View source for Aaron McGruder

{{short description|American writer and cartoonist (born 1974)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
| name             = Aaron McGruder
| image            = File:Aaron McGruder 2002 (cropped).png
| caption          = McGruder in 2002
| birth_name       = Aaron Vincent McGruder
| birth_date       = {{birth date and age|1974|5|29|mf=y}}
| birth_place      = [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]], U.S.
| occupation       = {{hlist|Writer|cartoonist|producer}}
| genre            = [[Comic strip]]s, [[television writer|television screenwriter]]
| movement         = 
| notableworks     = [[The Boondocks (comic strip)|''The Boondocks''
 (comic strip)]]<br>[[The Boondocks (TV series)|''The Boondocks'' (TV series)]]
| influences       = 
| influenced       = 
| education        = [[University of Maryland]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|B.A.]])
}}
'''Aaron Vincent McGruder'''<ref name=encyc>{{cite web| title= McGruder, Aaron 1974| website= encyclopedia.com|year= 2009| publisher= Gale|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/mcgruder-aaron-1974| access-date= October 18, 2016}}</ref> (born May 29, 1974)<ref name=CAO>{{cite web |url=https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CH1000161684 |title=Aaron McGruder |work=[[Contemporary Authors|Contemporary Authors Online]] |publisher=[[Gale (publisher)|Gale]] |date=February 17, 2012 |url-access=limited}}</ref> is an American writer, [[cartoonist]], and producer best known for creating ''[[The Boondocks (comic strip)|The Boondocks]]'', a [[Universal Press Syndicate]] [[comic strip]]<ref name=tease>{{cite news |title= Strip Tease |work= [[The Guardian]] |date= December 22, 2005|url= https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2005/dec/22/art.usa |access-date= 7 February 2010 | location= London | first= Gary | last= Younge}}</ref><ref name= Astor /> and [[The Boondocks (TV series)|its animated TV series adaptation]].

==Early life and education==
Aaron McGruder was born in Chicago, Illinois.<ref name=CAO /> When Aaron was six years old, his family moved to [[Columbia, Maryland|Columbia]], Maryland, after his father accepted a job with the [[National Transportation Safety Board]]. McGruder has an older brother.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2004-04-25 |title=He's Gotta Fight the Powers That Be |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-apr-25-tm-mcgruder17-story.html |access-date=2024-03-09 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

McGruder attended the [[Jesuit]] school [[Loyola Blakefield]] from grades seven to nine. After two years he left the school and transferred to the public [[Oakland Mills High School]]. At the [[University of Maryland, College Park|University of Maryland]], he graduated with a degree in [[African American Studies]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://alumni.umd.edu/outstanding-young-alumnus-award|title=Outstanding Young Alumnus Award|date=May 25, 2016|publisher=University of Maryland Alumni Association|access-date=24 February 2018}}</ref>

==Career==
===''The Boondocks'' and related work===
''The Boondocks'' began in 1996 as a [[webcomic]] on Hitlist.com, one of the first online music websites.<ref name="uclick">{{cite web| url= http://content.uclick.com/pdfs/theboondocks_factsheet.pdf| title= The Boondocks| website= UClick.com| publisher= Andrews McMeel Universal | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120704100132/http://content.uclick.com/pdfs/theboondocks_factsheet.pdf| archive-date= July 4, 2012| url-status= dead| access-date= October 17, 2016}}</ref> At the time, he was a DJ on ''The Soul Controllers Mix Show'' on [[WMUC]]. ''The Boondocks'' briefly appeared as a comic strip in the University of Maryland's newspaper ''[[The Diamondback]]'', during [[Jayson Blair]]'s tenure as editor-in-chief.<ref name="uclick"/><ref name="radical"/> McGruder signed a deal with the [[Universal Press Syndicate]] and in April 1999, the strip began appearing in 160 newspapers.<ref name="radical"/>

