Did you know? 15 things to know about SEMO grad Cedric The Entertainer

The Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau announced recently that tickets are on sale for “A Night with Cedric The Entertainer”, a comedy show that will raise money for the Department of Mass Media at Southeast Missouri State University as well as scholarships in Cedric’s fraternity, Kappa Alpha Psi.

Cedric the Entertainment has enjoyed a successful career as a comedian, actor and show host. He recently wrote a novel.

It is fairly common knowledge locally that Cedric the Entertainer is a SEMO alumnus – his face is shown on large banners on campus – but here are some other facts about him that you may not have known:

1. His real name is Cedric Kyles. He graduated from SEMO in 1987 with a degree in mass communications.

2. Kyles lived most of his childhood years in Caruthersville, where his mother, grandmother and extended family lived. Kyles’ mother was a schoolteacher. After junior high, his family moved to the St. Louis area where he graduated from Berkeley High School in the Florissant School District, according to his IMBD online bio profile.

3. When he was a child growing up in Caruthersville, Kyles would watch "The Jackie Gleason Show" with his grandmother, he told a reporter for Emmy Magazine in 2020. It was during that time watching TV with his grandmother that he first became interested in entertainment.

4. Kyles has played roles in more than 40 films. He’s perhaps best known as the character Eddie Walker in “Barbershop”. His roles include voice acting, including hits such as "Ice Age" and multiple "Madagascar" films.

5. Exterior shots of Caruthersville appeared in the filming of “Johnson Family Vacation”, according to IMBD.

6. Kyles has appeared on many television shows. He made a name for himself on BET as the host of a comedy show. One of his first main roles was on the "Steve Harvey Show". He also made appearances on "Phineas and Ferb", "2 Broke Girls", "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire", "Whose Line is it Anyway" and "The Daily Show".

7. According to the New York Post, Kyles’ novel “Flipping Boxcars” was inspired by his bootlegger grandfather from Caruthersville and set in the Bootheel town. www.nypost.com/2023/09/05/cedric-the-entertainers-bootlegger-grandfather-inspired-his-novel/

8. According to the Columbus Dispatch, “The Soul Man”, in which Kyles played a starring role, was supposed to be set in Cleveland, but he convinced the show’s creators to make it St. Louis. In that show, Kyles’ character, a singer, moved from Las Vegas to St. Louis to take over his father’s church. www.dispatch.com/story/entertainment/television/2012/06/27/comedy-set-in-star-s/24015862007/

9. Kyles recently got into some controversy regarding fellow comedian Katt Williams. During an interview with former NFL star and sports personality Shannon Sharpe, Williams claimed Cedric the Entertainer stole his “best joke” more than two decades ago. The bit was Williams reenacting someone driving a convertible while playing their music aggressively loud, according to the L.A. Times. He said Kyles took the idea and changed the convertible into a spaceship. Kyles said the accusation was “ridiculous” and doesn’t match up with the timeline. Kyles said he performed that joke six or seven years before Williams’ 1998 special.

10. Upon graduating from SEMO, Kyles landed a job in TV news. But the role was eliminated before he even started. “So I was back at Mom’s house with a college degree, no money and loans,” the Southeast Missourian reported Kyles saying in 2007 when he addressed students. www.semissourian.com/story/1285810.html

11. When the TV news role didn’t work out, Kyles worked jobs at Best Buy selling fax machines and then as a claims adjuster for State Farm. Then he began doing standup. www.emmys.com/news/mix/neighbor-worth-knowing

12. Kyles hosted a radio show while in college. He went by the stage name “Dash” for the show called “Late Night Love Music”.

13. Cedric the Entertainer hosted and opened the Emmy Awards in 2021. The show opened with a musical number with Cedric rapping a parody version of the hip-hop hit “Just a Friend”, according to an article by The Associated Press.

14. In 2018, it was reported that Kyles and another man bought 12.5 acres of land in Caruthersville, which was once the FEMA park following the 2006 tornado. “I’m truly excited to initiate the first steps towards purchasing land in my hometown, Caruthersville, Missouri, with the ultimate goal of creating meaningful Urban Development for the entire community by partnering with Allen Warren and soliciting the support of local government, both city and county,” Kyles said in a statement to Region 8 News. www.kait8.com/story/37671429/cedric-the-entertainer-to-make-big-land-purchase-in-caruthersville/

15. Kyles moved to Los Angeles in 1994. When a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was unveiled in his honor, he told the L.A. Sentinel when he first saw the stars on the walk of fame, “coming from St. Louis, it felt so surreal to actually be there walking down that street.” www.lasentinel.net/cedric-the-entertainer-receives-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame.html

BONUS READER No. 16: After this article was posted, Cape Girardeau County Commissioner Charlie Herbst noted in the comment section of this article that Kyles was once a grocery bagger at Schnucks in Cape Girardeau. "You always knew when he was on the floor working!" Herbst commented.