Iva La'Shawn Movies

Comedian Damon Wayans was so determined to get his "no holds barred" sketch-comedy series The Underground on the air that he financed the pilot episode with $600,000 of his own money. Declaring that he'd felt hampered by censorship strictures imposed upon by his earlier Fox series In Living Color, Wayans promised that his new show would break completely free from the shackles of the over-the-air network "standard practices." Opening each episode with the disclaimer "WARNING: Seriously Funny Shit", the star offered wildly scattershot spoofs of other TV series ("Iraq's Funniest Home Videos") and various forms of popular culture ("The Real Vagina Monologues"), as well as pointed barbs at the urban-culture crowd who'd embraced his own work (one recurring character was "Hypocrip", a foul-mouthed rap artist who lived in the suburbs). The talented stock company--many of whom doubled as staff writers-- included Wayans' own son Damon Wayans Jr., standup comedienne/talk show emcee Gabrielle Dennis, and MAD TV alumnus Aries Spiers, while Wayans' brother Dwayne Wayans suppled the original music. Also known as D. Underground and The Wayans Underground, the series made its Showtime cable bow on September 14, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi