Shirley the Waitress Had New Career as Mrs Colonel Sanders

 

Courtesy of Reelblack One

Long before Mary J sang about finger lickin' good chicken, there was another Black female star who took a stab at it but knew she looked silly. Since I didn't get cable until I was grown, I had no idea that the late Ms. Shirley Hemphill had a cable comedy show. Personally, I don't know what's funnier - the fact that Colonel Sanders was rumored to be a racist (snopes.com) or that Shirley, in real life, wasn't thinking about any man that couldn't pay her.

I think had she come along about 25 years later, Miss Hemphill would've had a helluva career in comedy that would've gone beyond a few guest spots in Martin or CB4 (1993). While I'm always happy when newcomers give dap to old schoolers, her presence always has a special place in my heart.

What was your favorite Shirley episode from What's Happening? Mine was Shirley's Date because decades later, when I was on bedrest, I ran across the episode on YouTube. The comments made me wet my drawers and then I thought about it...'Why would a dude in a suit come to the hood for a date with a waitress who ain't topless? And take her to a teen house party before there was a House Party?' Anyway, thanks to all for making me laugh before having to change underwear.

Former Prince Guitarist Needs Your Help

Before Purple Rain and The Revolution, the fancy suits and hairdos, a young Prince Rogers Nelson -  donning anything from gold spandex to a trench coat with leg warmers - could be seen on several music programs like Don Kirschner's Rock Concert and Midnight Special. On his left was a sometimes spiky-haired guitarist Dez Dickerson, whose attire was a mashup of New Wave/thrift store chic, playing his.  When you saw bassist Andre Cymone to his right, you knew the string solo would rival that of Ernie Isley and the late Jimi Hendrix.

In the song "1999",  Dickerson sang the most memorable line - "Life is just a party and parties weren't meant to last". Also, his guitar solo on Little Red Corvette (1983) was named in Guitar World's Top 100 that same year. That would be one of his last recordings with The Purple One. Yup, how time flies.

Shortly after, he was replaced by Wendy Melvoin, who would go on to write movie and TV scores with former keyboardist Lisa Coleman. While Dickerson made a brief musical appearance in Purple Rain, he's been mostly behind the music scenes. At one point, he found his musical home in the Christian genre, where he was an A&R person for Starsong Communications. He also ran his own Christian rock label, Absolute Records.

He also wrote a book which was a personal account of his time with Prince, which officially ended in 1983. Since his departure, he's remained active in the music scene and kept a fairly low profile. When asked by journalists about his last conversation with Prince before his untimely passing, Dickerson wasn't about that life.

Today, he's suffering from a few ailments but has not yet publicly disclosed what or his reason for a Go Fund Me campaign. Reddit posters had some interesting takes on the subject, including money Dickerson rightfully deserved during Prince's peak musical period. Before his health took a turn, he also worked as a host for a Tennessee radio station.