Tyler Perry
Tyler Perry (born 13 September 1969 in New Orleans) is an African American playwright and actor, whose work plays primarily to African American audiences. Having started writing plays at age 18, Perry created a successful touring theater company, videos of whose performances were sold on DVD. As of March 2005, the plays had grossed over $75 million in ticket and DVD sales. His third film, Diary of a Mad Black Woman, became an unexpected hit, prompting widespread discussion among industry watchers about whether middle-class African Americans were simply not being addressed by mainstream Hollywood movies.
The name of his running character Madea (a female character played by Perry himself) comes from a Southern African American contraction of the words "mother dear".
Filmography
- Madea's Family Reunion (2002)
- Madea's Class Reunion (2003)
- Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005)