Franklyn Ajaye

Franklyn Ajaye
Born	May 13, 1949 (1949-05-13) (age 60) Brooklyn, New York City USA

Franklyn Ajaye (born May 13, 1949) is a stand-up comedian. His nickname is "The Jazz Comedian" as he also played jazz for a time earlier in his entertainment career. He is also known as Franklin Ajaye.

History

He was born in Brooklyn, NY but raised in Los Angeles by an African father and a Florida-born mother. Ajaye is, as he likes to joke, a "true African-American." He has released five comedy albums to date: Franklyn Ajaye, Comedian (1973), I'm a Comedian, Seriously (1974), Don't Smoke Dope, Fry Your Hair (1977), Plaid Pants and Psychopaths (1986), and Vagabond Jazz & the Abstract Truth (2004).

Ajaye made his network debut on The Flip Wilson Show in 1973 and made his first appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson a year later.

He emigrated to Melbourne, Australia in 1997, but returns to the United States periodically to do stand-up at clubs or in television specials. He is known in Australia for his appearances on The Panel and Thank God You're Here.

He has also worked as an actor, appearing in films such as Convoy, Car Wash, Hollywood Shuffle, and the 1980 remake of The Jazz Singer. He has been seen more recently in the TV show Deadwood. Ajaye has also been nominated twice for the Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program for In Living Color (1990) and Politically Incorrect (1997).^[1]

On his stand-up television show Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle, British comedian Stewart Lee mocked Ajaye's LP I'm a Comedian, Seriously,^[2] sarcastically questioning the track titles of "Homosexuals," "Girls With Big Breasts," and "Dick Caught In Zipper," in the context of the claim on the album sleeve that Ajaye was a deep thinker.^[3]

Recently, On an episode of Thank God You're Here, Tony Martin showed Franklyn a copy of his comedy album Plaid Pants And Psychopaths which has his first name misspelled.

Ajaye is the author of Comic Insights: The Art of Standup Comedy (ISBN 978-1879505544), which contains tips for aspiring comedians as well as interviews with comic legends.

References

External links

• Franklyn Ajaye at the Internet Movie Database.
• Franklyn Ajaye at Allmovie.
• Franklyn Ajaye discography at Discogs.

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