The comic strip's main characters are two young African-American brothers, [[Huey Freeman|Huey]], named after [[Huey P. Newton]], and his younger brother and wannabe [[Gangster|gangsta]], [[Riley Freeman|Riley]],<ref name=tease/> from inner-city Chicago, who are relocated to live with their grandfather in a sedate suburb. In six months, the comic strip was being distributed to more than 200 publications.<ref name=Astor>{{cite news| title= 'Boondocks' Artist Still Living on the Edge of Controversy: Aaron McGruder Comes to Canada to Talk about His High-Profile Comic| last= Astor| first= David | work= [[Editor & Publisher]]| publisher=| date= October 9, 1999 }}</ref> Five collections of ''The Boondocks'' have been published: ''All The Rage'', ''Public Enemy #2'', ''A Right To Be Hostile'', ''Fresh for '01: You Suckaz'', and ''Boondocks: Because I Know You Don't Read The Newspaper''. An [[The Boondocks (TV series)|animated television series adaptation of the strip]] was successful on [[Cartoon Network]]'s [[Adult Swim]].

In 2013, McGruder expressed interest in filming a movie featuring ''The Boondocks'' TV series supporting character [[Uncle Ruckus]]. [[Gary Anthony Williams]] would reprise his role. McGruder set a goal of $200,000 for startup donations at uncleruckusmovie.com between January 30 to March 1, 2013, but the campaign ended with 2,667 backers and $129,963.<ref name=kickstarter>[http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/362353100/the-uncle-ruckus-movie "The Uncle Ruckus Movie by Aaron McGruder."] ''[[Kickstarter.com]]''.</ref>

In March 2014, ''The Boondocks'' was revived for a new season, but without McGruder's involvement as its [[showrunner]].<ref name= final>{{cite news| last= Moore| first= Frazier| title= 'The Boondocks' Back For Final 'Offensive' Season| url= http://bigstory.ap.org/article/boondocks-back-final-offensive-season| access-date= April 23, 2014| agency= Associated Press| date= April 18, 2014| archive-date= April 24, 2014| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140424023503/http://bigstory.ap.org/article/boondocks-back-final-offensive-season| url-status= dead}}</ref> The first episode of the fourth season was first broadcast on April 21, 2014.<ref name=4th>{{cite web| url= https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373732/episodes?season=4| publisher= IMDb| title= ''The Boondocks'' (2005) Episode List: Season 4| access-date= October 17, 2016}}</ref> In 2019, it was announced that a fifth season of ''The Boondocks'' would be produced with McGruder's involvement. The project was cancelled in February 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wu |first=Ashley Shannon |date=2022-02-04 |title=The Boondocks Reboot Is No Longer Happening at HBO Max |url=https://www.vulture.com/2022/02/the-boondocks-reboot-canceled.html |access-date=2024-10-17 |website=Vulture |language=en}}</ref> 

===Other work===
Among his other projects have been the ''[[Super Deluxe]]'' variety comedy series ''The Super Rumble Mix Show''. McGruder also developed ''[[Black Jesus (TV series)|Black Jesus]]'', another comedy series broadcast on [[Adult Swim]], part of [[Cartoon Network]].<ref name= final />

