HARLEM — An Uptown comedian, and casual gardener, is trying to convince Morgan Freeman to narrate his short story about farting in class by trying to raise money for a local nonprofit.
Stand-up comic and actor Sean Crespo wrote the short story about breaking wind in a high school social studies class on a lark, but then a friend joked that they should get the famed "Shawshank Redemption" actor to narrate it.
They figured Freeman probably would be reluctant to do it, so to raise the stakes they decided to collect donations for the community garden Harlem Grown in the actor's name.
He even released an excerpt of the story. Readers are meant to imagine Freeman's voice reading it.
“It was such a tiny sound but sitting in the quiet of the classroom during an ongoing essay test, the barest of toots … toot toot … leaked from my lower body.”
Crespo and his wife both like to garden and are friends with Tony Hillery, Harlem Grown's founder. The nonprofit teaches local kids how to grow fresh produce and gives fresh food away to friends and neighbors.
"Tony and Harlem Grown are great and we wanted to help in as silly a manner as possible," Crespo said. “What it amounts to is that we’re nobodies who want to help but don’t have the leverage to do so without attaching a name. Even if that name has no idea he’s been attached.”
This wouldn't be the first time a Hollywood actor has been associated with the Harlem Grown. Kevin Bacon visited one of its gardens in November and helped drum up support for the annual fundraiser.
Crespo has raised no money — $0 — in the nearly a month since the fundraiser launched.
If Freeman does not respond to the request or declines to lend his voice to the project, Crespo will seek out another distinguished celebrity with an amazing voice, like Benedict Cumberbatch.
If nobody wants to read it, he will donate any money raised to Harlem Grown anyway, he says.
Those who contribute to the campaign will get a copy of the recording before it's available to the public.
