Jonathan Slocumb had a problem. An aspiring young comedian, he was looking for a way to break into the comedy circuit. When he heard about the Redd Foxx Comedy Search, he decided to enter—and was determined to win.

But that was the problem. All the other prominent comedians he knew seemed to get their laughs by lacing their monologues with healthy doses of cursing. A self-proclaimed "skinny church boy," Jonathan was not fluent in the language of profanity, and so was unsure of what to do.

Finally, the desire to fit in and succeed overruled his upbringing. "I had never done this before," he recalls, "but I wrote my material out and asked one of my best friends to read it and then write in some curse words where he thought it should be appropriate. So he did, and then I memorized it [for the contest]."

The strategy seemed to work, as Jonathan kept making it past qualifying round after qualifying round. In the end, Jonathan Slocumb won, tying for first place with another comic. But for Jonathan, it was a hollow victory.

"I’ve never been so uncomfortable in my whole life," he says now. "In fact, I felt like a member of the KKK standing up at the NAACP with his robe on!"

Even as he was posing for his championship picture with Redd Foxx, the Holy Spirit was working on Jonathan’s heart. "I said right then ‘I’ll never do this again.’"

He continues, "I knew I was doing wrong, but I thought ‘I’ll just do it.’ But after I won it, I said "I believe I can do this without [cursing]. In fact, I know it…And that was it. Been going straight up ever since."

More than a dozen years later, it appears Jonathan was right. His infectious brand of clean comedy has mesmerized audiences again and again. Drawing from the rich heritage of his Christian faith, Jonathan finds many ways to spark a laugh. Sometimes he’ll do it with his crack-up imitations of Martin Luther King Jr. and James Brown. Other times he’ll get a guffaw suggesting humorous twists on classic hymns. (For example, if the church-goer in the pew next to you has bad breath, instead of singing "Amen," trying belting out a chorus of "A-Mint!") But no matter what he’s doing, he’s always good for a laugh.

Even though Jonathan’s stand-up material is obviously based on the Christian faith, he’s found wide acceptance in both gospel and mainstream circles. His impressive list of credits includes opening act stints for well-known artists like The Winans, Take 6, Kirk Franklin, Aretha Franklin, Natalie Cole, and Toni Braxton. Additionally, he’s performed his holy humor on television shows as far apart as the squeaky clean 700 Club to HBO’s traditionally raunchy Def Comedy Jam. And, showcasing his talent for bringing characters to life, he’s also played the recurring role of Clyde the Slide in the WB Network sitcom, The Steve Harvey Show.

"Yes, I’m a Christian," Jonathan says, "and I’m also a comedian. I think those two aspects can work well together, without compromising one or the other. In fact, the motto I use in my life and career is, ‘You don’t have to compromise to be recognized.’"

Reflecting further, he says, "People believe that when it comes to entertainment and money that the dirtier and raunchier you are, the greater your marketability." Because of his decision not to use that kind of material, Jonathan admits "I guess the hardest thing [for me] would be the fact that I have to kind of prove myself a little bit above and beyond other comedians because of my stance."

Judging from Jonathan’s current string of successes, God has chosen to bless that decision to be both funny and clean, even offering encouragement from unlikely sources. The hugely popular mainstream comedian, Sinbad, caught Jonathan’s gospel act and advised him not to limit his performances just to church groups, telling him mainstream audiences would enjoy his comedy too. Heavyweight champion boxer, Evander Holyfield saw Jonathan perform and commented "I like him because he’s clean. He doesn’t try to hurt people’s feelings. He’s just funny."

Along with these blessings, however, there also comes temptation—particularly if you’re successful and single, as Jonathan is. Jonathan reports that women in an audience can be star struck by his performance, which has on numerous occasions resulted in propositions after a show.

Jonathan laughs about it now, but admits early in his career those kinds of post-show encounters left him a little flustered. He explains with a grin, "See, when I was coming up as a kid, I was this tall skinny church boy. I got no attention from women—EVER!"

For Jonathan, remembering his relationship with God as well as the potentially negative consequences of sex outside of marriage has helped him resist this kind of temptation. He says, "I have a whole other agenda now…Now it’s real easy for me to say, ‘That’s very flattering. Thank you, but no thank you."

Fortunately, that’s not the only kind of flattery Jonathan receives after a show. Jonathan reports, "A woman in Australia who was on the verge of committing suicide saw me on television, started laughing and decided that maybe life was worth living after all. Another lady at one of my shows in New York was pregnant and started laughing so hard her water broke." Then he wisecracks, "So I guess you could say that my comedy has helped save a life and bring a life."

Still, some of Jonathan’s favorite compliments have been brought to him through tears. Jonathan relates one such moment that has stuck with him:

"I was in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I did something for [gospel musician] Carlton Pearson, and he has a mixed congregation. And this guy, an older white guy came up to me. He was about 75 or 80 years old, and he came up to me and he just started crying.

"And then I held him and I said, ‘What’s wrong?’ And he said, ‘Young man, my wife has brain cancer and I’ve had no reason to laugh. I could never laugh because I didn’t think anything could be funny because my wife is dying. But tonight you allowed me to laugh."

Another time, an acquaintance of Jonathan’s received one of his CDs as a gift. The next day, she came rushing to see Jonathan with tears in her eyes. She had listened to the comedian’s laugh-a-minute tribute to mothers ("Momma ‘Nem"), and that part of the CD had really struck a chord with her. Fifteen years prior, the woman’s mother had died, but this grief-stricken woman had had difficulty saying goodbye to the mom she’d loved. She’d saved her deceased mother’s clothes and personal artifacts, storing them neatly in a spare room.

