Def_Comedy_Jam
Def Comedy Jam
Television series
Def Comedy Jam is an HBO television series produced by Russell Simmons, Stan Lathan, and Bob Sumner.[1][2][3] The series was hosted by Martin Lawrence and Tony Rock in its first six seasons and by D. L. Hughley for its seventh and eighth seasons.
Simmons and long-time collaborator Lathan were inspired to make Def Comedy Jam by The Uptown Comedy Club in Harlem, New York and The Comedy Act Theatre in Los Angeles, California. They teamed up with Def Jam Records label executive and veteran comedy scout Sumner to launch the show. The series had its original run from March 7, 1992 to May 2, 1997 and in 2006 it returned in the HBO fall lineup. Def Comedy Jam helped to launch the careers of several African-American stand-up comedians.