HBO Max acquires ‘Martin,’ ‘Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper,’ other Black series
Five '90's Warner Bros. sitcoms, including 'Martin' and 'The Jamie Foxx Show' are hitting the streaming service.
A slate of beloved 1990s Black sitcoms hit HBO Max Monday.
The streamer acquired five Warner Bros. shows: Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper, In the House, The Jamie Foxx Show, Martin, and The Parent ’Hood. It will also stream the second season of OWN drama series, David Makes Man.
Martin, the smash vehicle for comedian/actor Martin Lawrence, originally premiered on Fox and followed the lives and follies of Martin Payne, a rambunctious talk radio host, his girlfriend-turned-wife Gina (Tisha Campbell), her best friend Pam (Tichina Arnold) and friends Tommy (the late Thomas Mikal Ford) and Cole (Carl Anthony Payne II).
In the House starred rapper LL Cool J in his first television series as an ex-NFL player forced to share his home with a divorcee, played by Debbie Allen, and her two children. The series aired on NBC and UPN from 1995 to 1999. Its executive producers included Quincy Jones and David E. Salzman, the same duo behind another hit show featuring a rapper in the lead role, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
The Jamie Foxx Show featured its future Oscar-winning namesake as a struggling singer working in his aunt and uncle’s fledging hotel as he waited for his big break. Castmates included Garrett Morris and Garcelle Beauvais, and the series was a platform for Foxx to showcase his numerous chops as a comic, singer, and pianist.
The Parent ‘Hood followed the never-dull lives of parents Robert and Jerri Peterson, portraited respectively by actor/comedian/director Robert Townsend and the late Suzzanne Douglas, and varied exploits their four kids, played by Kenny Blank, Reagan Gomez-Preston, Curtis Williams, and Ashli Adams. Townsend also served as executive producer of the series and it ran from 1995 to 1999 on the WB.
Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper was an ABC sitcom about ex-basketball player Mark, played by comedian Mark Curry, as he navigated post-athlete life as a substitute teacher in a local high school, all while entertaining his roommates and family members, played by Holly Robinson-Peete and Raven-Symoné. Robinson-Peete recently revealed the three of them are down for a show reboot, should Warner decide to do so. The original series aired from 1992 to 1997.
In addition to all the Warner Brother series, HBO Max will also be airing the second season of David Makes Man. The show premiered on the OWN Network and won a 2019 Peabody Award.
Season one of the series follows David, a teenage prodigy, played by Akili McDowell, who finds himself code-switching between his life in the projects and his life at a magnet school for gifted kids. Season 2, which aired on OWN this summer, finds David as a grown man and rising businessman, now played by Kwame Patterson. Also starring in the series are Alana Arenas, Travis Coles, and Cayden K. Williams.
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