Candidate’s Name: Shaniah Charles

Candidate’s Number: 160010

Centre Name: Bishop’s Centenary College

Centre Number: 160010

Year of Examination: 2023

Teacher: Mrs. K. Grant-Clarke

Subject: English A

Topic: Comedian: Steve Harvey

Territory: Trinidad

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 Table of Contents

Plan of Investigation 3

Artefact 1 4

Artefact 2 5

Artefact 3 7

Reflections 8

Oral Presentation (Plan) 11

Group Written Report 12

Bibliography 13

Appendix 14

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 Plan of Investigation

The topic and subtopic of my English S.B.A. is on International Comedians: Steve

Harvey. I chose this subtopic because Steve Harvey motivates people who don’t believe in
themselves, and he gives great advice. The artefacts to be sourced are a biography, an excerpt
from an article, and a speech. Information on my topic was collected using websites,
newspapers, and magazines. Comprehension skills and rhyme scheme will be used to form
the analysis for the reflection. Persuasive speaking will be used in the oral presentation. My
expected benefits as a student of English are comprehension skills, persuasive speaking, and
rhyme scheme.

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 Artefact 1: Biography

Steve Harvey: American Comedian, Actor, and Talk Show Host

Steve Harvey, in full Broderick Steven Harvey, (born January 17, 1957, Welch, West
Virginia, U.S.), American comedian, actor, author, and television and radio personality who
first gained fame for his observational humour and later became known for his self-help
advice, especially about relationships.

Harvey grew up with his parents and elder siblings in Cleveland. He attended Kent State
University but left without graduating. He returned to Cleveland and picked up what work he
could, most often finding employment in sales. He was selling insurance when in 1985 he
won an amateur night contest at a local comedy club and decided to focus on becoming
successful in stand-up comedy. Harvey used observational humour drawn from situations in
his own life and spent the next few years largely on the road playing in any club willing to
book him. By the early 1990s he had become a headliner in well-known comedy clubs in big
cities; he also appeared on TV on the 1990 Johnnie Walker National Comedy Search and in
1993 on cable TV network HBO’s Def Comedy Jam.

Harvey in 1993 became the host of the syndicated TV show “It’s Showtime” at the Apollo, a
gig he maintained until 2000. In addition, he developed a TV comedy, Me and the Boys, in
which he played the widowed father of three sons. Though the show won high ratings, it
lasted only a single season (1994–95). A second TV series—The Steve Harvey Show (1996–
2002)—attracted a large and stable audience; the sitcom, set in an inner-city high school,
featured Harvey as a former funk musician turned music teacher and comedian Cedric the
Entertainer as a gym teacher. Harvey later began hosting the game show Family Feud (2010)
and its spin-off Celebrity Family Feud (2015–). His uplifting talk show Steve Harvey debuted
in 2012 and ran until 2017, when a new show, Steve, was launched. That program ended in
2019. From 2016 to 2019 he also hosted Little Big Shots.

In 1996 Harvey began hosting a morning radio show on Chicago’s WGCI; he led other radio
programs beginning in 2000 and started The Steve Harvey Morning Show in 2005. He
continued his stand-up career as well and released a comedy album, Steve Harvey Live—
Down South Somewhere (1997). During the late 1990s he participated in the Kings of
Comedy tour with Cedric the Entertainer, D.L. Hughley, and Bernie Mac. Other movie
credits included The Fighting Temptations (2003), You Got Served (2004), and Johnson
Family Vacation (2004).

Harvey’s radio show, which included advice to callers about relationships and other life
situations, inspired him to begin writing self-help books, beginning with Act like a Lady,
Think like a Man: What Men Really Think About Love, Relationships, Intimacy, and
Commitment (2009), which became a best seller. His other books included Straight Talk, No
Chaser (2010) and Act like a Success, Think like a Success: Discovering Your Gift and the
Way to Life’s Riches (2014).

In 2015 Harvey made news as host of the Miss Universe beauty pageant when he mistakenly
crowned the wrong contestant as the winner of the competition (but quickly corrected the
error). From 2010 he helped head the Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation, a philanthropic
venture that provided mentoring to fatherless young people.

