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New TV Sitcom “The Mayor” gives politics a funny edge
Bernard David Jones brings his comedic acting chops – perfected during his time spent at CollegeHumor – to primetime TV in one of Fall TV’s new comedy series The Mayor (TUESDAYs (9:30|8:30c) on ABC).
The new ABC comedy revolves around young rapper ‘Courtney Rose’ (Brandon Michael Hall), who has toiled for years in a small inner-city apartment making his music while looking for his big break. Tired of waiting for opportunity, Courtney cooks up the publicity stunt of the century: Running for mayor of his hometown in California to generate buzz for his music career.
Unfortunately for Courtney, his master plan goes wildly awry, ending in the most terrifying of outcomes: an election victory. With the help of his mother (Community’s Yvette Nicole Brown) and best friends ‘Jermaine Leforge’ (Bernard David Jones) and ‘T.K. Carter’ (Marcel Spears), as well a rival foe turned allied partner ‘Valentina’ (Glee’s Lea Michele), Courtney will have to overcome his hubris if he wants to transform the struggling city he loves.
Click here for the official Trailer or use the widget below to view.
The show is executive produced by Tony winner Daveed Diggs (Broadway’s “Hamilton”), Jamie Tarses (Happy Endings), written and executive produced by Jeremy Bronson (The Mindy Project, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon), with the pilot directed by Executive Producer James Griffiths (black-ish).
With critics already praising the show – “In a word, The Mayor is charming, pairing a super-likeable cast with a fun and instantly engaging premise that it wastes little time diving into” Matt Mitovich, TV Line – the series also promises to tackle tough social issues while depicting a universe where heart and politics aren’t mutually exclusive, with JET Magazine describing it as “the political sitcom for millennials.”
Born and raised in Paterson, NJ, Bernard David Jones realized, at a young age, that he was born for greatness. He started acting and singing in church, and he later joined a performing arts company. With this company, he traveled the USA sharing his gifts with everyone.
Bernard attended high school at Rosa L. Parks School of Fine and Performing Arts. After graduating, he continued his education at Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA, where he joined KAΨ Fraternity and received his B.A. in Theatre.
While in college, Bernard was given the opportunity of a lifetime joining an international tour singing backgrounds for Grammy nominated singer Lyfe Jennings.
Bernard’s first professional show was at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta where he played ‘Lil D’ in Andre 3000’s Class of 3000.
From there he went on to play ‘Mushu’ in Disney’s stage production of Mulan and originated the role of ‘JB’ in The Real Tweenagers of Atlanta at the Alliance Theatre. 
Around this time, Bernard also started working in television, taking advantage of the booming Atlanta TV industry, appearing as ‘Milo’ on Tyler Perry’s Meet The Browns (TBS) and House of Payne(TBS).
He has also appeared on Single Ladies (VH1) opposite Isiah Washington and Lisa Raye. After a nearly decade stint in Atlanta, Bernard made the move to his current location in Los Angeles, where he soon booked the feature film THE LOOKALIKE, opposite Justin Long, Jerry O’Connell and Gillian Jacobs.
From there Bernard fine tuned his comedic chomps, joining forces with indie powerhouse CollegeHumor and starring in Refinery29’s YouTube series Shitty Boyfriends opposite Sandra Oh.
Bernard currently resides in Los Angeles where he has a penchant for fashion and is an accomplished photographer.
Click here for more information on the show from ABC TV.
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Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
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