Oscars for African-American Actors

Home , Black Buck, Donald Bogle, Mammy stereotype

MASARYK UNIVERSITY BRNO FACULTY OF EDUCATION

Department of English Language and Literature

Bachelor Thesis

Brno 2017

Autor: Blanka Danielová Supervisor: Mgr. Jiří Šalamoun, Ph.D. Proclamation

Prohlašuji, že jsem závěrečnou bakalářskou práci vypracovala samostatně, s využitím pouze citovaných pramenů, dalších informací a zdrojů v souladu s Disciplinárním řádem pro studenty Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy univerzity a se zákonem č. 121/2000 Sb., o právu autorském, o právech souvisejících s právem autorským a o změně některých zákonů (autorský zákon), ve znění pozdějších předpisů.

I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography.

Brno, 30 November 2017 ……………………………………… Author’s signature Acknowledgements

I would like to express my sincere appreciation to my supervisor, Mgr. Jiří Šalamoun, Ph.D., for hir constant guidance and encouragement without which this work would not have been possible. I am sincerely grateful for his unwavering support. Anotace Tato bakalářská práce s názvem “Oscaři ve vztahu k afroamerickým hercům” se zabývá čtyřmi filmy, které získaly Oscary v kategorii za nejlepší mužský herecký výkon. Během 88 let, kdy se koná udílení Oscarů, jen čtyři filmy (ve kterých hraje hlavní roli Afroameričan) získali tuto sošku. Cíl této bakalářské práce je dokázat, že mezi těmito čtyřmi filmy existuje jistá podobnost. Tato podobnost se vyskytuje ve filmových postavách, které jsou založeny na určitých filmových stereotypech. Vedle známých stereotypů jako je Strýček Tom, černošský hejsek a dětinský černoch se v devadesátých letech objevují nové variace těchto stereotypů; kouzelný černoch, nejlepší černošský přítel, zločinec a slavná osoba. Charakter a chování těchto postav je srovnáván s výše zmíněnými stereotypy.

Annotation The Bachelor thesis “Oscars for African-American Actors” deals with four films that have won the Oscars in the category of Best Male Actress. Within the period of eighty-eight years only four Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading role have belonged to male African American actors. The aim of the Bachelor thesis is to prove that there is a certain similarity among the four films. This similarity occurs in film characters based on certain film stereotypes. In addition to well-known stereotypes such as Uncle Tom, Black Buck and Coon, new variations of these stereotypes appeared in the 1990´s; Magical Negro, Black Best Friend, Thug and Famous Person. The character and behavior of these fillm roles is compared with the above-mentioned stereotypes.

Klíčová slova Sidney Poitier, film stereotypes, Denzel Washington, Thug, Magical Negro, Jamie Fox, Famous Person, Black Best Friend, Forest Whitaker, oscaři, spojitost mezi filmovými rolemi a stereotypy týkající se Afroameričanů, Uncle Tom, Black Buck, Coon

Keywords Sidney Poitier, film stereotypes, Denzel Washington, Thug, Magical Negro, Jamie Fox, Famous Person, Black Best Friend, Forest Whitaker, Oscars, connection between film roles and African American stereotypes, Uncle Tom, Black Buck, Coon Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Introduction...... 1

CHAPTER I

1 History of the African American Motion Picture Industry...... 3 1.1 African American Motion Picture Industry 2000-2017...... 8

CHAPTER II

2 Prejudices and myths of African Americans...... 11 2.1 Basic male typology of stereotypes...... 12 2.1.a Uncle Tom...... 12 2.1.b The Coon...... 13 2.1.c Black Buck...... 14

CHAPTER III

3 Innovative offshoots of well-known stereotypes...... 14 3.1 Black Best friend...... 15 3.2 Magical Negro...... 16 3.3 Thug ...... 17 3.4 Famous person...... 18

CHAPTER IV

4 Analysis of the selected films...... 20 4.1 Lilies Of The Field...... 20 4.2 Training Day...... 23 4.3 Ray...... 26 4.4 The Last King Of Scotland...... 28

5 Conclusion...... 31 6 Work Cited...... 32 Introduction This thesis analyses four Oscar films (Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading role) are

Lilies of the Field (1963), Training Day (2001), Ray (2004) and The last King of

Scotland (2006) and exemplifies that all these four film roles arise from unchanging film stereotypes. They do not offer the audience other unexpected aspects in the roles.

The spectator has been forced to watch only few characters based on black stereotypes, no matter which African American actor plays the main role, for more than eighty years.

The thesis will gather evidence that even when these films differ in a period of time, a plot and a style of narration, they have one thing in common; stereotypical behaviour patterns.

The thesis focuses on Oscar winning films with Best Actor in a Leading role, therefore the stereotypes concern only African African men; not women. The first chapter desctribes the history of African American motion pictures industry regarding to significant film turns of African American actors and persistence of stereotypical roles.