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 Artefact 2: Excerpt from an Article

The Steve Harvey Success Story

Steve Harvey is a prominent American businessman, actor, author, game show host, and
former comedian. Harvey is also the author of the New York Times bestselling book Act
Like a Lady Think Like a Man, as well as three other books. In addition to this, he is also the
founder of the Steve Harvey Global Entertainment Company, which is a shell company for
most of his other successful businesses. So, considering Steve Harvey’s impressive list of
achievements, we will be diving into how this inspiring man came to be in this Steve Harvey
Success Story special.

Early Days
As a young boy, Steve Harvey had a dream. In his early days, when he was just in grade
school, he made up his mind that he wanted to become famous and be on television. In fact,
he was so determined that this is what he wanted to do with his life, that he bravely stood
before his entire class one day, after the teacher gave every student the opportunity to tell the
class what they wanted to be when they grew up.

This was a big leap for Steve Harvey, because not only was he young, and knew little about
the real world, but he had a severe stutter. A stutter that many people would use an excuse for
why they couldn’t do something.

Steve Harvey’s decision to stand up in front of his class, and tell the world what he intended
to do with his life was a defining moment for him. Here’s why; after being asked what he
wanted to be when he grew up, and after sharing his vision with his teacher and his entire
class that he wanted to be on Television someday, he was ridiculed. He shared his vision, his
dreams, and as typically happens to far too many starry-eyed kids with big dreams, someone
belittles them.

In Harvey’s case, it was his own teacher who tried to snuff out his dream. She assured
Harvey, that he would never make it onto the television or in the entertainment industry
because of his severe stutter. This teacher leveled with Harvey that his dream was a pipe
dream, especially considering no one in his community ever had, or would make it big in the
entertainment world.

Challenge Accepted
But Harvey didn’t let this teacher destroy his dream. Instead, he used his teacher’s doubts as
fuel. He personally took her naysaying as a challenge, and committed himself to proving her
wrong someday. Now, even though Steve Harvey chose to challenge his teacher’s naysaying,
he still had to go through some serious trials and tribulations before he would take his leap.

In fact, before ‘making it”, Steve Harvey spent years bouncing from job to job. He worked as
an autoworker, an insurance salesman, a mailman, a carpet cleaner, and many other jobs.
That’s right, before he became the successful person he is today, he struggled just to make
ends meet. But then, at the age of 27, he deciding to finally go after his dream. And this is
when things became really difficult for Harvey.

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Steve Harvey finally took a leap of faith to pursue a career in comedy. And, for the following
three years, he would struggle. For three years he was homeless, and living out of his Ford
Taurus so he could continue to pursue his dream.

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 Artefact 3: Poem

Don’t Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

when the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
when the funds are low and the debts are high,
and you want to smile but you have to sigh,
when care is pressing you down a bit - rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns.

As everyone of us sometimes learns.
And many a fellow turn about when he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don't give up though the pace seems slow - you may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than it seems to a faint and faltering man;

Often the struggler has given up when he might have captured the victor's cup;
and he learned too late when the night came down,
how close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out - the silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
and when you never can tell how close you are,
it may be near when it seems afar;
so, stick to the fight when your hardest hit - it's when things seem worst, you must not quit.

by John Greenleaf Whittier

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 Reflection 1

Before starting the S.B.A., I thought that the topic was very interesting, because
comedians amuse people, and allow them to laugh at their jokes. My first artefact, a
biography entitled “American comedian, actor, and talk show host”, gives readers important
bio-data about the comedian. I learned that his full name is Broderick Steve Harvey, and he
was born in 1957, in Welch, Virginia.
My second artefact, an article entitled “The Steve Harvey Success Story”, gives
readers an insight into his struggles and his achievements. I learned that Steve is not just an
actor, but he is an author, and founder of the Steve Harvey Global Entertainment Company.
My third artefact is a poem entitled “Don’t Quit”; a poem Steve Harvey shared with
people on various platforms. I learned that this poem encouragers one not to give up when
faced with challenges. Even when things are not going well, keep pushing.

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 Reflection 2

The language skill used in artefact one, a biography (prose) is the comprehension
skill, chronological sequence. This was used to give readers a timeline of Steve’s career. For
example, “In the 1990s, he headlined for comedy clubs; 1993, he hosted “It’s Showtime”;
and 1996-2002, he starred in a TV series, The Steve Harvey Show,” just to name a few.
The language skill used in artefact two, an article (prose) is the comprehension skill,
identifying writer’s intention. This was used to show readers why Steve didn’t give up as a
child when he shared his dreams. For example, paragraph five, “It was his own teacher … of
his severe stutter.”
The language skill used in artefact two, a poem (poetry) is rhyme scheme, to show the
structure of the poem, even though it doesn’t follow a single rhyme scheme. For example,
stanza one rhymes AABBC, and stanza two rhymes AABCD.

