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Rusty Cundieff

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Rusty Cundieff
Born(1960-12-13)December 13, 1960(age 63)
Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania,United States
Occupation(s)Actor, film director, producer, writer

George Arthur "Rusty" Cundieff(born December 13, 1960) is an American film and television director, actor, and writer known for his work onFear of a Black Hat(1993),Tales from the Hood(1995), andChappelle's Show(2003–2006).[1]

Biography

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Cundieff was born inPittsburgh, Pennsylvaniato Christina and John A. Cundieff.[2]He studied journalism atLoyola Universityin New Orleans and the philosophy of religion at theUniversity of Southern California.[1]While at USC, Cundieff became a member ofAlpha Phi Alpha,a historically African American fraternity.[3]

He is married to Trina Davis Cundieff, with whom he has two children: Simone Christina and Thelonious Jon Davis.[4]

Film career

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After graduating from USC in 1982, Cundieff performed stand-up comedy in Los Angeles while looking for opportunities to act.[1]His first major role was a year-long run as Theo Carver onDays of Our Livesin 1985.[1]In 1988, he played Big Brother Chucky inSpike Lee'sSchool Daze.[5]Cundieff was inspired by his experience working with Lee on the film to pursue writing and directing in addition to acting, and at age 29 he wrote, directed, and starred in the well-received 1993 rap parodyFear of a Black Hat.[6]

He directed and co-wrote the 1995 horror anthologyTales from the Hood.He directed sequels in 2018 and 2020,Tales from the Hood 2andTales from the Hood 3,projects that he said he had been trying to make for 20 years, but that the success ofGet Outhad opened the door for.[7]

Cundieff was also a correspondent onMichael Moore's comic TV magazine showTV Nationin the mid-1990s.[8]

In 2013, along with 12 others he received aRazzie Award for Worst Directorfor directing a segment in the anthology comedy filmMovie 43.

Filmography

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Actor

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Film credits
Year Film Role Notes
1984 Welcome to the Fun Zone Host TV movie
1986 3:15 M-16's
1987 Hollywood Shuffle Audition Actor / Slave #1 / Zombie Pimp
1988 School Daze Big Brother Chucky
1992 Eddie Presley Guard
1993 Fear of a Black Hat Ice Cold Also writer and director.
1995 Tales from the Hood Richard Also writer and director.
1997 Sprung Montel Also writer and director.
2003 The Devon Taylor Show Ice Cold TV movie
2018 Tales from the Hood 2 Press Conference Reporter Also writer and director.
Television credits
Year Show Role Notes
1985 Days of Our Lives Theo Carver
1985 What's Happening Now! J.B. Whitney 1 episode
1985 MacGruder and Loud Perry 1 episode
1990 thirtysomething Student #5 1 episode
2003 Chappelle's Show Ystur Feidnuc D.D.S. / Richard Pryor 2 episodes

Director

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Film and television director
Year Film Notes
1993 Fear of a Black Hat
1995 Tales from the Hood
1996 Clueless 1 episode
1997 Sprung
2000 The New Adventures of Spin and Marty: Suspect Behavior TV movie
2005 Bitch House
2006 The Bernie Mac Show 1 episode
2006 So Notorious 1 episode
2003-2006 Chappelle's Show 25 episodes
2006 The Brandon T. Jackson Show TV movie
2006 Campus Ladies 1 episode
2007 Human Giant 3 episodes
2008 Somebodies 4 episodes
2008 Chocolate News Segment director, 12 episodes
2009-2010 The Wanda Sykes Show Segment director, 21 episodes
2013 Movie 43 Segment director, "Victory's Glory"
2013 Second Generation Wayans 3 episodes
2013 The Devon Taylor Show TV movie
2013 The Hustle 2 episodes
2018 Tales from the Hood 2 director
2020 Tales from the Hood 3 director
2023 57 Seconds director

References

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  1. ^abcdDonalson, Melvin (2010).Black Directors in Hollywood.University of Texas Press. pp.261.ISBN978-0-292-70179-3.
  2. ^"Rusty Cundieff: Biography".IMDB.Retrieved1 March2015.
  3. ^Parks, Gregory (2011).Alpha Phi Alpha: A Legacy of Greatness, The Demands of Transcendence.The University Press of Kentucky. p. 364.ISBN978-0813134215.
  4. ^"Marriages, Births, and Deaths".USC Trojan Family Magazine.University of Southern California. Spring 2004. Archived fromthe originalon 2 April 2015.Retrieved1 March2015.
  5. ^"Rusty Cundieff: Filmography".IMDB.Retrieved1 March2015.
  6. ^Levine, Robert (2 June 1994)."Meet the Ice Cold King of Gagsta Rap: Rusty Cundieff's 'Fear of a Black Hat' Was Inspired by 'Spinal Tap'".Los Angeles Times.Retrieved1 March2015.
  7. ^Kohn, Eric (13 July 2018)."'Tales From the Hood' Director Rusty Cundieff: Why It Took 20 Years to Make a Sequel to His Black Horror Anthology ".IndieWire.Retrieved10 October2020.
  8. ^"TV Nation Episodes".tvguide.com.Retrieved21 October2018.
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