Monica Calhoun Stars in Award-Winning
Soap Opera on PIC.tv

Diary of a Single Mom is a web based original series that chronicles the lives and challenges of three single mothers and their families trying to get ahead despite obstacles that all single mothers face: childcare, health, education and finances. The series is produced and directed by award-winning filmmaker Robert Townsend, renowned for such films as Hollywood Shuffle, Meteor Man and Holiday Heart.  It is written by award-winning playwright and screenwriter Cheryl L. West.

Diary stars Monica Calhoun (The Best Man) as Ocean Jackson, a single mother of two striving to keep her family afloat while working to fulfill her own ambitions of finishing her GED, going to college and opening her own business.

Along her journey, she befriends and joins forces with two other single moms, Lupe (Valery Ortiz – The N’s “South of Nowhere”), a mother juggling different fathers for each of her two children while facing health concerns and Peggy (Janice Lynde – “Letters to Dad”), a once wealthy matriarch who suddenly finds herself widowed, broke and guardian to her only grandchild. Together, the three women search for support and faith as they strive to triumph over the challenges of everyday life.

The series also features veteran actors Billy Dee Williams, Richard Roundtree, and Leon.

Winner of awards for Best Indie Soap and Best Guest Actor from the Indie Soap Awards, Diary of a Single Mom airs on PIC.tv . 

I spoke to Calhoun about the drama that is gaining momentum and critical acclaim --

Sandra Varner (Talk2SV):  It works.  Whether feature film, TV, on the web, or on stage, you have a very believable quality that comes through in your characters. How close is this character to who you are?

Monica Calhoun (MC):  This character is not very far away and not very close to who I am. I do have a child that I’m raising and the similarities between myself and the character as a single mom is making choices and doing my best; making the best possible choices for my son.

Talk2SV:  You have a child?

MC: Yes, for the past nine years; he will be 10 this June.

Talk2SV:  As a mother, what do you think is fundamental about your character in Diary of a Single Mom?

MC:   Oh, God, what is fundamental or most important about the young lady in Diary of a Single Mom is she’s taken the life lessons that she’s learned from her parents and tried to implement them and instill them in her kids.  The fact that she made the effort to complete her schooling and by doing that, she found somebody that was a mentor; that mentor helped her through the journey of self-confidence. Another important aspect of my character is that she has a warm heart and she’s there for her friends who are also a part of her community --her small little village-- that she sort of created within the apartment building that she manages.

Talk2SV: Depending on whom you talk to, some would say there is no real blueprint for parenting and I tend to argue that.  Do you agree or disagree?

MC: I have to say that there is no “cookie cutter” parenting. It doesn’t fit all because some children develop differently than others.  So, with that being said, I don’t think there is a wrong way.  I know that there is a right way but I don’t think there’s a wrong way in parenting.

Talk2SV: If a person wanted to identify some unique characteristic within this character would that be her kindness, her ability to be flexible or her stick-to-it-ness?

MC:  Ocean Jackson goes through so many different emotions.  I think the thing that’s most identifiable is her ability to be honest with herself and pushing past and beyond whatever obstacles she faces.

Talk2SV:  What do you want to say to audiences who are watching Diary of a Single Mom?

MC:  Some single parents are not single parents by choice and some single parents remain single parents by choice.  My hope for anyone who views Diary of a Single Mom is they will walk away with the understanding of how to begin to heal the family and bridge the communication gap between single fathers and single mothers.

Talk2SV: Robert Townsend is known for his work that reflects positive family images.  What is it like working with him?

MC: This was my first time working with Robert Townsend and it was absolutely awesome and amazing. His timing and his patience are impeccable.  I found myself feeling as though I was in tune and in sync with the direction that he gave.  Whenever I felt as if I was falling or in tune or in time, I felt him come and catch me and guide me where I needed to go.  It was wild because I met him way back when and I never worked with him until now. 

More on Monica Calhoun:

A Philly native, with screen and stage time shared with the likes of Danny DeVito, Whoopi Goldberg, Jean Stapleton, Drew Barrymore, Tatum O'Neal, Ozzie Davis, Ruby Dee, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Williams, Billy Dee Williams, Pam Grier, Jack Palance, Donald Sutherland and the late rapper Tupac Shakur etc., she has garnered the respect of many entertainers.

She appears along with Regina King and Blair Underwood in Love Chronicles; in Pandora's Box, she is reunited with Player's Club's Christale Wilson, Michael Jai White, Christoff St. John and Joe Lawrence. In Civil Brand, a movie about female prison life, she reunites with Lisa Reye and Nbushe Wright; with Neema Barnette in the Director's chair.

In The Player's Club, she played the role of Ebony along side co-star/director Oshay "Ice Cube" Jackson. In Malcolm Lee's film, The Best Man, she played Mia, the bride that had a hidden secret and co-starred with Morris Chestnut. In Park Day, a controversially criticized film, she played the role of Tamela, a young girl looking for her first love.

In The Jacksons: An American Dream, she played the role of Rebbie Jackson, and in Eric
LaSalle's directional debut film, Rebound, she plays the role of Yvonne, alongside Don Cheadle, James Earl Jones and Loretta Devine; in Jack The Bear, she worked with Danny DeVito, Robert Steinmiller and Marshall S. Herskovitz, and on pilot T.V. show Heart And Soul, she worked with famed director Stan Lathan.

On Children Of The Night, she worked with Director Robert Guenette and on Taking A Stand, she worked with Director Paul Hopkins; on Where I Live, she worked with Director Michael Jacobs and Writer/Producer Ehrich Van Lowe and Richard Lidertini.

Her training includes: Los Angeles Gifted Talented Program; L.A. Conservatory of the Arts; Tepper Gallegos Commercial Workshop; L.A. City College; UCLA; Vocal Coach Seth Riggs; Bill Duke Actor's Bootcamp; Caroline Leonetti Modeling Agency; Children's Theatre Factory; Eubanks Music Conservatory and finally she studied Musical Comedy Theatre etc. This training prepared her for roles on Malcolm And Eddie, The Jamie Foxx Show, Good News, The Wayans Brothers, A Different World, Love And Basketball, Sister Act II and other various roles.