Black Angelina

You are so right. I'm going to out myself as an idiot: I didn't even *know* that black latinos existed until my late teens. Which is even weirder when you consider that I did know that black slaves were used extensively throughout the Americas. Still, since I had never actually seen any black latinos 'til The Buena Vista Social Club came out, I never made the connection. I remember being mildly surprised the first time I saw a picture of Celia Cruz. She looked just like my grandma, especially with that big ole blond wig on her head.

I see people getting all outraged by Angelina playing Marriane Pearl but, honestly, does Marriane identify as black or Latina? I thought her mom was of Cuban descent and that her dad was European. She's not black to me and I don't subject foreigners to the "one drop" rule that Americans use. Yes, she's brown but she's had a totally different life than most American blacks and certainly most Latina blacks. Whose was supposed to play her? A Puerto Rican chick from some barrio?

What is Angelina anyway? She seems to be a conglomeration anyway. How many of the people who are complaining about this have actually bought/read the book or even kept up with the story when it was happening?

Angelina Jolie's father, Jon Voigt, is white. Her mother was the european actress Marcheline Betrand, who was said to be part French, part Czech, and part Iroquois (native american). Which would make her mixed race just like Marianne Pearl. I don't see what the big deal is about this.

Marianne Pearl wants her story to be seen and heard. She had approval of the casting. Many more people will see this movie with Angelina Jolie starring in it than Thandie Newton (who she beat out for the role).

I didn't hear too many people objecting when Brian Di Palma directed "Scarface", and to play his cuban refugee protaganist, he didn't choose a latino or hispanic, he chose the italian-american Al Pacino. Most latinos that I know loved that movie and loved Pacino in it.

I can see both sides to this. Not long ago, the Fox Movie Channel was planning to have a Charlie Chan film festival, showing the best of the movies about the famous Chinese detective that were quite popular back in the thirties and forties. Asian american groups objected. Why? Because in those movies, not only were are the characters now considered unacceptably stereotypical, but in the best known of the films, Charlie Chan was played not by a chinese actor, but by Warner Oland, a white guy, a well known Swedish actor.

The most popular radio show of the era was Amos 'N Andy, about two black friends from the south who have come to the big city to work. Audiences, black and white, loved the show. But being on the radio, most didn't realize that the two black characters were being-- very credibly-- voiced by two white guys. When they made Amos 'N Andy into a tv show, they got black actors to play the characters, but the tv show turned out to be more controversial than the radio show, because I guess blacks playing stereotypical blacks is worse than whites playing stereotypical blacks. The tv show is never or rarely ever shown on tv in reruns, despite its original popularity.

So is Angelina Jolie playing a black woman any different than Warner Oland playing a Chinese detective, or two white guys playing Amos 'N Andy on the radio? I guess it depends on what your perspective happens to be.

On the one hand, I couldn't help thinking "What? Thandie Newton isn't available? Maybe Halle Berry?" Admittedly, there are probably other suitable actresses who fit the bill that I just don't know about.

On the other hand, Jolie's name sells tickets.

Still, it's crazy-making.

Lovely piece Liz. As I say so often in my articles: "they just don't get it". "Hollywood" is the most racist of towns/institutions in this country. I have worked on a few movies in my time and have found the racism nauseating; this is why I go to very few movies; it's my unique form of silent protest.

liza said: "another example of how, not just latina neither just black, but black latina actresses are rendered invisible by the Hollywood crowd."

Not sure that statement is valid, otherwise would be hard to explain the succesful movie career Jennifer Lopez has had. She is black latina, from the Bronx even, and Hollywood loves her. She has also played white parts in movies, and plays a latino part in her next movie. It doesn't seem to matter. There are others. Rosie Perez from Brooklyn, she's gotten plenty of work. This idea that Hollywood is racist is stereotypical and I don't think it necessarily applies anymore.

Jolie is getting rave reviews for playing Marianne Pearl. She may get nominated for another Oscar. Would this lead to protests on academy awards night?

When a Black woman can play Marie Currie in a movie I'll shut up. When a Black woman can play Marilyn Monroe on screen I'll shut up. Until then I think Blacks have a legitimate reason to complain. I think that Angelina looks HORRIBLe with that ratty wig & darkened skin.

Angelina is damn lucky that Marianne doesn't mind.

When a Black woman can play Marilyn Monroe, Marie Currie or Ann Frank then Black people on screen should stop complaining. I think Angelina looks like a joke with that ratty wig & darkend skin and her accent is awful in the commercials she can't even keep it up for 3 seconds.

I watched the Barbara Walter's interview and was mildly interested but I certainly won't be going to see this movie. I won't give Angelia one penny.

I'll tell you one thing thats trobleming me,most people think being black goes hand and hand with the way you act.so all these blacks from other countries
think cause they don't ACT like black americans that
they are not black.yes i know us blacks in america
have a bad image,but you can help.instead of casting us away.

I write from a corner of Europe nearer where Marianne Pearl lives than you probably do, and I can assure you in her culture or mine she is not black. Seen from here it's shocking how american 'blacks' seem to be so keen on enforcing the 'one drop' rule, here we just assume you need skin that's at least dark brown to qualify. In your country it does seem to have more to do with the way you act.

This casting seems to be done following the usual rule, in choosing someone who looks similar to the main character, but prettier.

Here she-d simply 'have a cuban grandma', and she would look 'native'enough the question wouldn't come up and the answer wouldn't matter.

I know where the rule comes from, but it seems to have degenerated into two kinds of racism, one is what you are complaining about, and I see it is every bit as ugly as you put it.

And the other is the reverse one, where people that don't look black are expected to 'act' 'black', and are called traitors if they don't.

I think the first step of being antiracist is seeing race is about how you look not who you are. I know it's not as easy in a country with so much of a mix, and without the culture of intermarriage that we have here.

And I'm definitely going to see Angelina playing Marianne.

Before you attack Angelina Jolie for taking this part, you might want to consider who she is and what she does with her life. Do you know that she did this movie for her friend and did not keep the money she was paid? She donated a million dollars of her pay to the Save Darfur effort in Sudan, and the rest of the money to her orphanages and wildlife reserves in Ethiopia and Cambodia. Angelina Jolie is doing more for children of color around the world than most of the rest of us. She wants to retire from movie making in the years to come to dedicate her life to her progressive causes and raise her multi-ethnic family. Look at her children and her work before making snide comments about her taking one part in her friend's movie. She is a great lady. We need more like her in the world.