Curtis Payne - Personality

Personality

Curtis is portrayed as arrogant, ignorant, rude, selfish, and conservative towards his lifestyle. However being the fire chief of the local fire station in the series he is able to maintain a great deal of responsibility when required, such as when C.J. gets stuck in a burning building. Curtis is reluctant to accept C.J. and his family to the Payne home and as a result often makes remarks that are considered rude by C.J., Jazmine, and Malik that leave them and Janine as the butt of his jokes. Payne has declared himself the king of his household and often uses force to get what he wants and takes advantage of his wife's good nature, resulting in a dream where Tyler Perry's popular character Madea portrays his wife and eventually teaches him to respect Ella. He has claimed "Ella will do anything I tell her. If I tell her to go across the road and fetch the chicken not only will she do she catch him, but she'll take him home and fry him." Curtis is also often rude to his son Calvin, explaining that he is stressed by the fact he has paid Calvin's college tuition, but Calvin still rarely attends class. Acts such as that, the motorcycle incident with Malik, and C.J. borrowing Curtis and Ella's retirement money to pay for rehab Janine never attended have over time crafted Curtis' often angered personality. He has also been shown very little regard for other family members' feelings; Curtis bluntly revealed that C.J. was adopted and often slams the door on other people's (such as C.J.'s in-laws) faces. He has also shown both ignorance and arrogance towards technology, often believing he can work every machine he encounters.