If the name Alfonso Ribeiro doesn't ring a bell, it's probably because most Houstonist readers know him better as Carlton Banks, the dancing, Tom Jones-loving cousin on the Fresh Prince of Bell Air.
Ribeiro got his start a decade earlier, as a child-actor on the show Silver Spoons. In the years since Fresh Prince, Ribeiro has been working, among other things, as a game show host on the Game Show Network, and that's what brings him to Houston.
GSN is hosting a tour through seven US cities to find guest hosts for some of it's game shows. The Play Every Day Tour will be at Willowbrook Mall Saturday at 10 a.m. for host auditions. Afterwards, Ribeiro and GSN will host a variety of games for the mall-rats, including Cash Grab, Spin-to-Win and Trivia Challenge.
But Houstonist doesn't really care about that. We're just using this as a excuse to link to the video below.
See, in spite of his comedic efforts as Carlton Banks, Ribeiro is actually a classically-trained dancer, and can do everything from tap to Michael Jackson-style moves. Here he is dancing with MJ himself in an early-80s Pepsi commercial. In fact, the "signature" Carlton Banks dance is actually a fad dance from the 1960s called The Watusi.
Which is why we can't resist posting this adorably '80s Bronx-accented video of a young Ribeiro trying to sell an As Seen On TV-style instructional kit to teach kids how to break dance.
Dear God. Houstonist just spent 45 minutes lost in a YouTube black hole. We hope you're satisfied.
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