After hearing Jonathan’s bit about Momma ‘Nem, she was finally able to release that grief that had hung over her life, to begin to move on with her own life, and to be satisfied with the wonderful memories she has of her mom.

For Jonathan Slocumb, those kinds of stories provide the motivation to continue doing what he does so well. After telling that story, he says, "Knowing that what I do actually impacts people’s lives, that’s worth its weight in gold to me."

Fortunately, Jonathan is never alone in trying to make that kind of difference for people. He reports, "I’m in constant communication with the Lord. I don’t think that I can move without Him. I think that all of my steps are ordered by Him. In fact, I know that. From way back all the way to now, my steps have truly been ordered."

And, although he makes a living poking fun at Christians, Jonathan makes it clear that his relationship with Christ is no laughing matter. "If you don’t follow Christ," he says, "your life would have no meaning." When pressed for more, he adds, "If people really understood that God is who He is and would accept Him as the power that He is and the friend that He is, then they would see [following Christ] is not a hard thing."

That doesn’t mean Jonathan’s life is problem free. As with any entertainer, he’s experienced plenty of disappointments along with his successes. In an attempt to further the acting side of his career, Jonathan recently auditioned for a role in an upcoming TV mini-series about legendary performers, the Temptations. The early indications were positive, and Jonathan was hopeful he would actually land the part. In the end, however, the role was given to another actor.

So how does a guy who deals in happiness handle a let-down like that? By keeping his life in perspective. Says Jonathan, " I can’t be upset about something that I can’t help…I was disappointed maybe a little bit, but I just know that that wasn’t for me."

It’s that kind of perspective Jonathan hopes to pass on to others as well, a perspective that reminds us to "count your blessings instead of counting your troubles." And for Jonathan, the biggest of God’s blessing is simply the gift of life.

"The first blessing of the day," he asserts, "is when you open your eyes. Congratulations! You have just been blessed!"

He continues, "We take that for granted. I woke up! I woke up yesterday." Giving an example of a person who complains because his foot hurts, he suggests, "OK, sit down and think about that. Well, there’s pain—but then there’s your foot! And there’s your leg! And there’s your heart and there’s your brain! All these things can just overpower that one little negative thing."

With this kind of positive attitude, you can bet Jonathan Slocumb will find plenty to smile about in the days to come, and that he’ll be happy to share them with you as well—profanity not included.

JONTHAN SLOCUMB UPDATE!

Hey, in the time between when this article was written and when it was published, a few things have changed in Jonathan Slocumb's life. We'll let him tell you about what's been going on...

"HEY Y'ALL! 

THIS IS JONATHAN SLOCUMB AND I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I APPRECIATE THE QUALITY OF WORK YOU DO...WE TALKED AT LEAST A YEAR AGO AND SINCE THAT TIME QUITE A BIT HAS HAPPENED!

FIRSTLY, I'M MARRIED AND NO LONGER AVAILABLE (thank God!!). MY WIFE'S NAME IS BRINELL AND SHE IS COMPLETING THE FINAL YEAR OF RECEIVING HER DOCTORATE IN CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY (yep I got free at home help so I'm gon' be alright after all) FROM GEORGE FOX UNIVERSITY. 

ALSO, I HAVE A NEW GOSPEL VIDEO TV SHOW COMING OUT SOON IN SYNDICATION CALLED GOSPEL FIRE (for info regarding the show go to GOSPELFIRE.COM).

THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR GREAT WORK! FEEL FREE TO HOLLAH AT ME ANYTIME VIA E-MAIL: LY2L@AOL.COM 

TAKE CARE! I WISH Y'ALL LOVE, LIFE, & LAUGHTER...

----JONATHAN!"

SIDEBAR 1

Full Name: "Jonathan B. Slocumb. And I will never give you my middle name!"

Born Where and When: "February 12^th. Born in Atlanta, Georgia. In the hospital."

Nicknames: "In elementary school I was Brain. In high school I was Tweety Bird. In college I was The Human Pencil."

Hidden Talent: "Could be a professional basketball player!"

One Thing He Can’t Do to Save His Life: "Swim…I am the designated ‘Hold-my-bag-for-me-while-we-go-swimming person."

Favorite NBA Team: "I have two. Because I’m from Atlanta, it’s the Hawks, but because I live in L.A., it’s the Lakers.

Bible Theme Verse for Life: "Job 8:21, ‘He will fill thy lips with laughter and thy voice with rejoicing.’"

SIDEBAR 2

"I get a lot of my material from church….Church ain’t funny, no no. But the people in the pews will crack you up."

"Ladies and gentlemen, if you don’t have a vocabulary, then don’t try to use big words. There was a lady one time who rushed up to me [and said] ‘…In person, you look so extinguished.’ I said ‘I’m glad to know I put your fire out!’"

"This song is just for you sisters, and it’s from my heart…’Blessed assurance/Black women, y’all fine/And one’s goin’ be with me/All of the time…’"

"Things are so bad right now that if Martin Luther King was alive today, he’d have to change his speech from ‘I Have a Dream’ to ‘I Never Dreamed!’ ‘I never dreamed that one day one of the most beautiful black woman in the world would be a man named RuPaul…’"

"I am a black man, I am a Christian man, I love life, I love my culture, I love my Lord and Savoir Jesus Christ!"

If you’d like to hear more of Jonathan Slocumb’s wit and wisdom, check out his debut album, Laugh Yo’ Self 2 Life (Warner Alliance), available where fine Christian CDs are sold.

SIDEBAR 3

To contact Jonathan Slocumb, send correspondence to:

Jonathan Slocumb

c/o Warner Bros. Records

3300 Warner Blvd.

Burbank, CA 91505