McGruder has developed into a public speaker on political and cultural issues.
McGruder said in a 2002 keynote address<ref name=H2K2_speakers>{{cite web| url= http://www.h2k2.net/panels.html#mcg |title= Speakers and Panels| website= H2K2.net| year= 2002| access-date= October 18, 2016}}</ref> at the July 12–14, 2002 [[Hackers on Planet Earth#H2K2|H2K2]] conference that he believed that President [[George W. Bush]] was involved with the [[September 11 attacks]]:
{{cquote|Outside of the world of whackos and conspiracy theorists and all of that, very few people in the mainstream have been willing to say what I'm about to say, which is, I really and truthfully believe that George W. Bush is somehow involved, either directly or indirectly, in the attacks on New York City on September 11.<ref name=address>{{cite web|url=http://www.h2k2.net/media/aaron.mp3|title=Keynote address, H2K2 |time= 21:08 – 21:51|accessdate=June 7, 2010|first= Aaron |last= McGruder|date=July 13, 2002|format=MP3}}</ref>}}
During a 2003 reception hosted by ''[[The Nation]]'', McGruder offended attendees by defiantly expressing his support for [[Ralph Nader]]'s 2000 presidential bid. McGruder endured heckling and walkouts as he defended his commitment to left-wing causes, including, he claimed, calling [[Condoleezza Rice]] a "mass-murderer" to her face during the 2002 [[NAACP]] [[Image Awards]].<ref name=radical>{{cite magazine |title=The Radical: Why do editors keep throwing 'The Boondocks' off the funnies page? |first=Ben |last=McGrath |date=April 19, 2004 |magazine= [[The New Yorker]] |url= http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/04/19/040419fa_fact2}}</ref> In 2009, [[Richmond, Indiana]] newspaper ''[[Palladium-Item]]'' reported that McGruder told a [[Martin Luther King Day]] audience at local [[Earlham College]] that then-President-elect [[Barack Obama]] was "not black".<ref name=obama_comments>{{cite web| website=[[Black Entertainment Television|BET]].com| url= https://www.bet.com/article/zizcwn/boondocks-creator-explains-obama-comment |title= 'Boondocks' Creator Explains Obama Comment| first= Kim| last= Rose| date= January 22, 2009| access-date= October 18, 2016}}</ref> McGruder released a statement insisting he was misquoted, while maintaining he remained "cautiously pessimistic" about Obama's presidency.<ref name=obama_comments />

In 2004, with [[Reginald Hudlin]], McGruder co-authored a [[graphic novel]], ''Birth of a Nation: A Comic Novel'', about African Americans in [[East St. Louis]] during an election.<ref name= encyc /> The book's illustrations were drawn by cartoonist [[Kyle Baker]].

In 2005, in celebration of [[Black History Month]], McGruder was invited to provide a lecture at the [[Miami University of Ohio]].<ref>"Celebrating Black History: A Look at How Selected Colleges and Universities Celebrate Black History Month." ''Black Issues in Higher Education'', vol. 21, no. 26, 10 February 2005, p. 33.</ref><ref>Feller, Susan B. [https://archive.today/20210501051951/https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/20389/2003-101.html?sequence=1&isAllowed=y "'The Boondocks' Cartoonist to Speak at VA Tech During Black History Month."] 3 February 2003. Archived from [https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/20389/2003-101.html?sequence=1&isAllowed=y the original.]</ref>

In 2010, McGruder worked as screenwriter in the final treatment of the feature film ''[[Red Tails]]'', released in early 2012. Its story is based on the [[Tuskegee Airmen]], a group of African American combat pilots during [[World War II]].<ref name=moviefone>{{cite web| last= Larnick| first= Eric| url= http://news.moviefone.com/2012/01/19/red-tails-aaron-mcgruder_n_1217128.html| title= Aaron McGruder, 'Boondocks' Creator, on Writing 'Red Tails' and Working With George Lucas After Making Fun of Him| website= Moviefone.com| date= January 20, 2012| access-date= January 23, 2012| url-status= dead| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120724072317/http://news.moviefone.com/2012/01/19/red-tails-aaron-mcgruder_n_1217128.html| archive-date= July 24, 2012| df= mdy-all}}</ref>

In August 2017, it was announced that McGruder, along with producer [[Will Packer]], will develop a series for [[Amazon Video]] called ''Black America'', based on an alternative history, where emancipated black Americans receive three Southern states as [[reparations for slavery]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/news/boondocks-creator-preps-alt-history-drama-black-america-w495349|title='Boondocks' Creator Preps Alt-History Drama 'Black America'|magazine=Rolling Stone|first=Jon|last=Blistein|date=August 1, 2017|access-date=July 20, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/ct-civil-war-history-tv-drama-black-america-20170801-story.html|title=Another Civil War alternate history comes to TV – but with black independence and reparations|last=Izadi|first=Elahe|work=Chicago Tribune|date=August 1, 2017|access-date=July 20, 2021}}</ref> The series' announcement was reportedly seen as a response to [[HBO]]'s in-development alternative history series ''[[Confederate (TV series)|Confederate]]'', whose plot entails a history where the Confederacy won the Civil War. As of 2024 nothing have been made of the project and seemingly scrapped.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://ew.com/tv/2017/08/01/black-america-plot-confederate/|title=Alt-History Drama 'Black America' Reveals Premise in Response to 'Confederate' News|date=August 1, 2017|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|first=Nick|last=Romano|access-date=July 20, 2021}}</ref>{{update inline|date=August 2023}}

