Mac is a hit in 'Mr. 3000'

The comedian brought his knowledge of baseballto the role.
By HANH NGUYEN
ZAP2IT.COM
Comedian Bernie Mac, best known as the lovable curmudgeon on his self-titled Fox sitcom, tests the limits of his charisma in the baseball comedy "Mr. 3000."
Mac plays Stan Ross, a swaggering, loud-mouthed Brewers ballplayer who has little respect for his teammates, the press or even his fans. When he reaches his goal of 3,000 hits, he abandons his team by immediately retiring. Whilst resting on his laurels, a middle-aged Ross discovers that due to a statistical error, three of his hits don't count. Now, he's back at bat to reclaim the title he's been capitalizing on over the years.
Unlike his onscreen persona, Bernie Mac is friendly without the brash posturing. At a press junket for the film, he greets reporters with genuine glee, even teasing one about hoarding chocolate chip cookies. He's obviously enjoying himself and sports a Braves jersey -- although he insists it's for color coordination, not being a fan -- with matching red Kangol hat and pants. The engaging and unfailingly polite actor credits his manners and humility to his mother.
A class act
"My mama always told me, 'Put some C-L on your A-S-S,"' he says, relating how he was reprimanded after being caught singing a dirty song. "[She'd say,] 'You're going to be a man someday. Act like it.'"
It's advice that he's carried over into his career. In his hit sitcom, it's often a self-effacing Mac who learns a lesson after acting on some foolish impulse. Similarly, "Mr. 3000's" Stan Ross has more than his share of foibles that he must overcome on his journey to maturity -- not an easy task in the testosterone-filled world of ego, trash talking and womanizing.
In his first leading role, Mac hopes he'll hit a home run instead of striking out.
"I said, 'You know what? How you start is how you finish,"' he explains. "I didn't want to go over or under the top. I told them, 'Take the dingaling jokes out.'"
Although he decides not to go the raunchy route, Mac had definite opinions about his character's romance with reporter Mo Collins, played by Angela Bassett. In the film, Mo fights her attraction to Stan after he's treated her shabbily and instead pursues her career in journalism.
Says Mac, "I want to show true black love, minority love. They don't show us or put us in that position where we have to have a disagreement and then come back."
Right for the role
What the comedian loved most about the film, however, was the baseball, a sport that he played seriously in the past. Director Charles Stone appreciated his star's experience, feeling that it helped Stan's physical and emotional believability.
"He's quite a sportsman in his own right, just in general and in the mindset," says Stone. "[That] was one of the things I was really impressed about with Bernie is that he definitely brought the air of an athlete, of all the athletes I know, and sort of the dialogue, the mentality that an athlete will have."
One particular quirk Mac brings to his character is a signature "wiggle" that's inspired by two of his favorite ballplayers, Hall of Famer Rod Carew and Pittsburgh Pirates' Roberto Clemente.
"In sports, there's an individual arrogancy [sic]. ... That's one of those intimidation things," he says. "That's where the wiggle came from, and the wiggle is about confidence. The wiggle is about 'I don't care who's on the mound. I can hit you. You can throw it in my face. You can throw it at my head, but we'll meet again.'"
"Mr. 3000" wiggles up to the plate starting Friday.