Aries Spears
(born April 3, 1975) is an American actor and comedian. Spears is best known as one of the actors on FOX's sketch comedy series MADtv
.
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ARIES SPEARS TICKETS
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| Aries Spears Tickets 11/29 | Nov 29, 2024
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Early life
Aries Spears was born in
Chicago, Illinois, Spears moved to New Jersey at the age of 11 and attended Arthur M. Judd Elementary School. He became a comedian at the age of 14 doing stand up in various comedy clubs in New York City. Aries was expelled during his
sophomore year in
North Brunswick Township High School in
North Brunswick Township , at age 17.
[1] Spears started doing his own comedy routine around his hometown. Spears' first television appearance was on
Russell Simmons'
Def Comedy Jam,
followed by
It's Showtime at the Apollo
(1987).
Career
Early film and TV roles
Spears moved to
Los Angeles in 1992, landed a recurring role on
A Different World
(1987) and became a regular at
The Comedy Store,
The Improv and
The Laugh Factory. His additional television credits include
Crosstown Traffic
,
The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.
(1993) and
Soul Train
.
By the age of 17, he landed a part in the movie
Malcolm X
. Shortly thereafter, Spears was cast in a starring role opposite
Glenn Frey in
South of Sunset
(1993). Spears' other movies included
Home of Angels (1994), starring
Abe Vigoda,
Sherman Hemsley and
Joe Frazier. Spears also appeared in
The Pest
(1997) opposite
John Leguizamo,
Jerry Maguire
where he played Teepee, brother of Rod Tidwell (1996), and
Out-of-Sync
(1995).
MADtv
Aries Spears joined the cast of
MADtv
during its 3rd season in 1997, and left at the end of its 10th season in 2005, for a total of 8 seasons. During his stay, he created characters such as comedienne Belma Buttons (co-host of fictional
BET show "Reality Check"), Dollar Bill Montgomery (a host of an urban parody of
Politically Incorrect
called "
Real **********ing Talk with Dollar Bill Montgomery"),
James Brown Jr. (co-host of
Cabana Chat
), and controversial rapper
Emcee Esher. He is well known for his impressions of
African American celebrities, political figures, athletes,
rappers,
R&B singers, and reporters including
DMX,
Bill Cosby,
Eddie Murphy,
Mike Tyson,
Evander Hollyfield,
Kobe Bryant,
Shaquille O'Neal,
Michael Jackson,
Bobby Brown,
Jay-Z,
LL Cool J,
Jesse Jackson,
Magic Johnson,
Wayne Brady,
Martin Lawrence,
Denzel Washington,
Sisqo,
50 Cent,
Kevin Eubanks,
Queen Latifah,
Malcolm X, and
Danny Glover (as
Roger Murtaugh from
Lethal Weapon).
Post-MADtv
Spears recently appeared on a season 2 episode of
Mind of Mencia
, which parodied
Jamie Foxx's role in
Kanye West's music video for "
Gold Digger." He also appeared in the 2006 movie
Hood of Horror.
Spears can also be found in the TV series
The Underground
as well as the role of
Wizard Kelly in
The Proud Family.
Spears has recently been on the
Covino and Rich
radio talk show, and has criticized
rapper Soulja Boy Tell 'Em. Spears challenged Soulja Boy Tell 'Em to a rap battle, claiming he will win easily.
Spears appeared in 2 episodes of
Frank TV
as
Shaquille O'Neal.
In 2005 Spears was involved in an incident at a south Florida radio station.
Spears, apparently unhappy with his appearance, returned to the studio and threatened popular radio DJ's Paul Castronovo and Young Ron Brewer with violence on the air. Despite an outcry from a huge group of south floridians, he was never charged with a crime and remains a free man to this day.
Filmography
- Hood of Horror
(2006)
- Love Chronicles
(2003)
- Josie and the Pussycats
(2001)
- The Pest
(1997)
- Jerry Maguire
(1996)
References
- Gadino, for fighting Dylan P. "Sketching up with Aries Spears", ''Punchline magazine''. Accessed October 10, 2007. 'His family – his mother, Doris Spears is a renowned jazz singer – moved to New Jersey where he eventually dropped out of North Brunswick Township High School when he was 17."