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Atlantan first black man on ‘Project Runway’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Atlantan Michael Knight is the first black man to be on Bravo’s hit show “Project Runway,” which returns for its third season Wednesday. “It feels really, really great, and I’ll get attention for that,” Knight told Buzz.
But the suave 28-year-old said he isn’t going to be a polarizing character, like Santino Rice on Season 2. “I’m a very drama-free person,” he said. (From a viewer’s standpoint, that’s not a good thing.)
The Montgomery native attended Georgia Southern University in Statesboro before coming to Atlanta in 2001 to pursue a fashion-related job. He decided on Atlanta instead of Los Angeles or New York because “you have to crawl before you walk,” he explained. “Atlanta is big enough to get some exposure and meet some people but not so large I’d get lost in the sauce.”
Knight said he’s worked with local R&B group Jagged Edge and Ciara on possible clothing lines and had designs in a few boutiques but hasn’t yet gotten his big break.
Slimming comic sets sights on Peachtree Road Race
Buzz could have seen Bill Maher do his liberal political shtick at the Fox Theatre on Friday night. Instead, we chose something a bit lighter — or heavier, depending on your point of view.
Ralphie May, the big dude who came in second during NBC’s first version of “Last Comic Standing” in 2003, made his first appearance headlining at the Punchline over the weekend, and he proved that he should have won. While May could do a good political rant, he catered to the bibulous late-show crowd with plenty of hilarious material that never would have made it past the censors at NBC.
May revels in political incorrectness, cracking wise about midgets, the mentally challenged (he used a different word) and African-Americans. “Locate your nearest black person,” he advised non-blacks. “You’ll be looking at them to make sure it’s OK to laugh.” The comic also attacked men who wear flip-flops. “We don’t want to see your toes,” he informed them. “They’re yellow. They look like dip-size Fritos!” (It was one of his few jokes we actually can print.)
After his second show, May told Buzz that he thinks people are way too sensitive about words, that they should care more about actions.
A Chattanooga native (“I’m about as Southern as it gets; I’m related to myself,” he cracked during his act), May also has a strong local connection: His late father, Winston May, was a longtime Roswell resident and was once president of the Georgia Poultry Federation.
May looks slimmer than when he was on “Last Comic Standing.” Since his near-victory, he’s had gastric bypass surgery, done a stint on VH1’s “Celebrity Fit Club ” and married his longtime girlfriend, gorgeous Lahna Turner. He’s lost more than 200 pounds and is down to about 400. His continued weight loss has been hindered by a hernia and complications from having extra skin taken off.
But he has a plan to show off his more svelte self: He wants to run the 10K Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race next year. “I’ll be happy to just finish it,” May said.
Trivia teams vie on VH1
Claire Johnstone, a 28-year-old Atlanta media account executive, can spout all things Britney, watches “Lost” religiously and has seen every John Hughes movie from the ’80s numerous times. She was a perfect candidate for VH1’s “World Series of Pop Culture,” a game show that debuts at 10 Monday, with teams of trivia buffs competing for $250,000.
“Us Weekly is my bible,” Johnstone told Buzz.
Her team, which includes two former Atlantans, dressed in J. Crew cardigans and called themselves “I Love Jake Ryan,” named after the heartthrob in “Sixteen Candles.”
Another team of metro Atlantans is vying for the prize, too: Mason Spencer, 34; Jodi Roth, 33; and Alexandra Clark, 33. As the El Chupacabra, they play trivia regularly at Laseter’s Tavern in Vinings.
“Half the time, our conversations consist of quotes from TV shows and movies,” Spencer said. “It’s kind of sad.”
You can catch Johnstone on Wednesday’s episode and Spencer’s team Thursday.
Chappelle leftovers
Dave Chappelle, who skipped out on a third season and a $50 million contract with Comedy Central last year, left behind just enough sketches for the network to cobble together three “lost” episodes. On Sunday night, viewers could see the pressure on Chappelle. One sketch features a barber charging him $11,000 after he finds out how rich he is.
Later, a dying comrade tells him, “You didn’t have to do two more seasons, no matter how good this show is. They’re only going to say it’s not as good as last year was.”
In another sketch, Chappelle takes revenge on people now that he’s rich. At one point, he airs a Super Bowl commercial mocking a casting agent who snubbed him years earlier and leaves her office crooning Kelly Clarkson’s “A Moment Like This.”
Celebrity birthdays
Folk singer Arlo Guthrie is 59. Country singer Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts is 36. Actor Adrian Grenier (“Entourage”) is 30. Singer Jessica Simpson is 26.
Contributing: news services. If you have a tip, call 404-526-5688 or e-mail buzz@ajc.com.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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