Barry Michael Cooper facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Barry Michael Cooper
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| Born | 1957 or 1958 Harlem, New York, U.S.
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| Died | January 22, 2025 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
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| Occupation | Writer, producer, director |
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Notable work
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New Jack City Sugar Hill Above the Rim |
Barry Michael Cooper (born 1957 or 1958 – died January 22, 2025) was an American writer, producer, and director. He was well-known for writing screenplays for movies like New Jack City, Sugar Hill, and Above the Rim. These three films are sometimes called his "Harlem Trilogy" because they often showed stories from that famous New York City neighborhood.
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About Barry Michael Cooper
Cooper was born in Harlem, New York. He grew up in a part of Harlem called Little Washington Heights. He said his neighborhood was very diverse. He played with kids from different backgrounds, including Black, Jewish, and Irish children.
When he was ten, his family moved to the Esplanade Gardens. This was a tall co-op building in Harlem. It had people from many different backgrounds living there. Cooper passed away in Baltimore, Maryland on January 22, 2025.
His Career in Writing and Film
Cooper started his writing career as a music critic. He wrote for a newspaper called The Village Voice. Later, he became an investigative reporter for the same paper. He worked there from 1980 to 1989.
In 1987, he wrote an article for the Voice. It was called "Teddy Riley's New Jack Swing: Harlem Gangsters Raise a Genius." Cooper is given credit for naming "New Jack Swing." This was a new type of music that mixed R&B and rap.
The "Harlem Trilogy" Films
Cooper's most famous works are his "Harlem Trilogy" films. These include New Jack City (1991), Sugar Hill (1994), and Above the Rim (1994).
These three movies had a big impact on hip-hop culture. Their influence can be seen in the lyrics of artists like Jay-Z. It can also be seen in the style of people like P. Diddy. Cooper wrote all three of these films after he moved to Baltimore, Maryland. He lived in Baltimore until he passed away.
Other Projects
In 2005, Cooper directed his first project. It was a web series called Blood on the Wall$. This series had 14 parts. Michael Wright, an actor from Sugar Hill, starred in it.
In 2008, Cooper produced an episode for a TV show. It was for BET's crime documentary series, American Gangster. This episode was about a person named Larry Davis. It became the most-watched episode in the show's history at that time.
From 2007, Cooper also wrote a blog. It was called "Hooked on the American Dream." In 2011, he published a book. It was a collection of his essays and articles from the 1980s. The book was titled Hooked on the American Dream, Vol. 1: New Jack City Eats Its Young. He also wrote for Huffington Post.
Awards and Recognition
Barry Michael Cooper received several honors for his writing.
- In 1987, he won two awards for "In Cold Blood: The Baltimore Teen Murders." This article was published in Spin magazine in May 1986.
- He won "Best Magazine Feature" from Ball State University.
- He also won "Best Magazine Feature" from the National Association of Black Journalists.