The second chapter concerns with commonly known streotypes and myths of

African Americans, basic typology of film male stereotypes such as Uncle Tom, the

Coon and Black Buck and modern offshoots Best Black friend, Magical Negro, Thug and Famous person which have emerged in the last thirty years. The focus on general stereotypes and myths will serve mainly to an interpretation of the newest stereotype;

Famous person. This stereotype depict famous figures such as politicians, criminals, musicians and sportspeople and the film roles are based on combination of several stereotypes and myths.

1 Last chapter is dedicated to analysis of thefour Oscar winning films and analysis of a connection between the film roles of a main protagonist and stereotypes of African

American male people. My convictions and conclusions are supported both by a collection of information taken from books written on the subject and from my own research.

2 CHAPTER I

1 African American actors in the motion picture industry

This thesis focuses on African American actors therefore bigger emphasis on male stereotypes is given, even though a few commentaries on female stereotypes are presented as well. A list of significant film milestones shows how the history of motion picture industry has been connected with types of films where African American actors play a lead or supporting role. “The first presentation of African Americans was portrayed in minstrel shows (1830-1890) which were staged by white male travelling musicians. African Americans who have appeared on a film screen, were white actors with make-up who pretended to be African Americans. They overstated lips with a red colour around their mouth and wore flashy costumes. Terms Jim Crow and Zip Coon presenting male African Americans were introduced in the 1830´s. A white actor

Thomas ´Daddy´ Rice danced a jig and sang a song ´Jump Jim Crow´ and George

Dixon created Zip Coon who behaved in an arrogant way and spoke made a mockery of free blacks” (Padgett, 2013, [online]). Those two caricatures which presented African

Americans turned into one stereotype called the Coon. As Donald Bogle mentions those minstrel shows were very popular and were used “to entertain by stressing Negro inferiority” (10). After the Coon a new stereotype called Uncle Tom was introduced by a director Edwin S. Porter, in a 1903 film Uncle Tom's Cabin. That stereotype presented male African American as a happy slave (Keller, 2017, [online]). First female stereotype the Mammy, as Jody Watley states, “was the first black woman stereotype between 1800´s to the 1950´s. An example of this stereotype is illustrated in Gone with the Wind (1939) where Hattie McDaniel plays the Mammy” (2008, [online]).

3 One of the most remarkable films which offers a vision of history and presents

African Americans in stereotypical roles, is the film The Birth of a Nation (1915). “It tells a story about two families; the Stonemans of the North and the Camerons of the

South during the American Civil War, the Reconstruction era and presenting positive portrayal of the Ku Klux Klan” (Lehr and Pfeiffer, 2017, [online]). Several Black male stereotypes were introduced to viewers in that film, I would mention a few of them such as a lazy, childich Coon and untrustworthy, savage and dumb rapist of white women named Brutal Buck.1 The Birth of a Nation launched a negative attitude of presenting

African Americans and the negative point of view has persisted till the present. Richard

Brody who writes notes on blockbuster movies, independent films, and documentaries, excuses the director of The Birth of a Nation D.W. Griffith when he states that “The real crime was not Griffith’s, but the world’s… They saw only what Griffith wanted to say but not what the movie showed, and, upon seeing what Griffith showed, were ready to take up arms in anger. Ambient and accepted racism left viewers ignorant of the facts and prone to accept Griffith’s racist version as authentic” (2013, [online]).

1 The film was number one in many points of view. D.W. Griffith was the first director whose film was the first full-scale long narrative containing a lot of innovative cinematic techniques in film-making and it was the first film that showed the world about the potential of cinema, but The Birth of a Nation is also seen as one of the most racist films ever made. As Tom Brook says “The film argues that giving black people rights was a terrible, terrible error, that they did all sorts of horrible things that actually they didn’t do, and that the noble Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was this wonderful saviour that saved America. It couldn’t be any more wrong” ” (2015, [online]).

4 The era of 1930´s and 1940´s was characterized by films called “race movies”. 2

The late 1940´s was a period of time when black image slightly began to change. “It was not because of the change of thinking of the society and the motion picture industry in general, but there were three factors which influenced Hollywood´s portrayal of

African American actors; firstly they put pressure on government because of discrimination in industry, secondly NAACP, National Association for the

Advancement of Colored People, negotiated with Hollywood conditions of presentation

African American actors in films and employed African Americans in a film industry generally. Finally, the growth of television industry caused an increasing interest of viewers in the cinema industry” (Simpson, 20).

Films began to reflect more optimistic liberal trend, where black film images show elements of humanity, dignity and courage. I would mention for instance a film called

The Negro Soldier (1944), which was a documentation of African Americans in

American military history and praised by coloured journalists. The first half of the film stresses successes of African Americans as lawyers, musicians, athletes, and other valued professions, instead of showing them only as slaves or subservients. The second half of the film then highlights a life story of one African American soldier and his important role in the Second World War to show that also minority is worthy.3

2 Race movies as a respond of Northern Blacks answered to The Birth of a Nation. Oscar Micheaux, an independent black filmaker, along with Spencer Williams and other producers of "race movies"produced films that dealt with black themes. “As these films were shown in segregated black venues and made outside of the Hollywood system, they were largely forgotten by film historians and made little impact on the white-dominated cinema culture” (Brown, 5). An example of race movies of that era is The Black King (1932) a film based on the career of Marcus Garvey, a fictionalized leader, who organized a Back- to-Africa movement among blacks in the United States.

