Comprehensive information and links about Martin Lawrence

Martin Lawrence (born April 16, 1965Martin Lawrence is an American actor, comedian, director and producer.

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Early life

Lawrence was born in Frankfurt, Germany, where his father, John Lawrence, served in the US military. When Lawrence was six, his family relocated to Landover, Maryland; two years later his father left the family. His mother, Chlora, worked as a cashier at various department stores to support Martin and his siblings.

During his teen years, Martin excelled at boxing. While living in Maryland, he attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School and became a Mid-Atlantic Golden Gloves boxing contender. Although he was reputedly a good boxer, comedy is where Martin found his greatest success, even early in life. In school, Martin would poke fun at others during breaks and recess, and teachers would routinely let Lawrence have a few minutes of class time to tell jokes and make classmates laugh. It was a teacher who suggested that Lawrence give his comedic talents a shot on stage, at a local comedy club during open mic night. He took on the challenge and was successful.

Career

Lawrence moved to California and found his way to the legendary Kings Wood comedy club. Shortly after appearing at the Wood, he won a performance spot on the nationally televised , a popular show in the United States. He did well on the show and made it to the final round before ultimately losing. However, executives at Columbia TriStar Television saw Martin's performance and offered him an appearance on the television sitcom , Martin had bit parts in various films and television roles before entertainment mogul Russell Simmons personally selected him to host the groundbreaking series gave many comedians (including Chris Tucker, Steve Harvey and Cedric The Entertainer) their start, and it offered Martin his largest audience to date.

Around the same time he was cast in the , which aired on Fox. The show ran from 1992 to 1997 and was considered a success. Lawrence also hosted Saturday Night Live on February 19, 1994, and as a result was banned from the show for life. After ended its run, Lawrence worked on many film projects. He starred or co-starred in many movies along side such talents as Eddie Murphy, Will Smith, and Tim Robbins. Many of his films were blockbusters (including (2000) and his salary increased dramatically to over $10 million per role. He continues to work in film, with his new movie (2006) opening #1 at the North American box office in late January, grossing almost $28 million its first weekend [1].

Private life

Although Martin was once engaged to actress Lark Voorhies, he married Patricia Southall, a former Miss Virginia, on January 7, 1995. They have a daughter, Jasmine, but were divorced in 1996. The divorce led to many personal problems in Lawrence's life. In August, 1996, he was arrested at Burbank Airport for carrying a loaded gun in his suitcase. On March 28, 1997, he was again arrested outside a Hollywood nightclub, after a man claimed Lawrence punched him. While directing co-star Tisha Campbell sued him for sexual harassment and left the show during its final season. He went into a coma after collapsing from heat exhaustion while jogging in August 1999 but eventually recovered in the hospital.

Lawrence's