Coming to America (1988)

Prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) is the prince of a wealthy African country and wants for nothing, except a wife who will love him in spite of his title. To escape an arranged marriage, Akeem flees to America accompanied by his persnickety sidekick, Semmi (Arsenio Hall), to find his queen. Disguised as a foreign student working in fast food, he romances Lisa (Shari Headley) but struggles with revealing his true identity to her and his marital intentions to his king father (James Earl Jones).
Coming to America Movie Poster 1988

Coming to America Quote: “Oha, it is my twenty-first birthday. Do you think perhaps just once I might use the bathroom by myself?” – Prince Akeem

This week Dick & Roger turns Investigative journalists to blow the lid off the lies behind Paramount Pictures decade’s long cover-up of the Zamundian royal family and their atrocities. The film’s plot revolves around the discontented Prince Akeem, who is tired of his pampered life and concocts a plan to travel to America with his servant Semmi to find a bide of his choosing. While purporting to focus on the courtship the Prince to the American commoner Lisa McDowell, the film actually turned out to be nothing but pure propaganda.

For over 28 years we have been methodically deceived into believing that King Jaffe Joffer was a benevolent ruler and loving father, but was he? How could a ruler who accessorize his wardrobe with the carcasses of exotic animals and proudly proclaims to have tied his own shoes once, called it “an overrated experience” be anything but ruthless? The King, in fact, rules the throne with unquestioned power and expects complete obedience even when choosing a bride for his son, who has been trained to mindlessly obey the princes every command.

Whether his vast fortune was built from conflict diamonds, worker exploitation, or environmental degradation it’s obvious the people of Zamunda are subject to unspeakable human suffering. So please join us on the sofa while we fire up the old VCS for a revealing expose on the corruption of wealth and power in Coming to America.

Plot Summary: “Coming to America Prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) is the prince of a wealthy African country and wants for nothing, except a wife who will love him in spite of his title. To escape an arranged marriage, Akeem flees to America accompanied by his persnickety sidekick, Semmi (Arsenio Hall), to find his queen. Disguised as a foreign student working in fast food, he romances Lisa (Shari Headley) but struggles with revealing his true identity to her and his marital intentions to his king father (James Earl Jones).

Subscribe Now

Help Support the Podcast

You may also like...

3 Responses

  1. Ashley says:

    I remember this film, I think I was still a small kid back then when I first saw this.

  2. The Rog says:

    Thanks Brian! Zamundan lives matter.

  3. Great piece! Someday those Zamundans will pay for their crimes!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.