George Lopez

by Al CampbellComedian George Lopez was born on April 23, 1961. A native of Los Angeles, he grew up in San Fernando Valley's Mission Hills, experiencing an economically poor upbringing. The majority of his standup comedy is based specifically on his childhood and the unique characterization of his Hispanic relatives, particularly his grandmother who raised him. His depictions struck a universal chord with his audience not unlike that of his hero Richard Pryor's Mudbone character. After years of struggling as a standup comic, Lopez finally released his first album, Alien Nation, in 1996 and with it his rise to superstardom began. Within five years he had landed his own weekly ABC-TV series, The George Lopez Show, where he is co-creator (with actress Sandra Bullock), writer, producer, and star. Between taping episodes of the TV show, he recorded his next CD, Right Now Right Now, in 2001, followed in 2003 by Team Leader, which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album. The following year Lopez taped his immensely popular Showtime concert Why You Crying? and released his autobiography of the same name. In April of 2005, after Lopez dealt with the life-threatening experience of having a kidney transplant (the donor was his wife, Ann), he bounced back with a wide variety of projects, including the 2006 CD release El Mas Chingon. The disc was recorded live at the Ice House in Pasadena, CA, where he had also recorded Team Leader three years prior. His 2007 album America's Mexican featured material from his HBO special of the same name.