By Tai Saint Louis
Comedian/Actor Anthony Anderson has been tapped by the Golf Channel to host a new magazine-style program focusing on the lives of golf players across the country.
The new show, Golf in America, will debut on June 23 and has been picked up by the network for 10 episodes, reports entertainment business magazine Variety.
Anderson starred in the hit movie Hustle & Flow and he has also appeared on screen alongside Ice Cube, DMX, and LL Cool J.
In his new role, the Anderson will introduce newsworthy, human interest pieces about the amateur side of the golf world.
Golf in America, which will likely remind viewers of programs like HBO’s Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel, will also feature celebrity golf enthusiasts like Justin Timberlake and Donald Trump.
With Anderson serving as anchor, the Golf Channel will turn to its existing roster of on-camera talent to serve as correspondents.
Among the reporters selected is Golf Channel anchor Kelly Tilghman, who came under fire in January of last year after making controversial comments about Tiger Woods.
During the Channel’s coverage of the 2008 Mercedes-Benz Championship, Tilghman joked that young players who wanted to challenge Woods should “lynch him in a back alley.”
On January 10, 2008 the Associated Press reported that Tighlman had been suspended for two weeks.
Anthony Anderson is currently starring on NBC’s long-lived crime series Law & Order, playing the role of Detective Kevin Bernard for the second consecutive season.
Later this year, he will make his return to movies as part of the ensemble cast of Steppin: The Movie, which also includes Sticky Fingaz, Big Tigger, Mo’Nique and Clifton Powell.
Anderson will also star in the film adaptation of Iceberg Slim’s Mama Black Widow alongside Mos Def and Macy Gray.
Actresses Angela Bassett, Kerry Washington, and even Pop princess Rihanna have also been linked to the film, though Rihanna later denied the rumors.