Sinbad (entertainer)
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David Adkins (born November 10, 1956), better known by his stage name Sinbad, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He became known in the 1990s from being featured on his own HBO specials, appearing on several television series, most notably as Coach Walter Oakes in '' A Different World'' (1987–1991) and as David Bryan on '' The Sinbad Show'' (1993–1994). He has also appeared in films such as '' That's Adequate'' (1989), '' Coneheads'' (1993), '' Houseguest'' (1995), '' Jingle All the Way'' (1996), '' Good Burger'' (1997), '' Crazy as Hell'' (2002) and '' Planes'' (2013).


Early life

Sinbad was born November 10, 1956, in
Benton Harbor, Michigan Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County, Michigan, Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is 46 miles southwest of Kalamazoo, Michigan, Kalamazoo and 71 miles southwest of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Grand Rapids. According to the 2020 2 ...
, the son of Louise and a
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minister, Dr. Donald Beckley Adkins Sr. He has five siblings: Donna, Dorothea, Mark, Michael, and Donald Jr. His paternal grandmother was of Irish descent. Sinbad attended Benton Harbor High School and graduated in 1974. He attended college from 1974 to 1978 at the
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in
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,
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, where he lettered two seasons for the basketball team.


Military service

Sinbad served in the
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as a boom operator aboard
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s. While assigned to the 384th Air Refueling Wing at McConnell Air Force Base in
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, he would often travel downtown to perform stand-up comedy. He competed as a comedian/MC in the Air Force's Talent Contest in 1981. Sinbad was almost dismissed with a dishonorable discharge for various misbehaviors, including going AWOL. After a series of incidents, he was eventually discharged "for parking my car in the wrong position."


Career

In an attempt to stand out in the entertainment industry, Adkins worked under the professional name Sinbad, which he chose out of admiration for Sinbad the Sailor. He began his stand-up comic career appearing on '' Star Search''. Sinbad won his round against fellow comedian Dennis Miller, and made it to the finals before losing to John Kassir. He soon was cast on '' The Redd Foxx Show'', a short lived sitcom, playing Byron Lightfoot.


''A Different World''

In 1987, Sinbad landed a role in '' A Different World'', a spin-off of '' The Cosby Show'' built around Lisa Bonet's character Denise Huxtable. Previously, Sinbad appeared in a one-off role on ''The Cosby Show'' as car salesman Davis Sarrette. While Bonet only stayed with the program for a season, Sinbad stayed with the cast from 1988 until 1991 as Coach Walter Oakes. Walter began to fall in love with a girl named Jaleesa Vinson, played by Dawnn Lewis. They dated, and eventually became engaged but decided to cancel the wedding due to differing outlooks on life.


''The Sinbad Show''

By the early 1990s, his popularity had grown enough for Fox to greenlight '' The Sinbad Show'', which premiered September 16, 1993. In it, Sinbad played 35-year-old David Bryan, a bachelor who decides to become a
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to two children after becoming emotionally attached to them. Around that time, Sinbad had received joint custody of his two children: Royce, age 4; and Paige, age 7, and told the press that these experiences informed him of single parenting. ''The Sinbad Show'' was canceled, with the last episode airing April 21, 1994. However, the role earned him a nomination in the 1995 Kids' Choice Awards for "Favorite Television Actor".


