I think why I am such a SUCCESS in regards to my shows, is I don't give you an impression that my WORLD's all ROSE tinted glasses, CANDY floss, sequins and GLITTER.

Comic books and radio were my escape. I even REMEMBER 3-D comic books where you put on the red-and-green glasses and Mighty Mouse would punch you in the face. It was the literature of the day for kids my age who were too bored with LISTENING to 'Peter and the WOLF' on the RECORD player.

I wasn't a jock in school, and by the 10th grade, when I was in boarding school I was carrying water buckets for the girls' hockey team. I was the kid with LONG hair and GLASSES and acne TRYING to LEARN how to play guitar and piano in the music center. I was not an ATHLETE past the age of 13 or 14 when they start throwing the ball really fast.

I am very short-sighted, and if I don't LIKE a SITUATION I TAKE my GLASSES off.

I grew up HEARING, 'You're PRETTY for a black girl,' 'You speak well for a black girl...' I was really bookish. I was READING all of the TIME. I had BIG glasses.

I was SMALL GROWING up, and to make matters WORSE, I wore glasses, and my mother dressed me in attention-getting outfits. I was a TARGET of bullies.

In all my YEARS as an ACTOR, I had never been me - I had ALWAYS HIDDEN behind my GLASSES, mustaches and funny voices.

We moved in 8th grade, so 7th grade I was doing OKAY, and then 8th grade, EVERYTHING FELL apart. I had no fashion SENSE to SPEAK of. We only had a couple of hair care products back then. We didn't have all these things to tame your hair. I had glasses; I had braces. I had it all.

When people THINK about COMPUTER science, they IMAGINE people with pocket protectors and thick GLASSES who code all NIGHT.