3 In different films during this time period, African Americans were often portrayed as humorous characters. However, after The Negro Soldier, African Americans began to play more respectable and prominent roles in films.

5 During the early 1950´s African Americans appeared in leading roles in several

Hollywood major productions, which focussed on the serious problems of integration and racism. Justin Gomer, an author of online platform for public scholarship on global black thought, history, and culture called Black Perspectives shares a similar point of view when he says, “Mainstream movie audiences looked to a dependable African

American actor who touches interracial relationships and question of race equality in the form of Sidney Poiter” (2017, [online]).

One of his first film was Edge of the City (1957), co-starring John Cassavetes and directed by Martin Ritt. Poitier’s character is labeled as a character of ‘black self sacrifice’ this feature is one of the most singnificant ones of the stereotype Uncle Tom.

The film also introduces a new formula; a presentation of a black and white buddy film formula which depicts a black and white person coming from different backgrounds relate to class and race, where the black person; again Uncle Tom who helps the other person even when he can lose his life.

The film Edge of the City tells a story of a young drifter Axel Nordmann (John

Cassavetes) who becomes a friend with Tommy Tyler (Sidney Poitier), when they work in docks. Tommy manifests as a mentor to Axel and viewers can see a kind of relatioship between a father and his son. Malick, a leader of the docks, does not agree with this friendship. One day, Malick and Axel begin to guarrel and a skirmish is comming. Suddenly Tommy appears and tries to avert the fight. Malick is so angry that he starts to get at Tommy. They fight and in the end Tommy is killed. That scene is a great example of not only the Uncle Tom´s stereotypical behaviour when a black slave is able to protect his white master and loses his life but also a demostration of the black and white buddy film formula, where a black mentor helps regulate white friend´s behaviour.

6 The 1960´s and 1970´s are connected with blaxploitation films. Films such as Shaft

(1972), Superfly (1972) and Scream Blacula (1973) offered flashy lead roles to black actors, but action and grit often overshadowed character development and plotlines.

Although there were more African Americans in the cinema, old stereotypes reemerged.

The well-known Black Buck stereotype was transformed into a more modern Buck. As

Yvonne Sims, an Assistant Professor, states that “the target viewers were African

Americans and that the aim of the films was breaking “existing film stereotypes by presenting self-possessed black men (and occasionally women, notably Pam Grier) in control of their own destinies” (2015, [online]).4 The film were about African

Americans for African Americans.

The 1980´s and the 1990´s presented a major turning point for African Americans in films. Interracial film had become more present. African Americans took on more powerful roles in films. ‘“The “New Black Wave”, from the 1980´s (led by directors such as Spike Lee and John Singleton) was the culmination of a century of filmmaking and yearning. Films such as Do the Right Thing (1989) and Boys N The Hood (1991) tackled serious topics that crossed racial lines and appealed to mainstream audiences”’

(Liversidge, 2003, [online]). During that time the motion picture industry learned that there was a large black audience, “eager for movies with specific African American cultural references, subjects, issues, and stars”, as Bogle explains in his book (27).

4 One of the most significant directors of that era was Melvin Van Peebles. Peebles’s film Sweet Sweeteback ´s Badasss Song (1971) represented a major milestone in Black Hollywood. “It forced Hollywood to acknowledge the monetary potential of the untapped, urban African-American market (similar to the effect Easy Rider (1969) had on its countercultural audiences) as a result of this influential film” (Dirks, [online]).

7 During the 1980´s and the 1990´s mainstream cinema and TV audiences were getting honest, intelligent portrayals of African American life and US history from a black perspective in serious thrillers Devil in a Blue Dress and Deep Cover, or a historical drama about African-American women called Daughters of the Dust (1991)

(Rose, 2014 [online]).5

1.1 Motion picture industry of the 21st century

The new millennium came with no Oscar nominations for African Americans.

However, the following year 2001 offered two major victories for African Americans at the Academy. Denzel Washington and Halle Berry won the awards for best actor and best actress. As this thesis focuses on African American actors, I will not mention the role of Halle Berry. Denzel Washington received the Oscar for a role of a criminal detective based on the stereotype of the Black Buck and his offshoot-the Thug in

Training Day (2001). Films of the last two decades have offered quite tedious stories.

Even when some film roles transformed into more serious ones, for instance stories about great famous African American persons, the motion picture industry still promotes stereotypical film roles to African American actors.

Denzel Washington, Jamie Fox and Will Smith are names of actors who have often been appearing in films since 2000. All these three above mentioned actors played roles of great famous African American people. To give a few examples I will present film

Ali (2001), a documentary drama about the boxing legend played by Will Smith or

5 Black film-makers were called as the class of 91. During the 1990´s Spike Lee made practically a film a year; Do the Right Thing (1989), Mo´ Better Blues (1990), Jungle Fever (1991), Malcolm X (1992), Crooklyn (1994) and Clockers (1995). The 90´s was a golden age, rappers and musicians appeared into a film as well: Ice T, Queen Latifah and Tupac Shakur.