Films and other projects

In 1990, Sinbad did his first stand-up comedy special for
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called ''Sinbad: Brain Damaged''. The special was recorded at Morehouse College in
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, Georgia. In 1993, Sinbad did his next stand up special in New York City's Paramount Theater at Madison Square Garden called ''Sinbad: Afros and Bellbottoms'' for which he won a 1995 Image Award. He was brought back in 1996 for ''Sinbad: Son of a Preacher Man'', recorded at the Paramount Theatre in
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, Colorado, and again in 1997 for ''Sinbad: Nothin' but the Funk''. All of these shows have been released on VHS and DVD. Sinbad again won an
NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...
in 1998 for his role in ''Sinbad's Summer Jam III: '70s Soul Music Festival''. By 1995, Sinbad created a company called "David & Goliath Productions", that was located in Studio City. From 1989 to 1991, Sinbad was host of ''
It's Showtime at the Apollo English auxiliary verbs are a small set of English verbs, which include the English modal auxiliary verbs and a few others. Although the auxiliary verbs of English are widely believed to lack inherent semantic meaning and instead to modify the ...
'', and returned in 2005, while regular host Mo'Nique was on maternity leave. He hosted an episode of '' Soul Train'' that aired January 14, 1995; appeared as a contestant in an episode of '' Celebrity Jeopardy!'' in 1998; and was the emcee for the May 2000 '' Miss Universe Pageant''. During the 1990s, Sinbad guest starred on an episode of Nickelodeon's '' All That''. In one sketch, he played the father of recurring character Ishboo, dubbed "Sinboo". He also made a
cameo appearance A cameo appearance, also called a cameo role and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief guest appearance of a well-known person or character in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking on ...
in the comedy movie '' Good Burger'', starring Kenan & Kel, as "Mr. Wheat", a short-tempered teacher. His character was modeled after Gough Wheat, a past teacher of the movie's producer, Dan Schneider, at White Station High School in
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
. He and Phil Hartman co-starred in the comedy film '' Houseguest'', where he plays Kevin Franklin, a
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resident who owes $50,000 to the mob. Hartman, as Gary Young, comments to his children that they are waiting to pick up his old college friend, who is black and he has not seen for twenty years. Taking who they think to be a well-known dentist home, Young's family is stabilized by Franklin's own unstable nature. Released January 6, 1995, the film grossed $26 million in North America. Sinbad's film roles also include '' First Kid'', which he starred in, and '' Jingle All the Way'' (1996) opposite
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, Rita Wilson and the late Phil Hartman. For ''Jingle All the Way'', Sinbad won a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for "Favorite Supporting Actor – Family"; it was also his third and final collaboration with Hartman following the latter's death in May 1998. In March 1996, Sinbad joined First Lady
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
and musician
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, in a
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tour in
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. The
NAACP Image Awards The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...
recognized his role in '' Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child'' (1996), nominating him in the "Outstanding Performance in an Animated/Live-Action/Dramatic Youth or Children's Series/Special" category. He lent his voice to Riley, an animal character, in '' Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco'' (1996), and later voiced the horse "Hollywood Shuffle" in '' Ready to Run''. In 1997, Sinbad released ''Sinbad's Guide to Life: Because I Know Everything'', a book of comedic short essays. It was co written with David Ritz. In August 1997, '' Vibe'' magazine started its own syndicated late night talk show, which aired on UPN, hosted by actor Chris Spencer. Spencer was fired in October, and replaced by Sinbad; the series lasted until the summer of 1998. At that same time, Sinbad performed his HBO comedy special "Nothin' But the Funk" in
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's Guillermo P. Trinidad Memorial Stadium. In 1998 and 1999, Sinbad reunited with
Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American retired comedian, actor, and media personality. Often cited as a trailblazer for African Americans in the entertainment industry, Cosby was a film, television, and stand-up comedy ...
and Carsey-Werner Productions, and appeared in three episodes of '' Cosby''. In February 1999, he was featured in an
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for Tae Bo, where he stated that he was successfully using the Tae Bo system to become an action star. In 2002, he appeared in three episodes of the Showtime series '' Resurrection Blvd.'' In 2004, he was named the No. 78 ''Greatest Stand Up Comic of All Time'' on "Comedy Central Presents: 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time". In 2006, ''
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'' magazine ranked Sinbad as the "Worst Comic of All Time." In February 2007, actor Mark Curry credited Sinbad and Bill Cosby for helping convince him not to commit suicide. Sinbad was responsible for discovering R&B trio 702, convincing their parents to let him take them to a music convention/competition under the name "Sweeta than Suga"; the group eventually being heard by music producer
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. Sinbad also made a cameo appearance on the television show ''
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', also known colloquially simply as ''Always Sunny'', is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and co-developed by Glenn Howerton for FX (TV channel), FX. It premiered on August 4, 2005, and stars Charl ...
'' as himself in a rehab center in the episode "Dennis Reynolds: An Erotic Life", which originally aired October 23, 2008. His cameo was met with positive acclaim from fans of both him and the series. Sinbad was the host of ''Thou Shalt Laugh 3''. The DVD was released on November 11, 2008. He performed his
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television special '' Where U Been?'' at Club Nokia, which was later released on DVD to even greater success. On March 14, 2010, he debuted on the '' Celebrity Apprentice'' and was fired on the second episode (March 21, 2010) after losing in the Kodak challenge as project manager, placing 13th. Sinbad starred in a reality show on WE tv called ''Sinbad: It's Just Family'' that aired on Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m.; the show was canceled in 2011. In 2013, Sinbad voiced Roper in the animated film '' Planes''. The same year he had a guest role on the adult animated series ''
American Dad! ''American Dad!'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Mike Barker (producer), Mike Barker and Matt Weitzman for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on February 6, 2005, following Super Bowl XXXIX, with the r ...
'', voicing an animated version of himself in the episode " Lost in Space", then returning for the 2014 episode " The Longest Distance Relationship", and again in 2015's "Holy Shit, Jeff's Back!" In April 2015, Sinbad appeared in a USO show at Bagram and Kandahar Air Bases in
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. In 2017, he appeared on two episodes of Disney Junior's '' The Lion Guard'', as the voice of Uroho the baboon. The same year, he appeared in a
CollegeHumor Dropout, incorporated as CH Media and formerly known as CollegeHumor, is an Internet comedy company based in Los Angeles that produces content for release on its streaming service Dropout (streaming platform), Dropout as well as YouTube. Dropou ...
April Fool's video consisting of newly created footage supposedly taken from a 1990s
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movie called ''Shazaam'' which never existed. The comedy drew from an Internet rumor confusing ''Shazaam'' with the real genie film titled '' Kazaam'' (1996), starring
Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), commonly known as Shaq ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. He is a and Center (basketball), center ...
. The false memories of ''Shazaam'' have been explained as a confabulation of memories of the comedian wearing a genie-like costume during a TV presentation of Sinbad the Sailor movies in 1994. In addition, in the 1960s,
Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ; formerly known as H-B Enterprises, Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. and H-B Production Co.), simply and commonly known as Hanna-Barbera, was an American animation studio and production company, which was acti ...
had an animated series about a genie called '' Shazzan''. In 2018 to 2019 he starred on Fox show '' Rel''.


