Bernie’s widow Rhonda is comforted in front of poster of him at memorial

height="277" /> alt="Bernie Mac waves" />

Leave it to Cedric “The Entertainer” to get the estimated crowd of 7,000
to laugh at the beginning of a touching public memorial for comedian/actor Bernie
Mac Saturday in Chicago.

“This dude is a very, very popular guy,”
Cedric told the throng of fans, actors and dignitaries gathered at the House of
Hope on the South Side, according to the
Chicago Tribune. “You know y’all were like, ‘Let me get
four tickets to the funeral!’ He’s still the hottest ticket in town!”

Some people slept outside the church to guarantee a place inside. Others began arriving
about 7:45 a.m., nearly four hours before the service, which lasted nearly four
hours and was described by the Tribune as “part late-night Saturday
comedy show, part early morning Sunday church service.”

Bernie, a native of Chicago, died from complications from pneumonia at the age of
50 on Aug. 9. Cedric, D.L. Hughley and Steve Harvey, the three remaining stars of
the 2000 documentary The Original Kings of Comedy, took the stage together.

D.L. recalled that he and the others eagerly awaited Bernie’s stage attire each
night. He said: “Bernie would wear colors that crayons hadn’t even thought of yet.”

Steve appeared solemn one moment—”You tell jokes for a living, you dig? Sometimes
it’s just not funny”—and in another he would unleash hilarious tales
about working with Bernie. He told how Bernie, formidable at 6-foot-3 and built
like a football player, would pat the guys on their butts to encourage them before
performances.”But Bernie was heavy-handed. He had real strong hands, and they
were cupped all like this,” Steve said, demonstrating Bernie’s hands
while the audience howled in laughter.

“Bernie always said that he walked alone. I don’t think that he was
alone. I think he was walking with Jesus. I’ll see you soon, Bernie,”
Harvey said, looking upward, then with perfect timing: “Well, I don’t
want to see you too soon.”

Also on hand: Samuel L. Jackson, Don Cheadle, Salli Richardson, Chris Rock, Tom
Joyner, Jeremy Suarez, Kellita Smith, basketball player Juwan Howard, producer and
writer Ali LeRoi, comedians Mike Collier, Bruce Bruce and George Wallace, Chicago
Mayor Richard Daley and Rev. Jesse Jackson.

The Mayor recalled that Bernie was in his office recently asking how he could help
fight violent crime in the city.

”He wanted to help get children away from a life of crime and violence,”
he said. ”That’s why he’s the king of comedy. He never lost his
soul in Chicago.”

Those not in attendance—such as Oprah Winfrey, Sen. Barack Obama, Maxine Waters,
the O’Jays and actor Andy Garcia—sent notes that were read at the ceremony.

“Michelle and I were so deeply sad to hear about your loss. . . . He . . .
[made] us laugh and laugh hard,” Barack’s statement read. Bernie caught
flak recently when he joked about menopause, sexual infidelity and promiscuity at
a July fundraiser for the presidential hopeful.

During Saturday’s service, Barack went on to write that Bernie could say things
others couldn’t. “Bernie Mac will be sorely missed,” he wrote.

Others not in attendance sent condolences to Bernie’s widow, Rhonda (pictured
above), and daughter, Je’niece Childress, who attended the service.

Bernie’s beloved Chicago White Sox organization presented Rhonda with a No.
1 jersey bearing his name. The service also included a tribute from Rachelle Ferrell,
Bernie’s favorite singer, and a video tribute to Bernie and Isaac Hayes, who
also died last weekend. Sam, who stars with Bernie and Isaac in the upcoming flick
Soul Men, scheduled for a Nov. 15 release, recalled how he and Bernie talked
about the loss of privacy when a person becomes famous. Samuel said that although
he gets bothered by fans coming up and invading his space, it never bothered Bernie.

“He never lost being that kid from Chicago who wanted to make you laugh. He
never said, ‘Back off,’ Sam said, then, drawing laughter: “I don’t
have a problem with doing that.”

Sam also talked about working with Bernie on Soul Men.

“It was a real joy. I knew he was having some health issues, and I was concerned,”
he said. “But he would say, ‘I’m good. Let’s hit it.’
”

Bernie had been hospitalized at Northwestern Memorial Hospital since mid-July. A
few years ago, he disclosed that he suffered from sarcoidosis, a rare autoimmune
disease that causes inflammation in tissue, most often in the lungs.