8 Jamie Fox as Ray Charles in Ray (2004) and Denzel Washington who portrayes an activist Malcolm X in a film of the same name Malcolm X (1992). These roles are not wholly based only on the negative characteristic features of stereotypes, such as violence and criminality of Thug (Training day, 2001) or immeasurable willingness to help the white protagonist which is the most singinificant attribute of Black best friend

(Men in Black, 1997-2007), they depict a life story of great African American people.

But the autobiography of famous black people is mostly presented as a heartbreaking story, yet here is not much wider scope for other serious roles.

Still persiting stereotypes can be found in films which address to story of a slave who attempts to free himself or his family; Django Unchained (2012), 12 Years a Slave

(2013) and Something whispered (2014). As Paul Finkelman claims in his book

Encyclopedia of African American History, “That is the reality which American motion industry offers to audiences. African Americans may be scoring more substantial parts in film and television, but many continue to play roles that fuel stereotypes, such as thugs and maids. Some portrayals are more direct than others, but they definitely still exist” (209).

The year 2013 was considered a good year when three African American actors were nominated for the Oscar. 6 Two roles about slaves and one role of Thug did not receive the Oscar. As Huffington Post editor Kia Makarechi noted in his piece

“Hollywood’s ‘Race Problem’ Is Worse Than You Think,” that African American actors are only rewarded for roles that literally could not have been given to white actors” (2013, [online]). He enumerates a list of films with black men Best Actor

6 Halle Berry, a famous African American actress thinks and discuss Oscar awards in connection to African American players in an article Oscar Honors Minorities for Playing Stereotypes, Historical Figures and states,“Barkhad Abdi received a Best Supporting Actor nod for his role as a terrorist thug in Captain Phillips, Chiwetel Ejiofor earned a Best Actor nod as a free man–a violinist in 1840 in New York–taken across state lines and sold into slavery as a field worker in 12 Years a Slave. The drama earned Lupita Nyong’o a Best Supporting Actress award for portraying a slave” (2016, [online]).

9 nominations where the main character is an African American famous person therefore this kind of role can not be played by a white actor.

10 CHAPTER II

2 Prejudices and myths of African Americans

Myths were created to justify inhumane conditions of the past, originated from the era of enslavement of African Americans. Russia Robinson´s essay “Slavery Supporters:

Racism and Stereotypes of African American Slavery” claims that myths come from religion which justifies slavery and racial dominance, when she states “Africans were made for enslavement by God because of the references to slavery in the Bible and people of dark skin. This includes the notion that Abraham had slaves, biblical stories of the Hebrew slaves, and the references made towards “servants” in the Ten

Commandments. Robinson also mentions scientists who declare that African American brain is smaller therefore they are less intelligent than white people” (2014, [online]).

There are numerous myths and stereotypes that people of other races believe about blacks. African Americans are presented on the one hand as an unintelligent person, violent criminal or a great musician and sportsman on the other hand. The myths expect that firstly an African American is a lazy silly man who need to be controlled by a

´white master´; secondly an African American who behaves as a gangster usually addicted to drugs and finally, a great contrast to these negative depictions of black men; a sportsman with colossal power. Jane P. Sheldon´s scientific contribution in her essay

“White Americans’ Genetic Explanations for a Perceived Race Difference in

Athleticism: The Relation to Prejudice toward and Stereotyping of Blacks” explains that

“This black superiority traces its roots into social Darwinism hypotheses explaining that the hardships of slavery resulted only in the physically fittest Africans in the United

States surviving and reproducing” (2007, [online]). The last commonly known myth of

11 African Americans is a talented person of colour with a phenomenal voice. It comes again from slavery time, when workers could sing during their working time. As I have done a deep research of Oscar winning films I would declare that these myths and stereotypes are still apparent in American films. They serve as prototypes of film stereotypes which I will describe in following text.

2.1 Basic male typology

2.1a Uncle Tom

The most common film stereotype depicts usually an old, happy and submissive slave. As Donald Bogle, a historian and an author of books related to African

Americans in film and on television, states in his book Toms, coons, mulattoes, mammies, and bucks that “The first male black American character Uncle Tom, was portrayed as a harassed, enslaved and insulted servant who never turns against his white master faces” (4). And what is more, Uncle Tom is able to sell himself to help his master when it is needed. The willingness to endanger his own life to save master life is apparent in one of the first silent films called The Confederate Spy (1910) which tells a story of an Uncle Daniel (as Uncle Tom) who becomes a spy in a period od Civil War to help his master to defeat querrilas. A webpage called imdb. com, which collect film plots, photos and user reviews, presents itself as ´The leading information resource for the entertainment industry´describes the final scene of The Confederate Spy when the danger is averted and his master gazes on Uncle Daniel, he murmurs gently, "It was for

12 massa sake and little missa"(2015, [online]).7 This stereotype is presented in the first analysed film The Lilies Of The Field (1963), where Sidney Poitier plays the main role.