Apple

Sinbad has a long history of using and promoting Apple products, working with Apple and appearing at Apple events. Examples include numerous appearances at Macworld and WWDC shows. On January 25, 2011, he was the celebrity speaker of MacWorld Expo 2011.


Music

Sinbad also plays percussion and drums which he most often displays after every show appearance. He has played with numerous artists and musicians under the moniker of "Memphis Red"; such as Dawnn Lewis and Adult-Urban instrumentalist (saxophonist) Journell Henry "p/k/a. J. Henry".


Personal life

Sinbad married Meredith Fuller in 1985. They have two children together. The couple divorced in 1992, but remarried in 2002. In November 2020, his family announced to the press that Sinbad was recovering from a recent
stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...
. In March 2024, Sinbad announced on social media that he was still recovering from his stroke but that he was attempting a comeback to his career in the future.


Tax issues

In April 2009, Sinbad was listed as one of the ten worst tax debtors in the state of California, owing the state $2.5 million in personal income tax. On December 11, 2009, Sinbad filed for
Chapter 7 bankruptcy Chapter 7 of Title 11 U.S. Code is the bankruptcy code that governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. This is in contrast to bankruptcy under Chapter 11 and Chapter 13, which govern the process of ''re ...
. On February 5, 2010, it was reported that Sinbad put his hilltop home up for sale in order to alleviate his tax burdens.


Filmography


Film


Television


See also

*
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References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sinbad 1956 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American comedians 20th-century African-American male actors 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American comedians 21st-century African-American male actors 21st-century American male actors 21st-century African-American people African-American Christians African-American male comedians African-American stand-up comedians African-American television producers African-American television talk show hosts American male comedians American male film actors American male television actors American male voice actors American men's basketball players American people of Irish descent American stand-up comedians American television talk show hosts Basketball players from Michigan Comedians from California Comedians from Michigan Denver Pioneers men's basketball players Film producers from California Film producers from Michigan Late night television talk show hosts Male actors from Michigan Participants in American reality television series People from Benton Harbor, Michigan People from Hidden Hills, California Television producers from California Television producers from Michigan United States Air Force airmen