payne from Meet the Browns:

• In the episode "I Can Cry If I Want To", Brown attended Curtis's 50th birthday party and stresses the Paynes out while he is there.

• In the episode "Sad, Sad, Leroy Brown (Part 1)", when Brown's house burnt down and he gets kicked out of Cora's best friend's house. He stays at the Paynes' residence, much to Curtis's dismay and soon becomes a pestering houseguest.
  • In the episode "Sad, Sad, Leroy Brown (Part 2)", when the Paynes tries to kick Brown out of the house, Brown claimed that Curtis broke his back, but Curtis knows the truth that Brown's back was not in pain, and he only faked it to get the Paynes to let him stay with them. However, Ella believes Brown and insisted on him staying with them until his back gets better.

• In the episode "Weeping May Endure for a Night", Brown, Cora, and Will come by the Paynes' residence after Pop Brown's funeral. Brown is upset because Pop Brown left him a run-down house which makes Brown think his daddy hates him until he realizes that Pop Brown wanted him to open up a retirement home.

• In the episode "Oh Christmas Payne", Brown and Cora drop in for a visit.

DVD releases

DVD Title	Ep #	Release Date	Blu-ray Disc
Tyler Perry's House of Payne Volume 1	1-20	December 4, 2007
Tyler Perry's House of Payne Volume 2	21-40	July 1, 2008
Tyler Perry's House of Payne Volume 3	41-60	January 13, 2009
Tyler Perry's House of Payne Volume 4	61-80	June 16, 2009
Tyler Perry's House of Payne Volume 5	81-100	January 12, 2010
Tyler Perry's House of Payne Volume 6	101-126	TBA
Tyler Perry's House of Payne Volume 7	127-146	TBA

All seasons are expected to be released on Blu-ray Disc in the near future.

External links

• Tyler Perry's House of Payne at IMDb
• Template:Tv.com