The CW Source

It’s a big birthday for the hardest-working man on The CW: Terry Crews turns 40 today. Happy birthday, Terry!

We’re constantly blown away by Terry’s energy – the man is EVERYWHERE! He’s only been acting since 1999, and already he’s got a mile-long list of credits, including Get Smart, Street Kings, Balls of Fury, The Benchwarmers, and so much more. That’s all while starring in Everybody Hates Chris as Julius, the hard-working, penny-pinching patriarch of the Rock clan.

Terry started out in Flint, Michigan, where he earned an art scholarship to Interlochen Art Academy and then Western Michigan University. He planned to become a special effects artist in Hollywood, but he got distracted when he walked onto the football team. He was a natural – Terry played All Mid-American Conference defensive end, and his team won the Mid-American Conference championship in 1988.

That evolved into a pro football career – Terry played for a number of NFL teams between 1991 an 1997 – but he never let go of his art skills. In fact, he painted a line of NFL licensed lithographs for Sierra Sun Editions. Who knew?

To top it all off, Terry has been married for 19 years and have five kids. When does the man sleep?

We’re hoping Terry got some time off on his birthday, and had a great time with family and friends. Leave you birthday wishes for Terry in the comments!

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We've got pics from The CW launch party in Los Angeles! You'll see stars like Terry Crews, Erica Durance (right), Jared Padalecki, Chelsea, Robin, and Melissa R. from Pussycat Dolls Present, Tyler James Williams, Tichina Arnold, Ray Wise, and more! Jason C. interviewed many of the CW stars at the party, so we'll be posting chats with them very soon. For now, enjoy the pics, and keep checking back -- we're adding more daily.

A few tidbits: the cast of Everybody Hates Chris is AWESOME -- we'd love to hang out with them on the set sometime. It's got to be hard to keep a straight face with the jovial Terry Crews, hilarious Tichina Arnold, and straight man Tyler James Williams around.

We got some juicy updates from fan favorites Chelsea and Melissa R. of Pussycat Dolls Present (and yes, we made them sing for us). Both girls were touched when they heard how much love they got here on the Source in the spring. Plus, Robin Antin revealed what's new about Season Two of PCD Present.

Erica Durance shared some Smallville scoop, Amy Pietz talked about Aliens in America's controversial nature, and Ray Wise dished on his devilish ways on Reaper. Oh, and we chatted with Stevie Ryan and Tanika Ray of Online Nation and CW Now, respectively, to find out what those new Sunday shows have to offer.

Check out the pics and tell us what you think!

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Happy birthday to the one of the hardest working men on The CW, Terry Crews. He turns 39 today, July 30. We hope he takes the day off and celebrates!

Terry gave everyone a little insight to his manic schedule when he was granted the key to the city in his hometown, Flint, Michigan:

"Flint gave me a work ethic. But two or three bad influences will take your life down, so you need to learn to walk alone."

According to the Flint Journal, Crews told the audience that "he received his mannerisms from his father, his sense of humor from his mother and mixed those traits with other life-forming experiences from past role models, including coaches, teachers and others." He also emphasized that hard work, persistence and dreams pay off.

The moment we loved was when a 13-year-old boy won $120 for naming all the pictures Terry has been in, as clips flashed on the screen behind the star. "I don't even know all the names," Crews joked. With all the flicks he’s been in, we can believe it.

Congratulations, Terry!

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What do we do when we're not watching CW shows and writing for the blog? Sleep, relax, goof off, then sleep some more.

But CW stars are a different, hardier breed. When they're not working on their shows, they're busy working on movie projects.

Take Terry Crews. The Everybody Hates Chris dad may be the hardest-working man on television. His character, Julius, has three jobs. In real life, Crews has just been cast in one picture, while another is in post-production and a two more are awaiting release. When does this man sleep?

First up, Crews will be appearing as a competitor in "Balls of Fury," a movie about a deadly underground Ping Pong tournament and the fiendish mastermind (Christopher Walken, who looks like he's having a blast) who runs it. We can't wait to see Crews in all his bicep-flexing glory. Then he'll be showing up in "Who's Your Caddy," a comedy about a rap mogul (Antwan "Big Boi" Patton of Outkast) who wants to play golf at a snooty country club. No word on if mischievous gophers will be involved.

Crews' third movie, currently in post-production, is "How to Rob a Bank," about a slacker (Nick Stahl) who gets roped into the role of hostage negotiator between the robber (Gavin Rossdale) and the cops (represented by Crews.) It sounds like Crews will have plenty of opportunity to exhibit his comic gifts.

Finally, Crews has just started filming "Get Smart," an update on the 60s TV comedy about spies, shoe phones and the battle between the organizations KAOS and CONTROL. Crews plays Agent 91 alongside current comedy It-boy Steve Carell (love him!), go-to ingénue Anne Hathaway, and a host of other luminaries, including Masi Oka, The Rock, Alan Arkin and Terrence Stamp.

Whew! Just writing about how busy Crews has been has tuckered us out. We need a nap.

Do any of these projects pique your interest? What's your favorite Terry Crews role? Let us know what you think!

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Father and son on Everybody Hates Chris have graced the big screen recently: Tyler James Williams (Chris) in Unaccompanied Minors and Terry Crews (Julius) in Norbit, among other flicks. In March, mom and daughter are getting in on the action.

Tichina Arnold plays Martin Lawrence’s wife in the new buddy road comedy Wild Hogs. Apparently she’s just as fearsome in that flick as she is as Rochelle in Everybody Hates Chris – Lawrence only joins the road trip by lying to his wife that he’s going to a plumbing convention. We sure wouldn’t mess with her….

Imani Hakim, Tonya on “Chris,” joins a different family in Reign Over Me, a drama about a man (Adam Sandler) recovering from losing his family on 9/11 with the help of his old college roommate and his family. Hakim plays Don Cheadle and Jada Pinkett Smith’s daughter in this movie. We wonder how they stack up against Rochelle and Julius!

Finally, the Chris who started the whole show –- Chris Rock -– will be starring in the comedy I Think I Love My Wife, opening later this month.

He tells the Hartford Courant about filming, divorce rumors, and what can get you fired from a Chris Rock project: Original director Charles Stone III ("Drumline") ending up not directing “Wife” because "[h]e didn't like `Annie Hall'" Rock says. "That scared me." We have to agree with him there.

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Name: Terry Crews

Where you can catch him: As Julius Rock on Everybody Hates Chris, Mondays at 8/7c

Why we heart him: Can you imagine anyone else playing Chris' tough but essentially warm-hearted father? We can't. Furthermore, the former NFL player has proven that there's life after football - and quite a fulfilling life at that. Not only is he a regular on a critically acclaimed TV series, he also is a parent (5 kids - phew!), a painter and has appeared in movies such as Training Day, Starsky & Hutch, The Benchwarmers and the November release Harsh Times with Christian Bale and Eva Longoria.

How did he land his current gig? He met Chris Rock on the set of The Longest Yard, and Chris chose Terry for the role.

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