2.1b The Coon

Contrary to the Uncle Tom, a lazy comedian called the Coon appeared in films.

“Normally a male, he is known for single-mindedness, childlike behaviour and his ability to delay gratification” (Leonard, 126). There were two variations of this type: the

Pickaninny and the Uncle Remus. Bogle explains typical behaviour of these two types;

“The first type was played by a black child actor who was a harmless, crazy creation.

The second one presented a congenial and naive comedian” (7). The Coon acts childish, even he is an adult. He seems not to be happy as a servant but because of his laziness and cynical attitude he does not try to change his low position.

Imdb.com mentions that “The first Coon appearance can be seen in a film Wooing and Wedding of a Coon (1905), which is “a stupendously racist portrayal of two dimwitted and stuttering buffoons” (2010, [online]). The film is about an African

American couple. A young man (the Coon) dates with a nursemaid, gives her a lot of presents and pretends true love to her. She is enchanted by his behavior. Next scene is located in the girl´s house where she introduces her boyfriend to her parents and they agree with their marriage. Not long after the ceremony the Coon changed his behavior.

Instead of well-ordered life with his wife, he starts smoking and drinking. He also becomes a gambler and he loses not only his money but also his clothes. The film ends with a scene where his wife beats him because she is disgusted with his attitude. This brief description of the film plot points out typical characteristics of the Coon stereotype

7 As Gabriel Dexter states,“In the silent films Confederate Spy (1910) and For Massa’s Sake (1911), faithful Uncles spy for the Confederacy, sell themselves back into slavery and sacrifice their lives, literally, “for massa’s sake.” Uncle remains loyal, fighting in defense of their former masters” (2013, [online]).

13 such as his naivety and childisch behaviour. The man does not live solidly, he spends his time in dubious saloons. He is as frivolous person as the Coon.8

2.1c Black Buck

Not all stereotypical representations of African Americans are depicted as peaceful as Uncle Tom. The Coon is depicted as a harmless fool. “But the final character Black

Buck is shown as a violent, savage man, longing for a white woman” (Bogle, 7). Only

Black Buck stereotype presents completely negative character. The Black Buck´s high- powered sexuality forced him to harass and rape any white woman.

All the stereotypes such as Uncle Tom, the Coon and Black Buck first appeared in The Birth of a Nation (1915). They have occured in films since the begining of the motion picture industry and generalized and oversimplified the personality of African-

Americans. David Pilgrim generalizes depictions of African Americans in film when he says, “These stereotypes come from the period of time of slavery when the whites believed that African Americans are inferior to them and deserve to be slaves. They recognized African Americans only as irresponsible childich persons (the Coons), violent rapists (Black Bucks) or happy submissive men (Uncle Toms)” (2012, [online]).

3 Innovative offshoots of well-known stereotypes

There are four new modern male offshoots which were originated from the basic typology of stereotypes. An Archetype for a Magical Negro and Black Best Friend comes from Uncle Tom. The third new type, which is depicted as a bad black man, is called Thug and is derived from Black Buck stereotype. The last modern image of a

8 “Films of that era, whether played by a white or not, presented African Americans as comic and ignorant stooge” (Ukadike, 37)

14 black male film character, Famous person, introduces spectators African American people who are for a variety of reasons significant and deserve their attentions.

3.1 Black Best Friend

According to my research of new ofshoots of well-known stereotypes, Black best

Friend firstly apperad in the 1990´s. Nadra Kareem Nittle, an experienced journalist who reports on a wide range of issues, including race, describes Best Black Friend´s characteristic featurure, “BBF plays a significant centre role when supporting a white character. Viewers do not know much about his own life but the Black best friend turns up at exactly the right moment to coach white characters through life” (2017, [online]).

A classic of the prototype of Black Best Friend is depicted in a film The Shawshank

Redemption (1994) where Morgan Freeman´s character acts as a friend and helps his fellow prisoner played by Tim Robbins to escape from the prison even when Morgan endangers his own life.9 Apart from Nittle another of the typical characteristics of Black

Best Friend are mentioned by Maurice Mcleod, a social commentator and vice chair of social policy research organisation Race on the Agenda. “If you talk jive or in broken

English even though everyone around doesn´t, you might be a BBF (Black Best Friend).

Think of early films of Eddie Murphy or Richard Pryor or virtually anything with Chris

Tucker. If you are wise, confident and funny but you have no life goals of your own, other than making money, getting laid and serving the interests of your white friend, you might be a BBF. If you spend all of your time at your friend´s house and very little in your own home, the prognosis isn´t good” (2015, [online]). Best Black Friend

9 Black Best Friend is concerned also with African American actresses. In comedy-drama television series Ally McBeal (1997-2002) African american actress Lisa Nicole Carson played friend to Calista Flockhar and a black actress Aisha Tyler played friend to Jennifer Love Hewitt on The Ghost Whisperer (2005- 2010).

15 behaves as a caretaker, always willing to help his white companion. That resembles the

old stereotype Uncle Tom I would say.