==Personal life==
By 2005<ref name= AVclub_interview>{{cite web| last = McGruder | first = Aaron| subject-link = Aaron McGruder |title= Aaron McGruder |interviewer= Interview by Nathan Rabin| access-date= October 17, 2016 | work= The A.V. Club|url=https://www.avclub.com/aaron-mcgruder-1798208839 | date=November 3, 2005}}</ref> and {{as of|2013|lc=yes}}, McGruder was residing in [[Los Angeles]].<ref name= encyc /><ref name= AVclub_interview />

==Publications==
'''Books'''
* [[iarchive:boondocksbecause0000mcgr|''The Boondocks: Because I Know You Don't Read the Newspapers'']] (2000)
* [[iarchive:freshfor01yousuc00mcgr|''Fresh for '01... You Suckas!'']] (2001)
* [[iarchive:righttobehostile0000mcgr|''A Right to be Hostile: The Boondocks Treasury'']] (2003)
* [[iarchive:birthofnationcom00mcgr|''Birth of a Nation: A Comic Novel'']], with [[Reginald Hudlin]]. Illustrated by [[Kyle Baker]] (2004)
* [[iarchive:publicenemy2alln0000mcgr|''Public Enemy #2: An All-New Boondocks Collection'']] (2005)
* [[iarchive:allrageboondocks00mcgr|''All the Rage: Boondocks Past and Present'']] (2007)

'''Book Contributions'''
*{{cite book | last1 = Knight | first1 = Keith | author-link1 = Keith Knight (cartoonist) | others = Foreword by Aaron McGruder | date = 2005-02-10 | title = The Passion of the Keef: The Fourth K Chronicles Compendium | language = en-US | edition = First | publisher = [[Manic D Press|Manic D Press, Inc.]] | isbn = 978-0916397678 | oclc = 861830439 | ol = OL8337655M | df = dmy-all }}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|2}}
*{{cite journal | last1 = Rambsy II | first1 = Howard | title = The Vengeance of Black Boys: How Richard Wright, Paul Beatty, and Aaron McGruder Strike Back | url =  | format =  | department =  | journal = [[Mississippi Quarterly|The Mississippi Quarterly]] | year = 2008 | language = en-US | publisher = [[Johns Hopkins University Press]] | volume = 61 | issue = 4 | pages = 643–657 | doi =  | doi-access =  | issn = 0026-637X | jstor = 26476885 | lccn = 59040435 | oclc = 01758368 | df = dmy-all}}
*{{cite journal | last1 = Tyree | first1 = Tia C. M. | last2 = Krishnasamy | first2 = Adrian | title = Bringing Afrocentricity to the Funnies: An Analysis of Afrocentricity Within Aaron McGruder's "The Boondocks" | url =  | format =  | department =  | journal = [[Journal of Black Studies]] | year = 2011 | language = en-US | publisher = [[SAGE Publishing]] | volume = 42 | issue = 1 | pages = 23–42 | doi =  10.1177/0021934709359081| doi-access =  | eissn = 1552-4566 | issn = 0021-9347 | jstor = 25780790 | s2cid = 143921835 | lccn = 77022565 | oclc = 1799971 | df = dmy-all}}
{{refend}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb name}}
* {{C-SPAN}}
* {{Charlie Rose guest|7415}}

{{NAACP Image Award – Chairman's Award}}
{{The Boondocks}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mcgruder, Aaron}}
[[Category:1974 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American artists]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American artists]]
[[Category:African-American comics creators]]
[[Category:American comic strip cartoonists]]
[[Category:American comics writers]]
[[Category:American comics artists]]
[[Category:American satirical comics writers]]
[[Category:American satirical comics artists]]
[[Category:American free speech activists]]
[[Category:People from Columbia, Maryland]]
[[Category:Showrunners of animated series]]
[[Category:The Boondocks]]
[[Category:University of Maryland, College Park alumni]]
[[Category:Writers from Chicago]]