The family requests that donations be made at
www.berniemacfoundation.org, which aims to find a cure for sarcoidosis.

To view photos from the memorial, click
here.

Details concerning yesterday’s tragic death of actor/comedian Bernie Mac,
50, are revealed on People.com,
which reports that the actor/comedian was admitted to a Chicago hospital, not on
Aug. 1 as first reported, but on July 24 and that his wife and daughter were by
his side until the very end.

Mary Ann Grossett, the younger sister of Bernie’s wife Rhonda, spoke to People
about her brother-in-law’s final days. According to his publicist, he
died of complications from pneumonia. The night before he died, “He struggled
for his life,” Grossett is quoted as saying. “He couldn’t breathe.

“He opened his eyes on his own and looked at Rhonda. She called his name,
and he opened his eyes and nodded to her. She smiled at him and told him, ‘Don’t
leave me …’I’m waiting for you to come back.’ He shrugged his shoulders,
and she said that’s when she knew he was tired. He signaled to her that his
body was tired.”

Rhonda, Bernie’s wife since 1977, and their 30-year-old daughter, Je’Niece,
were with him when he died, the website reports. “(The doctors) were working
on him,” Grossett told People. “They tried to resuscitate him
two times. One time he came back for about an hour. Then he went into cardiac arrest
the second time.”

The story on People.com continued:

Prior to that, the couple had last communicated on July 31. “He told his wife
(non-verbally) that he could breathe on his own, and he wanted the ventilator out.
He motioned that he wanted it out,” says Grossett.

The sister-in-law says Mac’s inflammatory lung disease contributed to his
death. “He had sarcoidosis, but it was in remission,” she says. “But
because he had it, his immune system was compromised. He had an infection …
He was on a new medication that suppresses the immune system, and that’s where
the pneumonia came from.”

She reveals that Mac – having trouble breathing and running a fever – was actually
hospitalized on July 24, eight days before the date given for his admittance. The
actor was diagnosed with pneumonia and immediately placed on a ventilator.

“He was critically ill when he was in the hospital,” says Gossett. “He
was in intensive care the whole time.”

She adds that doctors kept the star sedated, although he was conscious at times
and he contracted a second strain of pneumonia while in the hospital.

Of her widowed sibling (like Mac, Rhonda is 50), Grossett says, “She’s devastated.
However, she’s at peace about his transition because of her faith in God.
Her faith is what is sustaining her.”

She says of the couple’s enduring union, “They had 30 years of marriage.
That’s unprecedented in today’s time, particularly for celebrities.
That brings joy to her.

They loved each other and respected each other on a daily basis. She was by his
side to the very end.”

Recalling the couple’s early years, when they were still in their teens, Grossett
says, “When they started dating, he said, ‘Girl, you better come on
board this train, because I’m going to be rich.’ And her response was,
‘Okay,’ and they were married. That’s how he charmed her, with
his sense of humor.”

She adds, “When they got married they were kids. He was 20 and she was 19.
They both grew up together, and they both matured in this marriage.

“What she will treasure the most is the fact that she was his wife for 30
years – and not only was she his wife, but she was his best friend. She’s
going to miss him dearly.”

Mac’s funeral is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 16, at an undisclosed location. The
family requests that donations be made to the Bernie Mac Foundation for Sarcoidosis,
40 E. Ninth St., Suite 601, Chicago IL 60605.

It’s
true that Bernie Mac is hospitalized but he is not in “very, very critical
condition” as you may have heard or read.

His publicist told the target=_blank>Chicago Tribune today that the 50-year-old actor/comedian
remains in a Chicago hospital where he is responding well to treatment for
pneumonia.

When the Tribune asked about a published report (by its competitor the href="http://www.suntimes.com" target=_blank>Chicago Sun-Times) that Bernie
is in “very, very critical” condition, publicist Danica Smith responded in an
e-mail, “You have some bad info.”

She said Bernie’s condition is the same as Saturday, when she said he was
recovering from pneumonia. His illness is unrelated to his diagnosis of
sarcoidosis, which has been in remission since 2005, she said.

“Bernie Mac is still alive and being treated in a Chicago hospital for
pneumonia and is expected to make a full recovery,” his rep also told href="http://www.people.com" target=_blank>People. “We once again ask that
the press respect his privacy and that of his family.”

We wish you well Bernie baby!