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 Reflection 3

I enjoyed working in a group. It enabled me to pool our ideas, together and see
problems from different perspectives. The group work was not challenging, but rather
beneficial because as a team we make time, and planned and communicated with each other.
Working in the group fostered teamwork. This experience improved my ability to share my
opinions and listen to others’ ideas.
From doing this topic, I learned about comedians, other than Steve Harvey. I also
learned that comedians have a lot to teach their audience beyond simply making them laugh.
Doing research helped me emotionally and academically. I was able to read, and find a range
of research information. My writing improved by reading through my artefacts and editing
my work. My self-discipline has increased by completing my assignments. The language
skills that I acquired were comprehension skills and rhyme scheme.

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 Oral Presentation (Plan)

Name: Shaniah Charles

Title of presentation: Steve Harvey

Genre chosen: Prose (speech)

Sources used: The artefacts to be sourced are a biography, an excerpt from an article, and a
speech. Information on my topic was collected using websites, newspapers, and magazines.

Use of language (skills) in sources: Comprehension skills and rhyme scheme will be used to
form the analysis for the reflection. Persuasive speaking will be used in the oral presentation.

Expected Benefits: My expected benefits as a student of English are comprehension skills,

persuasive speaking, and rhyme scheme.

Main ideas discovered about the subtopic:

 Steve Harvey’s full name is Broderick Steven Harvey, (born January 17, 1957,
Welch, West Virginia, U.S.).

 Steve Harvey’s decision to stand up in front of his class, and tell the world what he
intended to do with his life was a defining moment for him.

 From 2010 he helped head the Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation, a philanthropic
venture that provided mentoring to fatherless young people.

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 Group Written Report

Our group members gravitated towards the topic International Comedians with
individual subtopics. The chosen subtopics by members of the group were Kevin Hart, Adam
Sandler, Tiffany Haddish, Tyler Perry, Steve Harvey, and Martin Lawrence. We have a total
of eighteen artefacts. Although some artefacts were difficult to source, we kept researching
until valuable information was found. Through voting, we selected three artefacts that had the
most interesting main ideas.

The three artefacts chosen were: two biographies, and a blog. These connected to the
general topic as they analyzed the comedians’ love life, origin story and their rise to fame.
Our group members met on evenings after school via zoom, so members that all members
could contribute. The group leader ensured we were present prior to any decision making.
The time keeper kept us on track to avoid spending excessive time on one part of the report.

The first artefact, a biography entitled “Kevin Hart” by Biography.com Editors (2014)
discussed the life and career of Kevin. We learned that he was born in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, and raised by his mom, while his dad battled cocaine and the law. The second
artefact, a biography entitled “Tyler Perry” by Casey (2022) discussed the child life and
career of Tyler. We learned that in 2021, Perry received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian
Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He was cited for “caring for
people who are most often ignored.” The third artefact, a blog entitled “An Ode to Adam
Sandler” by Coile (2017) praised the comedian for his role as Danny Meyerowitz. From the
blog, we learned that Danny brought the character to life with his incredible comedic and
acting skills and made this movie the most outstanding in his filmography.
 

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 Bibliography

Bauer, P. (2022, January 18). Steve Harvey. Encyclopedia Britannica.

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Steve-Harvey

Guest, E. (1921, March 4). Don’t quit. Published in the Detroit Free Press.
https://www.yourdailypoem.com/listpoem.jsp?poem_id=1820

The Strive Team. (2021, March 12). The Steve Harvey success story.
https://thestrive.co/steve-harvey-success-story/

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 Appendix

Artefact 1: Biography

Kevin Hart

Who Is Kevin Hart?

Kevin Hart began working as a stand-up comedian shortly after graduating from high school,
eventually migrating to bigger clubs in New York and Los Angeles. In 2009 he released his
first stand-up album, I'm a Grown Little Man. His 2011 tour, Laugh at My Pain (also the
name of a subsequent documentary), grossed $15 million, and since then Hart has gone on to
big-time Hollywood success, appearing in comedies like Think Like a Man, About Last
Night, Get Hard, Central Intelligence and two Jumanji features.

