Fans are still heralding Bernie Mac as one of the greatest acts in comedic history as they continue to laugh at one of his most memorable jokes.
The late entertainer died of pneumonia complications following a lengthy battle with the inflammatory lung disease sarcoidosis in 2008. He was 50 years old.
But a resurfaced clip from HBO’s late night program “The Chris Rock Show” has allowed fans to relive the genius of Mac’s storytelling.
The stand-up legend appeared on the show for the season 5 premiere, where he spoke about his 25-year marriage to his high school sweetheart Rhonda McCullough. The two wed in 1977 and are parents to one daughter, Je’Niece McCullough.
Mac joked that his better half was “sassy as hell” early on in the relationship and that his notoriety and fame had not affected McCullough’s take-charge demeanor much.
“I ain’t gon’ sit up here and try to put up this cool daddy thing. I’m scared of mine. I don’t know what it is. I weigh more than her. I know I hit harder. … But it’s the mouth. It’s the mouth,” said the “Friday” actor.
“Man, I came in late the other day … She said, ‘You ain’t going nowhere tonight.’ I said, ‘I’m going out, honey.’ She said, ‘You ain’t going no got damn where tonight.’ I said, ‘Baby, who the hell you think you talking to?’ I said, ‘Look at my birth certificate. I’m 42 years old.’ She said, ‘You wanna be 43?’ This is a true story, man,” recalled Mac as he sent the audience into a fit of laughter.
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Against his better judgment, the comedian went out and was a nervous wreck the entire time.
“My pager kept going off and everybody was teasing me and everything,” he said. “I said, ‘Man, let me use your phone. I’m sick of my wife calling me.’ I’m frontin’, I’m really frontin’,” “The Bernie Mac Show” star continued.
When he called home, he unleashed. “‘Hello … don’t ask me a got damn thing, just pay attention. … Don’t worry about where the hell I am. I’m in my skin. I’ll be home, godd—mit, when I get there, and when I get there, I better have something to eat, and it better be hot, and it better be good,” he said. “‘You think I’m bullsh–ting?’ I said, ‘Let me speak to your mama,’” he said, revealing that his assertions had been made to his daughter.
A repost of the joke on Instagram moved one user to write, “Bernie was truly one of the greatest comedian ever. Miss him so much.”
A second person acknowledged that Mac was one of one as they commented, “They don’t make em like this anymore.”
On YouTube, one commentator noted, “2025 and still funny as hell,” about the comic’s unique comedic prowess.
“The Original Kings of Comedy” star featured the joke in various stand-up routines, where Rhonda, Je’Neice, and other relatives were characters that generated laughs.