3.2 Magical Negro

Magical Negro as a modernized version of Uncle Tom have long played key roles in films and television programs. African-American filmmaker Spike Lee popularized the term, deriding the archetype of the "super-duper magical negro" in 2001. These characters have special powers and use them mainly to help the white protagonist. Nnedi Okorafor-

Mbachu describes common characteristic of the stereotype Magical Negro in his article

“Stephen King's Super-Duper Magical Negroes” when he says that “They are either uneducated and mentally handicapped or wise, patient, and spiritually in touch. The

Magical Negro is like the happy slave, glad to do anything to help the white character”

(2004, [online]).

There are many films where the stereotype Magical Negro appears, especially from the last twenty years. I would mention one film and that is The Green Mile (1999). The film tells mainly a story of two men´s kind of friendship between a white ward Paul

Edgecombe and an African American prisoner John Coffey. John, accused of raping and murdering two young girls and sentenced to death does not hesitate to help the white ward and even ward´s wife when he finds out that they suffer from serious health problems.

John´s magical power manifests not only in his ability of speedy recovery of people but he can also get into people´s minds. He touches a body part of a person, usually a hand or a top of the head to connect to their minds. One evening John touches Paul and shows him the true story about killing the two young girls. Paul finds out that John is innocent.

16 I have pointed to this part of film to display the connection between Magical Negro and Uncle Tom stereotype. John´s uses his magical abilities to help the whites even when he could feel dissappointed and racorous as he is innocent and there is no chance of being pardoned. And also when he cures Paul´s wife in their house, he was told to leave the prison for an hour (other prison wards were aware of it and agreed). John could not bother to do it but as a loyal slave and servant, he did what he was asked without any doubts

(Uncle Tom´s feature of being a loyal slave). Juan Arteaga mentions this being a loyal slave in this article “Hollywood's 6 Favorite Offensive Stereotypes” when he states “Notice that the Magical Negro's powers are not in any way due to his own work or training at all.

He's no Batman. And why do they have to be prisoners or janitors again?Also, notice that they're still acting as the servant here. They only exist in the story to help the lead white character” (2008, [online]).

3.3 Thug

A Thug is a modern day Black Buck character. He is an animalistic, violent,

hypersexual and criminal. There’s no shortage of black male actors playing drug dealers,

pimps, con-artists and other forms of criminals in television shows and films such as

Training Day (2001) and Dirty (20005). Training Day is an Oscar winning film so I will

pay attention to this film in last chapter where I analyze it. To show briefly the Thug

stereotype I describe the plot of the film Dirty. It tells a story inspired by a Rampart

scandal.10 A film and music critic Stephen Holden describes the film, “Two corrupted

10 Todd E. Bricker, a co-author of SAGE Publications’s Encyclopedia of Race and Crime (2009) describes the events connected with the scandal.“Los Angeles police department created antigang units called CRASH to decrease violence and criminality in one part of the town. Police officers mixed with the gang members and after some times they were successful in reducing the criminality. At that they were engaged in corrupt behaviour such as stealing and selling drugs. In 1998 a police officer Rafael Perez was arrested because he was suspected of stealing cocaine valued at more than $1 million from a police evidence locker. To have an opportunity for a reduced sentence, he agreed to cooperate with investigators and provided information on more than 70 officers, including police supervisors who were corrupted” (2009, [online]).

17 cops (an African American cop Salim Adel played by Cuba Gooding and a Mexican cop Armando Sancho played by Clifton Collin Jr.) reduce criminality and violence in

Los Angeles by using power and sharp practices” (2006,[online]). Sancho as a former gangmember takes advantages of his earlier experiences from the street to fight and beat the gangs but as the main protagonists says, “I loved being a gangster. I loved my body maybe that´s why I became a cop. With that power came responsibility and with responsibilty came opportunity, with opportunity came corruption” (trailer of “Dirty”

00:00:25-43).

The film is full of scenes where these two cops both behave violenty and criminally, I would mention for instance scenes with harassment and humilitation of white drivers, raping a teenage girl and stealing a bag of drugs from a police evidence locker. This behaviour resembles characteristic features of the Thug stereotype and the film serves as a great example of using this stereotype.

According to my research of new variations of stereotypes I found out that in the last two decades a great amount of films played by African Americans present Thug stereotype. These films support the stereotypes and myth of African Americans as being violent and dangerous people. Films with Thug stereotype present African American men as people who are likely to end up in the criminal justice system.

3.4 Famous person

Malcolm X is a 1992 American biographical drama film about the African-

American activist Malcolm X. Bird (1998) narrates about life and music of jazz saxophonist Charlie "Bird" Parker. Ali (2001) portrays a story of the world famous boxer Muhammed Ali, Invictus (2009) tells the inspiring true story of Nelson Mandela, and 42 (2013) is a film about the racial integration of American professional baseball

18 player Jackie Robinson.11 The Famous person stereotype depicts famous and significant

(not always from a positive point of view) African American political leaders, politician, musicians and sportsman.