Early Life and Career

Hart was born on July 6, 1979, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The youngest of two boys, Hart
was raised by his mother, Nancy, who took on the role of a single parent as a result of her
husband's chronic battles with cocaine and the law. Throughout much of Hart's childhood, his
father, Henry Hart, was in and out of jail and rarely around. As a coping mechanism, the
young Hart found humor to battle back the pain of his childhood. Henry has since cleaned up
his life, and father and son have reconnected.

The experience of those tough years would later provide a source for much of Hart's comedy.
"The jokes," he has said of his stand-up, "come from a real experience." As a boy, Hart was
obsessed with stand-up comedy and comedians in general, and he listed Chris Tucker and
J.B. Smoove as some important influences. After graduating from high school, Hart moved to
New York City and later to Brockton, Massachusetts. But it was back in his hometown of
Philadelphia, while working as a shoe salesman, that Hart's stand-up career began to blossom.

It was a rough start. For a time, Hart pounded the pavement at a variety of small comedy
clubs, working under the stage name of Lil' Kev the Bastard. Few saw Hart, and those who
did, didn't find him all that funny. "I was trying to be everybody," he once said. "I was so
confused. I didn't know what to do."

Under the guidance of Keith Robinson, a veteran comedian who began to mentor the younger
comic, Hart began performing under his own name and creating material drawn from real-life
experiences. Success eventually followed. After winning several amateur stand-up
performances, he began performing regularly in clubs around the country.

Stand-Up Stardom, Albums and Tours.

Hart's comedy has been compared to the four "Kings of Comedy," incorporating elements of
Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, D.L. Hughley and Bernie Mac.

As Hart's stand-up career began to take off, ABC handed the young comic his own sitcom,
The Big House. Hart played himself on the show, a successful young man who is forced to
leave his home in Hawaii and move in with some distant relatives in Philadelphia after
getting ensnared in an embezzlement scheme. The outlandish storyline never caught on with
audiences, however, and the show was canceled after just six episodes.

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Hart rebounded quickly. In 2006 he released his first stand-up album, I'm a Little Grown
Man, which further cemented his status as one of comedy's best young performers. His
second album, Seriously Funny, released four years later, proved to be even bigger.

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 Artefact 2 – Biography

Tyler Perry

Tyler Perry, original name Emmitt Perry, Jr., (born September 13, 1969, New Orleans,
Louisiana, U.S.), American playwright, actor, screenwriter, producer, and director whose
works—in which he often portrayed the character Mabel (“Madea”) Simmons, an outspoken
grandmother—combined humour, religious wisdom, and personal triumph.

Perry had a difficult childhood. He grew up with a physically abusive father (he later changed
his name to disassociate himself from his father), attempted suicide, and dropped out of high
school, although he eventually passed a high-school equivalency exam. After he heard
television personality Oprah Winfrey suggest that writing down personal experiences could
be cathartic, Perry began to keep a journal, which evolved into his first play, I Know I’ve
Been Changed. Perry worked a number of odd jobs to raise money for its first staging, which
took place in Atlanta in 1992. His self-funded production—in which he also starred—
received almost no attention and sent him into extreme poverty. In 1998, however, he
restaged the play and sold-out performances for eight days in a row before moving it to
Atlanta’s nationally acclaimed Fox Theatre. Perry’s work was distinct in its blend of
traditional theatre with African American Southern entertainment, which had been largely
untapped by larger commercial enterprises.

Perry’s second stage production, a 1999 adaptation of Woman, Thou Art Loosed! by T.D.
Jakes, grossed more than $5 million in five months. Perry’s trademark character, Madea, was
created in his play I Can Do Bad All by Myself (2000; film 2009). The brutally honest,
rambunctious gun-toting grandmother, whose name comes from the frequent African
American contraction of “Mother Dear,” was played by Perry in drag. She was a recurring
figure in a number of his later plays, such as Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2001; film
2005), Madea’s Family Reunion (2002; film 2006), Madea’s Class Reunion (2003), Madea
Goes to Jail (2005; film 2009), Madea’s Big Happy Family (2010; film 2011), A Madea
Christmas (2011; film 2013), and Madea’s Neighbors from Hell (2014).

