In Living Color Turns 30!
The hilarious and groundbreaking sketch comedy series, created by Keenen Ivory Wayans, aired from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. The series stood out among the crowd with its diverse cast and brand of comedy. Earning the love of viewers and critical acclaim – even winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series in 1990.
The comedy had some iconic sketches that people still remember today like The Homeboy Shopping Network, Fire Marshall Bill, Men on Film, Homey D. Clown, Benita Buttrell, and some amusing Arsenio Hall parodies! In 2012, most of the original cast reunited for the TV Land Awards where they were honored with the Groundbreaking Show Award.
The show established the comedic powerhouse known as The Wayans family with Keenen, Kim, Damon, Shawn, and Marlon all part of the fun. In Living Color also introduced us to some of today’s biggest stars like Jennifer Lopez, Jamie Foxx, and Jim Carrey! Join us as we take a look at where the major players of In Living Color are today:
Carrie Ann Inaba
Carrie Ann appeared as one of the iconic Fly Girls on In Living Color from 1990 to 1992. After leaving the series she appeared as a featured solo dancer during Madonna’s 1993 Girlie Show World Tour. She would go on to have roles in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and Goldmember. Inaba’s biggest gig to date would probably be as a judge on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars, where she has been since 2005. Recently, she has taken on the role of co-host for CBS’ The Talk.
Jennifer Lopez
Arguably the biggest star to come from In Living Color was Jennifer Lopez, who was a Fly Girl dancer from 1991 until 1993 before leaving to pursue her acting career. Her first lead role came as the titular Selena Quintanilla in the 1997 Selena biopic. From there Lopez would go on to garner an impressive resume of roles, even becoming a two-time Golden Globe nominee. She also dove headfirst in the world of music where she has released 8 studio albums with over 70 million records sold! Lopez would go on to share her knowledge of the entertainment world by acting as a judge on American Idol and World of Dance. Oh, and she just performed at the Super Bowl LIV halftime show along with Shakira and her daughter Emme!
Steve Park
Steve made his In Living Color debut in 1991 during the third season. He would go on to have roles in Snowpiercer, Elementary, and Warrior. His most substantial role would come as Mike Yanagita in the 1996 Academy Award-winning film Fargo. You can see him next in Wes Anderson’s upcoming comedy-drama The French Dispatch.
Shawn Wayans
Shawn started out as In Living Color’s DJ, known as DJ SW-1 before later becoming a featured performer. From 1995 through 1999, he acted alongside brother Marlon on The Wayans Bros. His biggest roles would come as Ray Wilkins in the first two Scary Movie films and Kevin Copeland in White Chicks. Shawn also tried his hand in voice-over work with Thugaboo and Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child. Though, it seems that Shawn has taken a step back from the acting world with his last credited role coming with HBO animated series, Animals, in 2016.
Marlon Wayans
Marlon appeared alongside his siblings during the fourth season of In Living Color. From 1995 until 1999, he co-starred in the WB sitcom The Wayans Bros. with his brother Shawn. Afterward, he would find a great and profitable partnership with his brothers as they wrote and produced several projects including the Scary Movie series, White Chicks, and Little Man. Marlon has continued a steady body of work with G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, The Heat, Fifty Shades of Black, Netflix’s Sextuplets, and his own self-titled sitcom on NBC.
Kim Wayans
Kim was a featured performer on In Living Color for the first four seasons. Her most notable roles include Juwanna Man, Reckless, and the critically acclaimed Pariah. She also co-wrote a series of children’s books entitled Amy Hodgepodge, about a multiracial girl adjusting to life in public school after years of homeschooling. Recently, she has landed a guest spot on Lena Waithe’s BET series, Boomerang.
Kelly Coffield Park
Kelly Coffield was one of In Living Color’s original cast members. The show would not only give her a career boost but also introduce her to husband, Steve Park, who would become a cast member during the third season. Since leaving the series in 1993, Kelly has made appearances in films and series like Bride Wars, Law & Order, The Young and the Restless, and How to Get Away with Murder. She also reunited with fellow In Living Color alum Jim Carrey when she starred in a multi-episode arc on the Showtime dramedy Kidding.