A list of these aforementioned films demonstrate a type of film where a black male person intervenes an American history and culture in some way. Famous person is not a typical stereotype such as Uncle Tom or Black Buck, it is rather a combination of characteristic feature of general stereotypes, myths and film stereotypes which connects all the films. The films tell the story of a famous person and his life but in the same time they also emphasize a certain attribute of actor´s behaviour which is a core of one define streotype.

Stereotypes and myths have accompanied film roles of African American actos

since the beginning of the motion picture industry. Some decades were devoted to

single film stereotypes, other decades combinated several film stereotypes. The third

millennium has developed a taste in biographical films which depict famous African

American people. Shooting of more than fifteen biographical films during the last

seventeen years is a proof of this phenomenom.

11 According to my own research, Apart from analyzed biographical films Ray and The Last King Of Scotland and films mentioned in the fist paragraph of Famous person twelve films have depicted Famous Person stereotype since the third millennium. There are some repetitive types of famous figures such as a politician, a criminal, a musician and a sportman. There are four categories according of the famous people. The first category present politicians and figures that became involned in historical affairs. Barry (2016), Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013), Invictus (2009) and Goodbye Bafana (2007). Films which depict a famous black person as a thug are Straight Outta Compton (2015) and American Gangster (2007). A sportman as the main character has appeared in films such as Race (2016), Coach Carter (2005) Radio (2003) and Ali (2001). Great black musicians have been presented in following films; Get on Up is a 2014 and The Soloist (2009).

19 CHAPTER IV

4 Analysis of the selected films

For the analytical part of my thesis I have chosen four films which have won an

Oscar for the Best Actor. These are Lilies Of The Field (1963), Training Day (2001),

Ray (2004) and The Last King of Scotland (2006). In these films, the African American actors play the leading role. Even though these type-castings are not always fully presented in a straightforward manner, the research of these films demonstrates the hidden use of these stereotypes as well. My effort will be to illustrate on many examples that these roles are based on African-American male film stereotypes; the known one

Uncle Tom in Lilies Of The Field, a new offshoot of Black Buck, Thug, in Training Day and Famous person in two last films Ray and The Last King Of Scotland.

4.1 The Lilies Of The Field

Sidney Poitier, the leading black male actor of the 1960´s, has played fifty-five roles. Some of them approximated the Tom stereotype. These Poitier´s roles were prepared to lose lives for white males. Poitier was the first African American actor who won an Oscar when playing the main role. In the prize-winning film The Lilies Of The

Field Poitier's character helps European nuns to build a chapel. 12

12 Frank Miller refers to other roles of Sidney Poitier, “In the 1960´s Poitier played two totally different roles in films Guess Who´s Coming to Dinner (1967) and In The Heat of The Night (1967). In the first film he plays physician who is invited by his white fiance to her parents´house to be introced to them. The film depict changes of behavior of white parents when they find out they two want to marry. The second film present Sidney Poitier as a detective who helps a white detective to investigate a murder of a white bussinessman. It is remarkable and worthy to notice that Lilies Of The Field where his film character is based on Uncle Tom stereotype brought him an Oscar and films which shows African American person as an intelligent educated figure are not worth noticing” (2002, [online]).

20 Steven D. Greydanus, an author of a contribution called “Lilies Of The Field

(1963)” focuses on connection between the main protagonist and religion when he states that, “Sidney Poitier, as Homer Smith, is a wage worker who one day stops close to a house which belongs to a community of German nuns, led by Mother Maria (played by Lilia Skala). She assesses that as a God sign quickly sizes up this capable man whom

God has sent her way, and decides to hire him to do some work” (2007 -2011, [online]).

A black man who, by pure accident, stops at a farm to get some water for his car is manipulated into some work by the nuns. He asks for some money when he finishes the work, but the Mother Superior answers him by quoting some Bible verses. Surprisingly,

Poitier does not protest strongly and donates his time and energy to do what he is asked for. “This kind of behaviour is one of the typical features describing the stereotype of

Uncle Tom. Being the male counterpart to the Mammy caricature, Tom was created to portray the slaves as happily submissive people. Tom is always smiling, and completely desexualized. He is faithful and he is never willing to do wrong by their masters. Toms are eager to work hard to earn their white master’s approval” (Sanders, 2015, [online]).

And what is more, viewers do not learn anything about Smith´s private life and family.

Provided that the nuns substitute the master family, not only that Homer agrees to stay some time with nuns and do some work but he also cheerfully offers them free English lessons. In addition to this, as he does not receive any money for his work, he is forced to find an additional part-time job. He works and pleases his “master family” as much as he can.

The second example of Smith´s eagernesss to please them whenever he can, are manifested in film scenes, where he goes shopping and alwas brings something sweet for them, just to see their smiles and happy faces. Although he gets one egg for

21 breakfast every morning and the Mother Superior must be aware of the lack of the amount of food, Smith remains hearty and selfless in whatever circumstances. Mother

Superior´s arrogant (master) behaviour is in so great discrepancy to Smith´s eagerness to please his “white family” that even a common viewer can find the scenes amusing, but observing the scenes thoroughly, the story pays homage to the stereotypical behaviour between a white master and an African American slave.

