Television

How The Great Paul Benjamin Inspires Me

PaulBenjamin_HiI’m a big fan of the great Paul Benjamin. Who is he? An actor. A good actor. A very good actor.

Am I saying this because he’s also my uncle? Probably.

Have you seen some of his work? Probably. Examples? Well:

Movies:

Midnight Cowboy (debut)

Distance

The Education of Sonny Carson

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Escape from Alcatraz

Do the Right Thing

The Five Heartbeats

Television:

Starsky and Hutch

Kojak

New York Undercover

ER

Law & Order

The Shield

He’s done a lot more of course. I’ll let IMDb handle the rest of the list and bio.

So, I have made it a personal goal to watch each and every one of his movies. I get all giggly when I see him. Whether he’s a lead or small part, he’s my uncle and he’s the best.

He and I have the same nickname, although for different reasons. Heck if I know his story. I’ll have to ask. Anyway, our nickname is “Boy”. I know. For me, there was a short period after I was born where I was nameless. Dante was not my name for my whole life. So, until my parents could decide my name, family members would refer to me as “the boy”. How’s the boy doing? That’s an example of how slightly awkward things were.

My dad wanted to name me something African-y. He was shot down. Now-a-days, learning that I’m West African, perhaps my dad was on to something. However, I and my sisters don’t know which of our parents are of the origin. My mom wanted to name me after dad. She got shot down. Thank God. I love Christopher but I’m glad I have my own name. Dante Jr. ain’t happening.

I have the chops to be an actor. I don’t have the physical appearance to make it big unless most of my comedy makes fun of it. Think Kevin Hart and his getting old short jokes. Most likely, I would be stand-up comedian with plenty of voice over work for shows and movies. I have an odd voice that, while I hate, would probably make good for comedy.

Nah, I’m pretty sure I could make it if I put the effort in. My uncle does inspire me to do it. Since I have never known what to do while in school…since I don’t know what I “want to be when I grow up” perhaps acting is something I should get into. Like I said, I gotta be willing to put effort into it. I know it’s not a “one role and now a big star” thing. I’m willing to start small. And I may never make it big, although that would be fine. Good even.

Are you a fan of his work? Have you enjoyed the shows and movies that he has been a part of? Let me know!

-DALANEL

Dante’s Opinion: Awkward moment at my moms place!?

It’s another round of questions that I go and offer my opinion on. Today, we’ll look at mizzop and his question:

So yesterday I was at my moms place. I went there to visit her. And all of a sudden I met her friend, Danielle. I fell in love with her almost on the first eye contact. I’m 17 and she’s 48. I know, it’s a bit weird but it happened. She has a son my age and she’s 2 years older than my mom. My mom went to the market to buy some Coke so me and this woman, Danielle begun talking. I moved closer to her on the sofa and said that she was really beautiful. Then I moved my head closer to her head and we kissed. It didn’t stop there. We had sex and now I love her. She called me this morning and wanted to meet. So I met her at her place and the same thing happened again.

Now we want to marry but I don’t know how to tell my mom nor my dad. What should I do?

Yo, WTF. And wait…let me be cool. Okay, let me offer this to you: I’m not going to go into the age difference. Quite frankly, I don’t want to go there. But, c’mon now, a day? Just a couple of humptastic days and you already want to marry her?

Not to mention, well, ya know, she’s your mom’s friend!

You’re 17, and I remember that age. Lots of things can get you up and ready to go. But, c’mon now, this isn’t logical. This is lust and it needs to end now. Guess what though? I’d love to be in the same room when you tell mom the good news.

Trust me, this is just not going to work out. Man, I mean, was she hot for her age? No offence to women that age but, to get a 17 year old going you must look great and/or the teen will hump anything with a pulse. Alright, we gotta move on. But, again, end the rela-you know what it’s not even a relationship. This is a fling and it needs to end. Prepare for some intensely awkward moments when you too are together with mom. Idk if you should even tell her what y’all did or not. I’m leaning towards no.

Whew. Next question is from Sarah:

Continue reading →

10 Facts You May Not Know About Me

I have revealed a little of myself. And while I’ve built a presence with a  certain identity, there are a few things you may not know about me. Welp, I guess it’s time you learned a little more about who is behind this voice. There’s some good, bad, funny, weird, and…I guess that’s it.

Number 1: My origin is West African

I found out about this during the summer. Thanks to an injury to one of my sisters in her wrist, she got it x-rayed. The doctor noticed that a bone in her wrist was “not normal” but there was nothing wrong with it and that same form is typically found in West Africans. Yay for me. I’ll have to get to know my roots. I don’t know what part of West Africa we’re from and I don’t know if it’s mom or dad’s side. It just so happens my god-siblings are West African (born here but their mother is born in West Africa). So, we’re a little more related I guess.

Number 2: I would describe my life as “organized chaos”

I’m very messy. My room is messy. And yet, I happen to know where everything is. All my important paper work is accounted for. I seem to thrive in clutter and chaos. I have a lot of stuff going on and yet it’s comfortable. When I do clean my room, it feels awkward and empty and boring. For instance, the next few months are gonna be wild. I’m lighting director for the Christmas Cantata, ALPHA Facilitator, News Desk Writer as well as blogger for FanSided, school, teaching Sunday church and running this blog. And I’m not feeling pressured at all.

Number 3: I can’t stand my voice

That video series I did? I haven’t actually listened to it. I hate hearing my voice. You know how sometimes we don’t notice things until they are pointed out to us? Then we’ll go, “Hey, you’re right!”. So, to try to prevent you from hating my voice the way I do, I won’t tell you what I hate about it.

Continue reading →