James "Toofer" Spurlock

Infobox character


caption=James "Toofer" Spurlock
name = "Toofer"
first = "Pilot"
gender = Male
age = 20s or 30s
born =
occupation = Staff writer on "TGS"
relatives = Tobias Spurlock (great-great-great-grandfather)
portrayer = Keith Powell
creator = Tina Fey

James "Toofer" Spurlock is a fictional character portrayed by Keith Powell in the NBC sitcom "30 Rock". A recurring character in the first season, he is credited as a series regular in season two.

Character description

Toofer is an African-American writer for "TGS". He has an aversion to the stereotypical aspects of black culture that he believes are embodied by Tracy Jordan. Therefore, his primary purpose on the show thus far seems to be as a foil to Tracy. According to Liz, Toofer is "afraid of black people." According to Jack, his nickname is "Toofer" because "with him you get a two-for-one; he's a black guy and a Harvard guy." Frank, with whom he shares an office, called him a "black nerd" à la Urkel.

Although he seems to be more straight-laced than the other writers, Toofer is still often seen hanging out with them. Toofer shares his office with Frank, Toofer's half of the room being considerably more organized and tidy. Frank and Toofer together tricked Jenna Maroney into fearing for her job in "Jack-tor" by using the power of suggestion. Jenna tried to get back at them by using her sexuality to trap them outside naked. Toofer instantly saw through her plan, but Frank did not.

Toofer becomes angry in the episode "The Break-Up" when Tracy refers to him with the "n" word. Toofer clearly disagrees with how the word has been used by some in the African-American community as a term of endearment. Also in this episode, it is revealed that Toofer used to write for a BET show called "Black Frasier". A short clip of the show was played in this episode, and the show was just the show "Frasier" done with an African-American cast. Tracy says that "Black Frasier" aired on BET, Thursday nights "at about 9:00 or 9:15."

In the episode "SeinfeldVision", Liz refers to Toofer as "Chocolate Rain", a reference to the singer Tay Zonday, who caused an internet sensation with his song Chocolate Rain. Zonday is a young, nerdy-looking African American man with a deep voice, supposedly the same characteristics as Toofer.

In the episode "Secrets And Lies", Toofer takes offense to the fact that Frank is wearing a Harvard sweatshirt, even though, as Toofer puts it, he was "not graduated from that institution." This escalates into a feud between the two as Frank begins to wear clothes stereotypical of Ivy-league alum (including a stove-pipe hat, bowtie, and an argyle sweater), while Toofer dresses and acts like Frank (including a trucker hat with the phrase "Mom Expert"). Upon discovering no one really cared about their fight, the two decided to abandon the feud in favor of taunting Josh for his new haircut.

Although Toofer appears to be a buttoned up, strait-laced professional, he is part of the boys club atmosphere at TGS and occasionally participates in pranks with the rest of the writers like Frank, such as making Jenna believe that TGS is undergoing layoffs because of Jack's interference with TGS.

Personal and family history

In "Fireworks," Toofer is terribly distraught to learn that his ancestor Tobias Spurlock was a Black Confederate officer who personally knew Robert E. Lee rather than a Union officer who knew Ulysses S. Grant as he'd always believed. Also in the episode, Tracy Jordan enlists Toofer to write a "Norbit"-esque movie for him based on Thomas Jefferson's life in which Tracy would play all of the parts. Toofer appears enthusiastic about the project until Tracy informs him that he wants the movie to be a drama, not a comedy.

In the episode "The Break Up", Toofer makes reference to having been a member of The Harvard Krokodiloes and having had a solo on "Like a Prayer." The episode "Secrets and Lies" revealed he was also a member of Harvard's Signet Society.