| Toofer | |
|---|---|
 James "Toofer" Spurlock |
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| First appearance | "Pilot" |
| Created by | Tina Fey |
| Portrayed by | Keith Powell |
| Information | |
| Gender | Male |
| Age | 33[1] |
| Occupation | Staff writer on TGS |
| Relatives | Tobias Spurlock (great-great-great-grandfather) |
James "Toofer" Spurlock is a fictional character portrayed by Keith Powell in the NBC sitcom 30 Rock. A recurring character in the first season, he is credited as a series regular in season two.
Toofer is an African-American writer for TGS. He has an aversion to the stereotypical aspects of black culture that he believes are embodied by Tracy Jordan. His primary purpose on the show thus far seems to be as a foil to Tracy. According to Liz, Toofer is "afraid of black people." According to Jack, his nickname is "Toofer" because "with him you get a two-for-one; he's a black guy and a Harvard guy." Frank, with whom he shares an office, called him a "black nerd" à la Urkel.
Although he seems to be more straight-laced than the other writers, Toofer is still often seen hanging out with them. Toofer shares his office with Frank, Toofer's half of the room being considerably more organized and tidy. In the episode "Sun Tea", it is revealed that the two have agreed that Frank may pee in cups in his office if the two of them use a Yale University sweatshirt as their "designated fart dampener." Frank and Toofer together tricked Jenna Maroney into fearing for her job in "Jack-tor" by using the power of suggestion. Jenna tried to get back at them by using her sexuality to trap them outside naked. Toofer instantly saw through her plan, but Frank did not.
Toofer becomes angry in the episode "The Break-Up" when Tracy refers to him with the word "nigger". Toofer clearly disagrees with how the word has been used by some in the African-American community as a term of endearment. Also in this episode, it is revealed that Toofer used to write for a BET show called Black Frasier. A short clip of the show was played in this episode, and the show was just the show Frasier done with an African-American cast. Tracy says that Black Frasier aired on BET, Thursday nights "at about 9:00 or 9:15."
In the episode "SeinfeldVision", Liz refers to Toofer as "Chocolate Rain", a reference to the singer Tay Zonday, who caused an internet sensation with his song Chocolate Rain. Zonday is a young, nerdy-looking African American man with a deep voice, supposedly the same characteristics as Toofer.
In the episode "Secrets and Lies", Toofer takes offense to the fact that Frank is wearing a Harvard sweatshirt, even though, as Toofer puts it, he was "not graduated from that institution." This escalates into a feud between the two as Frank begins to wear clothes stereotypical of Ivy-league alum (including a stove-pipe hat, bowtie, an argyle sweater, and a Signet society pin), while Toofer dresses and acts like Frank (including a trucker hat with the phrase "Mom Expert"). Unable to think of a way to end the conflict, the two turned (at James Carville's suggestion) to taunting Josh for his new haircut, which diverted the attention to him and allowed them to wear their own clothes again.
Although Toofer appears to be a buttoned up, straight-laced professional, he is part of the boys' club atmosphere at TGS and occasionally participates in pranks with the rest of the writers, such as making Jenna believe that TGS is undergoing layoffs because of Jack's interference.
In "Fireworks," Toofer is terribly distraught to learn that his ancestor Tobias Spurlock was a Black Confederate officer who personally knew Robert E. Lee rather than a Union officer who knew Ulysses S. Grant as he'd always believed. Also in the episode, Tracy Jordan enlists Toofer to write an Eddie Murphy-esque movie for him based on Thomas Jefferson's life in which Tracy would play all of the parts. Toofer appears enthusiastic about the project until Tracy informs him that he wants the movie to be a drama, not a comedy.
In the episode "The Break Up", Toofer makes reference to having been a member of The Harvard Krokodiloes and having had a solo on "Like a Prayer." The episode "Secrets and Lies" revealed he was also a member of Harvard's Signet Society.
