I try not to comment on entertainment stuff too much, but the whole Tom Cruise debacle of the last year coming to a head with his Paramount Pictures contract termination is kind of hilarious.  Normally I would not laugh at someone with a family being fired from their job, but Mr. Cruise is worth something in the vacinity of half a billion dollars, so I feel free to laugh at his misfortune.  And you should too.

The experience of being let go must be strange for the L. Ron Hubbard follower.  He has been very successful in his career, yet somehow expendable.  His films have grossed billions for several studios, and still he was still kicked to the curb like the rest of us regular Joes.  Kind of reminds me of when Wayne Brady was fired by the ABC Network even though he won two Emmys.  Or when Terrell Owens was let go from the Philadelphia Eagles even though he was (and still is)one of the most dominant players in the NFL.  Suddenly the “Top Gun” that adopted a couple of black kids several years ago with Nicole Kidman is getting a taste of what it’s like to be a black dad, if only for a day. 

We African American dads, whether we are celebrities like Mr. Brady or non profit warriors like myself,  know all too well the feeling of being at the mercy of our employers.  Of course some of us are lucky enough to be in business for ourselves (I read Black Enterprise magazine), but most of us are not.  And for those of us that are not, the certain-to-be-brief demise of Tom Cruise is something to relish while it lasts.  He’ll bounce back. 

But for today only, he’s black.  (As in “blacklisted.”  I don’t endorse honorary blackness.  For example, Bill Clinton was not the first black president by any stretch.  But that’s a different blog entry.)Â