Perry moved to feature films in 2005 by writing, producing, and acting in a screen version of
Diary of a Mad Black Woman. Its feel-good narrative, in which Madea counsels her
granddaughter through a failed marriage, helped Perry gain a wider audience. He reprised the
role of Madea in subsequent film adaptations of his plays, which he also produced and
directed. A 2007 adaptation of his play Why Did I Get Married? (2004), an exploration of
modern relationships, allowed Perry to move beyond the Madea character on-screen. He
additionally began writing and directing films that were not based on previous work, such as
Daddy’s Little Girls (2007) and The Family That Preys (2008).

In 2010 Perry wrote and directed Why Did I Get Married Too?, in which he also starred, and
For Colored Girls, an adaptation of Ntozake Shange’s groundbreaking ensemble theatre piece
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf (1975). He later
wrote and directed himself in Good Deeds (2012), a drama about a CEO seeking personal
fulfillment; Madea’s Witness Protection (2012); Boo! A Madea Halloween (2016) and its
sequel (2017); A Madea Family Funeral (2019); and A Madea Homecoming (2022). Tyler
Perry’s Temptation (2013), which Perry adapted from his play The Marriage Counselor
(2008), offered another tale of romantic tumult. He then wrote and directed the uplifting The
Single Moms Club (2014). His movies from 2018 included the thriller Acrimony, in which

16
Taraji P. Henson played a wife seeking revenge against her deceptive husband, and the
comedy Nobody’s Fool, which starred Tiffany Haddish as a recently paroled ex-convict who
helps her straitlaced sister with her love life. A Fall from Grace (2020), about an abused
woman accused of killing her husband, aired on Netflix.

In 2006 he created Tyler Perry Studios, and since 2015 it has been located on a former army
base in Atlanta. In 2021 Perry received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He was cited for “caring for people who are
most often ignored.”

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 Artefact 3: Blog
An Ode to Adam Sandler
Sandler plays Danny Meyerowitz, the oldest of the three Meyerowitz siblings -- well, as they
are quick to point out, "half siblings" (Ben Stiller and Elizabeth Marvel complete the trio).
Right off the bat, Danny is portrayed as a schlep; various characters comment on his inability
to find or keep a job, he is divorced, he walks pathetically with a limp that he refuses to get
checked out, and the film chronicles him staying with assorted family members because he
has no home of his own. That said, he clearly is a loving and supportive father and does have
musical talent, even if those talents were never put to use. Indeed, he is a sad sack, and his
father Harold (Dustin Hoffman) receives great joy out of comparing Danny to his successful
half-brother, Matthew.

Sandler has played losers before, characters who can never seem to get their lives together.
What is so special about his performance as Danny Meyerowitz? This is his first
collaboration with Noah Baumbach, and it immediately feels clear from the opening scene
alone, that this role was tailor made for Sandler's comedic and dramatic capabilities. A
defining characteristic to Danny is his short fuse -- many scenes depict him shouting at an
unseen character, usually someone whose driving is annoying Danny. He gets so heated and
begins shouting obscenities until the scene cuts. Of course, these moments are played for
humour, watching Danny go from 0 to 100 in a matter of seconds. But throughout the film,
Baumbach imbues a deep melancholy to Danny. He is a tragically comic figure. It is a
challenging and complex role, and Sandler dives into Danny's eccentricities so effortlessly, it
truly feels like a master is at work.
Many may scoff that I just referred to Sandler as a "master." However, his work in The
Meyerowitz Stories is nothing short of revelatory. Danny Meyerowitz is a character bubbling
with neuroses. he is lonely and desperate for attention; he is sometimes unlikeable and
stubborn. He's human. Every moment, every outburst, every twitch of his upper lip feels
authentic and real. It helps, of course, that he has such a rich screenplay to work with and a
cast that he shares such cutting dialogue with -- the relationship between him, Stiller, and
Marvel comes across as eerily relatable. We watch him flounder to come up with words to
say to his father, a man who has never taken him seriously. We watch him struggle with a
daughter who is leaving for college and he is afraid to say goodbye. We watch him flirt and
fail at it, and these moments all hit close to home.
Sandler has played goofballs plenty of times before, but none have matched the sincerity of
his performance as Danny Meyerowitz. So, while he was not necessarily in need of a career
makeover, 2017 proved (once again) that Adam Sandler is an actor still worth talking about.

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