Livin' Large

For the album, see Living Large.
Livin' Large
Directed by Michael Schultz
Produced by David V. Picker
Written by William Mosley-Payne
Starring Terrence "T.C." Carson
Lisa Arrindell Anderson
Loretta Devine
Blanche Baker
Cinematography Peter Collister
Edited by Christopher Holmes
Distributed by The Samuel Goldwyn Company
Release dates
  • September 20, 1991
Running time
 95 minutes
Country United States
Language English

Livin' Large! is a 1991 comedy movie starring Terrence "T.C." Carson, Lisa Arrindell Anderson, and Loretta Devine.

Plot

Carson portrays Dexter Jackson, a young, black deliveryman in Atlanta, Georgia who aspires to become a news reporter. Jackson gets what he considers his big break, when he drives up to a hostage situation. When the reporter on the scene is killed, Dexter steps in and confronts the hostage-taker, who threatens to kill himself on live television. However, Dexter talks the man out of it, and ratings-obsessed executive producer Kate Penndragin (Blanche Baker) later offers Dexter a reporter position at "News 4 Atlanta".

A recurring gag throughout the film involves Jackson seeing himself on TV with notably different facial features, i.e. thinner lips, straight hair, and a lighter complexion. As Kate tries to transform Dexter's urban image (mainly his dreadlocks, clothing, and vocabulary), he begins questioning whether he's starting to sell out as he becomes more and more successful, in other words, he wonders whether becoming successful also means becoming "white".

Although Dexter begins to fulfill his dream, he also starts forgetting where he came from and begins destroying his important relationships. He alienates those close to him with tabloid-style exposé stories, i.e. a local barber's illegal numbers racket, and a restaurant's unhealthy cooking styles. Dexter loses his fiancé, Toynelle (Arrindell Anderson), after a night on the town results in him spending the night with ditzy weather forecaster, Missy Carnes (Julia Campbell). Dexter also betrays his best friend Baker Moon (Nathaniel 'Afrika' Hall) by revealing a local criminal's plan to commit grand theft auto, a plan Baker secretly confided to Dexter. As a result of the report, Baker winds up in the hospital.

After longtime anchor Clifford Worthy (Bernie McInerney) blows up on the air, Kate promotes Dexter to lead anchor and teams him with Missy, much to his chagrin. Kate also arranges a live marriage between the two, which she plans to exploit for ratings. However, in the end, Dexter comes to his senses and calls off the wedding, deciding to go back to Toynelle. Finally admitting his fault of the entire ordeal, he later publicly apologizes to those he stepped over. Dexter finally (and truly) reaches his goal, becoming co-anchor at News 4 Atlanta, alongside Clifford Worthy.

Cast

Box Office and Business

The movie was released in September 1991, and grossed more than $5 million.[1]

References

  1. ↑ Livin' Large! (1991) - Box office / business

External links