Jamie Foxx
Another notable breakout star from In Living Color is Jamie Foxx, who appeared in seasons 3 – 5. Foxx acted in his own sitcom for five seasons before appearing in noteworthy films like Any Given Sunday, Ali, Dreamgirls, Django Unchained, and Collateral. In 2004, he portrayed Ray Charles in the biopic about the famed musician. His incredible performance would garner him an Oscar, BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild Award, Critics’ Choice Movie Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. Foxx also has had a successful music career with the release of five studio albums and a Grammy! Nowadays, you can catch him along with his daughter, Corinne, on the FOX game show Beat Shazam.
Damon Wayans
Damon worked as a writer and performer on In Living Color from 1990 to 1992 before leaving to pursue his acting career further. He would star in projects like Major Payne and Damon before landing the role of Michael Kyle on the ABC sitcom My Wife and Kids. A role that would earn him a People’s Choice Award. He has authored two books: a fictional novel Red Hats and The New York Times best-selling Bootleg, with co-author David Asbery, which was a humorous compilation of his observations about family. He continued to do stand up until 2015. Most recently, he starred in three seasons of FOX’s Lethal Weapon as Roger Murtagh.
T’Keyah Crystal Keymáh
T’Keyah starred as a main player on In Living Color throughout its five-season run. From 1996 to 2000, she starred as Erica Lucas on Cosby. From there she portrayed Tanya Baxter on the beloved Disney Channel series, That’s So Raven. Afterward, she continued to build on her stage work with Don’t Get Me Started and T’Keyah Live!. Keymáh self-published two books: Some of My Best Friends: A Collection of Characters and Natural Woman / Natural Hair: A Hair Journey. A number of voice over roles are on her resume with Teen Titans, Batman Beyond, and American Dragon: Jake Long. In 2016, she starred in Syfy’s Sharknado: The 4th Awakens and made an appearance in Showtime’s Kidding in 2018.
David Alan Grier
As one of the most popular cast members, Grier starred in all five seasons of In Living Color. He has continued to rack up an impressive amount of roles on his resume. Projects like Jumanji, Life with Bonnie, Bones, The Carmichael Show, and The Resident. He has been a frequent guest star on the Comedy Central series Crank Yankers. He also competed in the eighth season of Dancing with the Stars. David returned to his Broadway roots as the Cowardly Lion in NBC’s live performance of The Wiz and in January of this year, he returned to the stage for the Broadway production of A Soldier’s Play. Recently, Grier starred as Hank in the too-soon-canceled The Cool Kids. And will be starring as the titular Clifford in 2020’s Clifford the Big Red Dog.
Tommy Davidson
Davidson starred in 125 episodes over five seasons of In Living Color. Since the end of the series, he has had roles in projects like Between Brothers and Black Dynamite. Tommy has also had several stand up comedy specials over the years. His most steady work came as Oscar Proud in the Disney Channel animated series, The Proud Family, which will be returning with new episodes on Disney Plus soon.
Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey’s career took off after appearing as a main player for the entire run of In Living Color. He has starred in some of the most iconic – and hilarious – movies of the 90s and 2000s. Films like Batman Forever, Dumb & Dumber, The Mask, and the Ace Ventura series. His work in The Truman Show, Man on the Moon, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind earned critical acclaim even leading to two Golden Globe awards and a BAFTA nomination. In 2013, he self-published a children’s book titled How Roland Rolls. Since 2017, the actor has worked with Showtime on the series I’m Dying Up Here and Kidding.
Keenen Ivory Wayans
Without Keenen, there would be no In Living Color. He created, wrote, starred, and hosted the series. From 1997 to 1998, he hosted his own talk show The Keenen Ivory Wayans Show. He was also a judge for the eighth season of Last Comic Standing. Though he has popped up in shows like Happily Divorced and Real Husbands of Hollywood, his work has been primarily behind the scenes. He has served as writer, producer and/or director on several projects like Dance Flick, Little Man, and White Chicks. His film Scary Movie (2000) was the highest-grossing movie directed by an African-American until 2005!