In the episode "Goodbye, My Friend," he admitted that his dad tells people he is a surgeon instead of a comedy writer.
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| Toofer | |
|---|---|
| James "Toofer" Spurlock | |
| First appearance | "Pilot" |
| Created by | Tina Fey |
| Portrayed by | Keith Powell |
| Information | |
| Gender | Male |
| Age | 33[1] |
| Occupation | Staff writer on TGS |
| Relatives | Tobias Spurlock (great-great-great-grandfather) |
James "Toofer" Spurlock is a fictional character portrayed by Keith Powell in the NBC sitcom 30 Rock. A recurring character in the first season, he is credited as a series regular in season two.
Toofer is an African-American writer for TGS. He has an aversion to the stereotypical aspects of black culture that he believes are embodied by Tracy Jordan. His primary purpose on the show thus far seems to be as a foil to Tracy. According to Liz, Toofer is "afraid of black people." According to Jack, his nickname is "Toofer" because "with him you get a two-for-one; he's a black man and a Harvard man." Frank, with whom he shares an office, called him a "black nerd" à la Urkel.
Although he seems to be more straight-laced than the other writers, Toofer is still often seen hanging out with them. Toofer shares his office with Frank, Toofer's half of the room being considerably more organized and tidy. Frank and Toofer together tricked Jenna Maroney into fearing for her job in "Jack-tor" by using the power of suggestion. Jenna tried to get back at them by using her sexuality to trap them outside naked. Toofer instantly saw through her plan, but Frank did not.
Toofer becomes angry in the episode "The Break-Up" when Tracy refers to him with the word "nigger". Toofer clearly disagrees with how the word has been used by some in the African-American community as a term of endearment. Also in this episode, it is revealed that Toofer used to write for a BET show called Black Frasier. A short clip of the show was played in this episode, and the show was just the show Frasier done with an African-American cast. Tracy says that Black Frasier aired on BET, Thursday nights "at about 9:00 or 9:15."
In the episode "SeinfeldVision", Liz refers to Toofer as "Chocolate Rain", a reference to the singer Tay Zonday, who caused an internet sensation with his song Chocolate Rain. Zonday is a young, nerdy-looking African American man with a deep voice, supposedly the same characteristics as Toofer.
In the episode "Secrets and Lies", Toofer takes offense to the fact that Frank is wearing a Harvard sweatshirt, even though, as Toofer puts it, he was "not graduated from that institution." This escalates into a feud between the two as Frank begins to wear clothes stereotypical of Ivy-league alum (including a stove-pipe hat, bowtie, an argyle sweater, and a Signet society pin), while Toofer dresses and acts like Frank (including a trucker hat with the phrase "Mom Expert"). The whole feud turns out to be a ploy, orchestated by Frank and Toofer themselves, just to get everybody's attention. Unable to think of a way to end the faux conflict without being exposed, the two turned to taunting Josh for his new haircut, which diverted the attention to him and allowed them to wear their own clothes again.
Although Toofer appears to be a buttoned up, straight-laced professional, he is part of the boys' club atmosphere at TGS and occasionally participates in pranks with the rest of the writers, such as making Jenna believe that TGS is undergoing layoffs because of Jack's interference.
In "Fireworks," Toofer is terribly distraught to learn that his ancestor Tobias Spurlock was a Black Confederate officer who personally knew Robert E. Lee rather than a Union officer who knew Ulysses S. Grant as he'd always believed. Also in the episode, Tracy Jordan enlists Toofer to write an Eddie Murphy-esque movie for him based on Thomas Jefferson's life in which Tracy would play all of the parts. Toofer appears enthusiastic about the project until Tracy informs him that he wants the movie to be a drama, not a comedy.
In the episode "The Break Up", Toofer makes reference to having been a member of The Harvard Krokodiloes and having had a solo on "Like a Prayer." The episode "Secrets and Lies" revealed he was also a member of Harvard's Signet Society.
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