Comedian Tim Lovelace tackles bullying in new DVD

Comedian Tim Lovelace tackles bullying in new DVD

Christian comedian Tim Lovelace vividly remembers the days he was bullied as an elementary school student in Alabama. The bully had arms “the size of hot water heaters” and was shaving by the time he was in fourth grade. Well, at least that’s how Lovelace remembers it.

Less funny was the physical abuse he took from the bully, who often put the scrawny Lovelace in chokeholds. Lovelace reported it to the teacher but nothing was done.

“It was a different time,” Lovelace says.

The story is just one part of Lovelace’s new comedy DVD, “Living In A Coffee World,” which features clean, family-friendly humor that often has a serious point about life. A Grammy- and Dove-nominated artist, Lovelace also is known as a singer and hosts The Music City Show, which is syndicated and features gospel and country music stars.

His new comedy DVD was recorded at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee, and is being released at a time when bullying is in the national spotlight.

According to government data, 28 percent of U.S. students in grades 6–12 say they have been bullied, and 70 percent of students say they have witnessed it.

Lovelace, of course, addresses the subject with humor. Desperate for help against the bully as a young boy, he stumbled upon a book at the store. It was titled simply: “The Complete Book of Karate.”

“It changed my life,” he says to laughter.

Needing a sparring partner in a household with three sisters, he turned to … his bunk bed. So over a series of days and perhaps weeks, he pretended his bed was that bully — he calls him Kenny Wayne Jr. — and whipped it to a bloody pulp.

Mental scars

Incredibly the karate moves worked on the bully — not once but twice. It’s been several decades since he and the bully squared off, but Lovelace still has mental scars.

In his routine, Lovelace encourages students to speak up.

“Bullying is happening around this country,” he says. “You may not know what to do, but there’s someone who will fight for you. Violence is not the way. But if you’re being bullied at school, you report it — no matter if they laugh at you.”

He encourages students to report bullying to adults until something is done — to a parent, a teacher, a principal.

“Do not give up,” he says. “You’re valuable and God made you for a special reason. Do not allow that bullying to happen.”