The father of the Wayans family has passed away, and comedian Marlon Wayans found out about his death while performing two comedy sets in Burbank, California.
The 50-year-old entertainer was scheduled for two shows at Flappers, one in the early evening and the other later on in the night. At some point, after the first show concluded, the youngest Wayans brother got the unfortunate news – Howell Wayans, 86, died on April 1., TMZ reported. The later set resumed with a mild delay.
It is also worth mentioning that Marlon, alongside his brothers and sisters, lost his mother three years prior. He actually incorporated Howell’s death into his stand-up routine while talking about his family relationship and praising his mother.
The comedian managed to get through his emotional set and. even shared with the Flappers’ audience that he had just found out his father had passed.
The crowd gave him a standing ovation, with some audience members getting emotional too.
“Legend. When I was a child, I asked my Dad what did you want to be when grew up? He simply said, ‘I wanted to be a man’ I said ‘not a lawyer? A doctor? An actor?’ He said ‘just a man,'” Marlon wrote on social media.
“Thank you, Pop, for being an example of a Man to all your boys. I pray all young black boys can grow up to be a Man like you. Baby boy loves you. And if ever I need you, I know exactly where to find you… in my Bible that now sits by the bed. Rest well. Kiss Ma for me. Tell her her babies miss her.”
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The patriarch is survived by his 10 children, all of whom he raised in the Fulton Houses, a Chelsea housing project on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, and of course, his grandchildren.
Howell was a supermarket manager and head of the Wayans family, and his late wife, Elvira Wayans, was a homemaker and a social worker. He was a devout Jehovah’s Witness and raised his children according to its religious practices. The Wayans siblings include Dwayne, Keenen, Diedra, Damon, Kimberly, Elvira, Nadia, Devonne, Shawn, and Marlon.
Howell also was a disciplinarian whose core fatherly teachings were how he shaped his kids like Marlon, Shawn, Damon, Kim, and Keenen to thrive in showbiz.
The comedian’s latest HBO special is titled God Loves Me.
Our condolences to the Wayans family.
