Why 'Everybody Hates Chris.' Not!

A funny thing happened to comedian Chris Rock when he was a teenager in New York City. In fact, there were a lot of funny things.

And now he's going to show them to the rest of the country in his new, autobiographical sit-com, "Everybody Hates Chris." As he told The Early Show co-anchor Julie Chen, it's a lot easier to laugh now, than it was back then.

A video clip of the show finds young Chris walking down the hallway at school, Corleone Junior High in the fiercely Italian neighborhood of South Shore. Narrating the event Rock says, "My mother thought going to a white school meant I would get a better education and I would be safe. WRONG!"

The funny-man only narrates the story of his childhood, apparently believing it's better to be heard and not seen. Rock's teenage alter ego is played by Tyler James Williams.

What made Tyler right for the role of Chris Rock? "Uh, I think that, you know, we did a massive search throughout the country and, and the world," Rock answers. "We finally were at Angelina Jolie's house. And Tyler was back there just making gumbo. And, gumbo was good. Hey, kid looks like he could do it."

As for Tyler, he says his character is just like any other 13-year-old kid. "You get your bike stolen; you have kids picking on you," Tyler explains.

Uprooted to a new neighborhood and bussed into a predominantly white middle school two hours away by his strict, hard-working parents, Chris struggles to find his place while keeping his two younger siblings in line at home and surmounting the challenges of junior high. A scene finds Tyler confronting a white kid. The narrator says, "Now, I couldn't beat him, but I thought maybe I could out-BLACK him.
White boy: "What?"
Young Chris: "Did I stutter?"
White boy: "Do you know who I am?"
Young Chris: "You step on my shoe again, I'm gonna tell you who I am."

Rock agrees a lot of people wouldn't necessarily put a family sitcom next to his name. "I guess I'm an edgy comedian. I mean, people say it. But, I grew up in a two-parent household and a house with lots of love, and all the normal things that make a good family sitcom. I'm older. And as I get older, I'm not on the MTV Awards anymore. I'm on the Oscars. Different things are happening in my life. And this is one of the more mature things I'll be doing," Rock explains.

He does much more than provide the show's narration. Rock also provides the writers with the inspiration for plot lines, which involve some not-so-happy memories of growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., during the early 1980s.

"We're making them funny," Rock notes. "Me getting chased by an angry mob of white kids with bats wasn't funny at the time. It's like, oh man, I can't wait to write a joke about this."

Critics are already predicting that "Everybody Hates Chris" will be one of the fall's breakout hits. So the young man who plays Chris Rock might soon be as famous as Rock himself. And when asked, Tyler says he is ready for major stardom.

Rock's words of advice for Tyler? "Sign your own checks. That's it. You heard it early."

Touching his head, Tyler says, "Mental note."

"Everybody Hates Chris" is groundbreaking in many ways. But it still follows a time-honored sitcom tradition, portraying a loving family that always sticks together.

"That's my younger brother Drew," Rock narrates, introducing a younger member of his family. "There's nothing worse than having a little brother who's bigger than you."

Some people are calling his show "Wonder Years" with more edge. Asked if that would be accurate, Rock says, "That's a guy narrating his childhood, so I can't sit here and go, we're nothing like that show. To me, it's more like a 'Malcolm X in the Middle.' How's that?"

"Malcom X in the Middle," now that might have been a good name for the show. And no, the name "Everybody Hates Chris" is not just a play on "Everybody Loves Raymond." Rock and his creative team were just brainstorming and that was the name that stuck. "Everybody Hates Chris" premieres Thursday night on your local UPN station.

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