His name is stamped on at least two movies produced each year, but no one quite knows exactly who Tyler Perry is.

But for those who don’t recognize the name, Tyler Perry may be more familiar as his fanatical drag character, Madea. Tyler has starred as Mable “Madea” Simmons from stages to movie screens and has even written a book through her voice. In the wake of Perry’s latest film, “The Family That Preys” (which he wrote and directed, but Madea does not appear in), The Badger Herald wanted to take a closer look at the man behind the makeup.

The cards for stardom weren’t always in Perry’s hands. Born in New Orleans in 1969 and raised by his father, who worked as a carpenter, and mother, a preschool teacher, “[Perry] suffered from endless abuse growing up,” according to Perry’s online biography.

Perry has cited his mother, Christian grandmother and aunt as the inspiration for Madea and the birthplace of his originality.

Perry lends himself well to the outspoken Madea, a grandmother who stomps around blessing everyone within a wide earshot with her unedited opinion. At 6-feet-5-inches, Perry — as Madea — has an imposing presence in any room he enters in his body suit, wig, makeup and purse — which carries three guns. Madea swears like a sailor but remains firm in her Baptist roots.

Perry had his first glimpse at the life he wanted when he moved to Atlanta at the age of 21, according to a Fortune Magazine article. However, the real turnaround came for Perry when he saw an Oprah Winfrey show that advised writing as a form of therapy. Perry began recording his thoughts and journeys, and the writings he produced became his stage plays.

Perry’s first play, “I Know I’ve Been Changed,” flopped on stage and was quickly cancelled. After job hopping for six years and spending time in a homeless shelter, Perry decided to give theatre one more shot, and finally found success by restaging “I Know I’ve Been Changed” in 1998. In the following years he wrote, produced, directed and starred in seven shows total, keeping himself busy with up to 300 performances a year in venues holding over 10,000 audience members.

Perry’s life struggles have direct influence on his work; his plays and movies focus on tensions between middle- and working-class black Americans and generation gaps in communities.

His faith is the basis of his work. “Did you know you can’t say ‘Jesus’ in a sitcom?” Perry said after a stage performance of “Meet the Browns” in 2004, according to Time.com. “They told me that, and I was like, you gotta be kiddin’ me. If you don’t want my God here, you don’t want me here either. God has been too good to me to go and try to sell out to get some money.” With that attitude, he has found a previously unreached niche for an audience of predominantly middle-aged black women.

However, Perry’s success has not been without criticism. He has been condemned by black scholars and actors alike for furthering stereotypes about the black community. Additionally, his description of his $5 million home as “a testament to my religious faith” in a New York Times article may warrant further raised eyebrows.

In the face of criticism, Perry hit the big screen in 2005 with “Diary of a Mad Black Woman,” which made $50 million worldwide. “Madea’s Family Reunion” (2006) grossed five times the movie’s budget in the first weekend, and his movies have each grossed an average of $45 million, according to a USA Today article. Perry also writes and directs a sitcom, “House of Payne,” which has had 73 episodes to date and drew an estimated 5.2 million viewers for its debut in June 2007, according to Studio Briefing.

Perry’s popularity hasn’t stopped at film and television. His novel, “Don’t Make a Black Woman Take Off Her Earrings: Madea’s Uninhibited Commentaries on Life and Love” (Riverhead Books) released in April 2006, debuted as the No. 1 selling hardcover nonfiction on the New York Times bestseller list.

Let’s just say that now is a good time to be Tyler Perry — even if people don’t know exactly who he is.