Arts: Larry Wilmore on Race, Politics, and Mormonism

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Brow Beat Larry Wilmore on Race, Politics, and Mormonism By David Haglund Posted Friday, Aug 24, 2012, at 01:46 PM ET Larry Wilmore is most recognizable these days as a "senior black correspondent" on The Daily Show. He was also a writer, producer, and occasional guest star on The Office—and he won an Emmy for The Bernie Mac Show, which he created. His latest project is a special on Showtime called Larry Wilmore's Race, Religion, & Sex. It was filmed in Salt Lake City, Utah, and focuses on Mormonism. I spoke with Wilmore about the special on the phone yesterday. Slate: What inspired this show? Larry Wilmore: I think Romney's Mormonism is as unique to this election as Obama's blackness was in the last election. We've never had a Mormon candidate before. It's a pretty big deal. And a lot of people don't know about Mormonism—I certainly didn't know a lot of the details. It's unfortunate that Romney doesn't talk about it too much. And he doesn't have to talk about it. So I thought it would be good to go Salt Lake City. If you're going to talk about Mormonism, go to the place that's the heart of it. Slate: There are a lot of people talking about Mormonism, joking about Mormonism, and what have you. But to actually go to Utah suggests you really want to learn about it. Wilmore: Yeah. My goal was not just to have an opinion, and then tell jokes proving my opinion. I go to a place and make discoveries and ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate The Next Kennedy A New Slur Can Identical Twins Get Away With Murder?	Advertisement
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