Sherri Shepherd Returns From COVID Break To School Gen Z
By Afouda Bamidele on October 5, 2023 at 12:30 PM EDT
Attention, please!!! Quickly get a notepad and a pen because Sherri Shepherd will be your teacher today!
The talk show queen host returned with a bang and something for the Gen-Z after going on an abrupt break due to her being diagnosed with COVID-19. The second season of her daytime program premiered on Monday, September 18, amid the ongoing WGA strike.
Sherri Shepherd Takes An Interesting Trip Down The Memory Lane Of Knowledge
The entire studio audience and Instagram followers of Shepherd were wrapped in nostalgia as the host addressed a new TikTok trend on her talk show and shared it in a clip.
Shepherd referred to the burning question on TikTok asking how older people used to find information years before the internet. In her humorous manner, the 56-year-old replied:
"Before the internet, we had something called Encyclopedia Britannica, and I know the young people might say, oh, that looks like Game Of Thrones. No, the Encyclopedia Britannica was our internet. It was like 20 books from A-Z."
The actress continued that people could not get them all at once back in the day as it was very expensive and they had to "pay per letter." She joked that she never did any book report that "started with a T" due to a shortage of funds to get them.
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"If you ever had Encyclopedia in your house, you were the bomb family. And if you got the kids' edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica, they say you was (were) rich," continued the host.
Shepherd also described how they used the "phone books", aka the yellow page, to find people, including "Elvis Presley and Tupac." She concluded the set by describing how people asked for directions as she said:
"You know what else we did before GPS? Your daddy did things like stop at a gas station and ask for directions."
The audience reeled for laughter in the clip as her comment section also agreed with her statements. One follower commented, "Bravo, Sherri! It's about time someone tells these kids about how we grew up about how we get information before internet.?????," as the second user added, "We had World Book. My mom purchased one letter at a time.."
Another fan wrote about her favorite pre-internet experience: "Before the internet ,we used to play outside with the kids of the whole neighborhood till dark ." While the fourth commenter admitted to missing "that time."
Last month, Shepherd went in for a quick checkup after testing positive for COVID-19, also causing her to pause the show temporarily. The Blast noted that before her diagnosis, she hosted Jon Batiste, Brad Williams, and Michelle Bauteau with plans to bring in more celebs like Leslie Jones, Julie Chen Moonves, and Katherine Heigl for the rest of the premiere week.
Addressing her sudden exit, she posted a now-deleted note on her Instagram page that read, "As soon as I get the all-clear from my doctor, I look forward to coming back strong to deliver the fun, laughter, and a real good time."
Upon her return to the production set, the comedian posted a fun video of her dancing on the street with the caption "When all your tests are NEGATIVE and the doctor clears you for work."
The 'Trial and Error' Actress Addressed Speculations Surrounding Show's Return Amid Strike
Right before her COVID-19 diagnosis, the comedian spoke on sensitive opinions trailing the second season of her show, amid the then ongoing strike. The 56-year-old assured the audience and viewers that the return of "Sherri" does not violate the rules and demands of the WGA strike during the premiere episode. The actress said:
"Well, I'm a SAG-AFTRA actress, and I actually marched with some of my colleagues while in Los Angeles recently. That's me with Viola Davis, Niecy Nash."
She also assured the viewers that her show has never employed WGA writers and that "Sherri" falls under a different union contract code; hence, her return is justified. The "Less than Perfect" star continued that she writes her own jokes, including the funny headliners, as she sends a message of solidarity to the striking parties by saying:
"I stand in solidarity with my union. One of the things that we're fighting for is better residuals. … residuals during times that I was not working kept the lights on. My residual payments helped me care for Jeffrey when he was born at 25 weeks. So good residual payments are important to actors."
