“We were poor. All we had was the laughs”, the story of how the Wayans brothers made the world smile

The story of overcoming the Wayans brothers – worldwide known for popular works, such as the movie As White and the series Me, Mistress and Children – who grew up in a poor family, conquered the entertainment world with productions that make everyone laugh and built a veritable million-dollar empire is awe-inspiring. After all, who doesn’t like to see people who grew up and managed to overcome all difficulties to build successful careers together, right?

we, from awesome.club, we also love inspiring stories, so we decided to bring you how the Wayans brothers grew up in a humble way and built a true empire in the entertainment world. Check out!

From humble beginnings, the Wayans family managed to stand out in the entertainment world and, today, has a real empire valued at around 300 million dollars. All the brothers grew up in a poor part of New York City, and at the time, money was not an easy thing to come by.

Due to the difficulties faced in childhood, the brothers developed from an early age the natural talent they already had for comedy. What’s more, one of them, Keenen Ivory, commented that they’ve always been creative, not just in terms of entertainment, as they needed to find ways to earn money and help out around the house.

So they started working at a very young age in occupations that ranged from shining shoes to even delivering groceries. In the end, all the obstacles made the family become very close, always doing everything together. This is reflected in their work to this day, where many projects are produced, scripted and even directed by their members.

The brothers even said in an interview, “we grew up in a big house”, “and we grew up poor. So we spend a lot of time just trying to make each other laugh. All we had was the laughs.”

Keenen also said that since he was a child he thought about becoming a comedian, but that the discovery of his vocation happened while watching TV one day and saw Richard Pryor talking about a bad experience he had, but he turned it into something funny. “I was so amazed that he took this horrible moment and made it amusing,” he said.

As many of the Wayans brothers displayed a talent for making others laugh from an early age, many of them, like Damon and Keenen, began their careers in stand-up shows. However, what propelled the family name into the entertainment world was the comedy series In Living Color, which was created and produced by Dwayne and Keenen and premiered in the early 1990s.

The work, which also had the participation of other members, such as Damon, Marlon, Shawn and one of the sisters, Kim, was a great success. The production received several awards for best series, such as an Emmy and also highlighted other great names, such as Jim Carrey and Chris Rock.

The relevance of the Wayans family to the world of entertainment today is undeniable, with their films and series attracting thousands of fans across the globe and drawing laughter, especially with their satire works of renowned productions in other genres, such as franchises. Everyone in Panic and Paranormal Idle, who make fun of famous movie horror stories.

All talent is not restricted to the first generation of Wayans in showbiz. That’s because, the children of many of them are also inserted in this world, as is the case of Damon Wayans Jr. who participated in the TV series New Girl, some episodes of Me, Mistress and the Children and even the animation Big Hero Operation.

Damien Wayans, who is Elvira’s son, is also an actor and screenwriter, while his sister, Chaunté is a stand-up comedian who has also appeared in films. Craig Wayans, son of Diedre, is an actor, writer and has acted as a consultant on series produced and starring his uncles.

With their unquestionable talent, these beasts’ resumes couldn’t be less impressive. The first generation of the Wayans family — which includes actors and comedians Keenen Ivory, who has appeared in famous films such as Scary Movie and directed White Girls; Damon, the iconic Michael Kyle from the popular Me, Mistress, and the Kids series; and Shawn and Marlon, who starred together in films like White Girls and Little One — has been one of the biggest names when it comes to comedy for decades.

This is no wonder, as its members have managed the feat of creating a true empire in the entertainment world, with most of them working in front of, or behind the camera, always drawing laughter from the audience at home.

In all, there are ten brothers: Dwayne, Keennen Ivory, Damon, Shawn, Marlon, Kim, Elvira, Vonnie, Nadia and Diedre. All grew up with their parents, supermarket manager Howell Wayans, and social worker Elvira, in a deprived part of New York City.

However, even if not all family members have familiar faces in cinema or TV, the others also left their marks in showbiz, acting as screenwriters, directors, producers or composers of the soundtracks of the works carried out or produced by the group.

And you, did you already know the story of the Wayans brothers? Do you know of another family overcoming story? Share with us in the comments!