Another feature of the Uncle Tom highlights African-American actors as desexualized men. Jacquie Jones mentions in her book The Construction of Black

Sexuality (247), that “the absence of sexuality of Black screen characters which sabotages any intimate touch so the African American person is not presented as a complete human being” (247). Poitier's characters, like earlier Tom, was also denied sex life. His role has no wife or girlfriend, and, it is drained of sexual tension and fulfillment.

Homer has no life apart from whites. We know little of either character's experiences or hopes. He is simply presented in the film to solve the problems of the white characters.

Among other issues that Poitier comments in his second autobiography A Measure of a Man (2000), he also mentions his own attitude to roles he has played: “According to a certain taste that was coming into ascendancy at the time”, wrote Poitier, “I was an

‘Uncle Tom,’even a ‘house Negro,’ for playing roles that were non-threatening to white audiences, for playing the ‘noble Negro’who fulfills white liberal fantasies” (Poittier,

118). His own words can be questioned. Even when he played different roles such as a physician and a detective in films Guess Who´s Coming to Dinner and In The Heat of

The Night, both shooted in 1967, the answer can be found in a content of an essay “Why

Does White America Love Sidney Poitier So?” written by Cliffon Mason. Mason generalizes “Poitier´s roles as “unreal,” and that he was always “a good nigger” helping

22 whitey solve whitey’s problems. If he dared to play a villain, as he did in The Long

Ships, he was presenting the Negro in a bad light. If he was the good guy, well, does he have to be that good?” (1967, [online])

Other characteristic of Uncle Tom stereotype is his separation from other Black people. Homer Smith is the only African American person in the film, the culture from which Smith comes from, is invisible and non-existent, and therefore not important to mention.

Uncle Tom always remains hearty and generous. In the film there are a lot of scenes, where Smith attempts to disagree with Mother Maria and/ or tries to convince her to behave in a more polite way. For instance when Smith demands on getting money for the work or when he offers free English lessons to nuns. Every time he buys some food, he brings sweets to please them. He gets only a superior and arrogant behavior of

Mother Maria as a reward for his efforts. Not even a direct “thank you” he does not hear.

Smith´s behaviour and acts show a parallel for characteristic features of the stereotype

Uncle Tom.

4.2 Training Day

Denzel Washington’s role as Alonzo Harris provides one of the most enduring and threatening depictions of black men as violent criminals. The criminal violence of

Washington’s character is highlightes by the contrast to his white partner, Jake Hoyt played by Ethan Hawke. Jake is presented as a good cop and a moral man. The film tell a story of corrupted senior police officer Harris who oversteps his authority by stealing money and drugs, shooting a gangster and making an attempt to kill his colleague Jake.

Denzel Washington´s main role is based on the stereotype of the Brutal Buck and his offshoot-contemporary more acceptable term, Thug. The Brutal Buck is depicted as

23 big, black, physically intimidating, and violent. Donald Bogle, author of Toms, Coons,

Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks, writes “that Black Bucks are always big, baadddd niggers, oversexed and savage, violent and frenzied as they lust for white flesh. No greater sin hath any black man” (14).

Analysing film scenes, there is a lot of evidence of this stereotype. First, his savagery is confirmed in several scenes in the film when Alonzo´s cruelty to children and teenagers is presented in these two examples; Alonzo has litttle concern for one boy who is held at gunpoint, while he robs in a house where a wife of a Crips gang member lives with her son.

Next scene highlights Alonzo´s disregard of child’s life when he is in a home of his mistress, in a gun battle with Jake, his own son Alonzito is caught in the crossfire.

Alonzo endangers his own son and he simply flees from the house. In another example two men attempt to rape a schoolgirl. Alonzo passively looks on while Jake rushes to help her. Even when Jake shackles them and intends to take them to a police station,

Alonzo safely sends the girl on her way, ingnoring the suffering she experienced and allows the men to leave the place.

Second siginificant characteristic of the Black Buck is the animalism.13 Jake is confused when they do not arrest the rapists and so Alonzo starts to explain him that the streets are like jungle because people are all animals who will kill himself. Alonzo says:

“We did what we had to do”. Looking at Jack, howling as a wolf, he asks him: “Are you the sheep? To protect the sheep, you gotta catch the wolf, and it takes a wolf to catch a wolf” (“Training Day” 00:33:36-50). Alonzo identifies himself as a wolf and tries to manipulate Jake through wolf howling to feel as the wolf and be as Alonzo.

13 According to Thesaurus dictionary, Animalism is “ a trait or mode of behaviour typical of animals” (2017, [online]).

24 And the third sign of the above mentioned stereotype, uncontrolled sexual desire, is very striking. Alonzo is defined by an unmeasurable sexual desire. This unmeasurable sexual desire is illustrated in a scene, when Alonzo and Jake spend some time in his mistress’s house. He does not ask for sex, there is not any attempt of romantic amorous film shot. Alonzo knocks on the door, his mistress opens the door and without introducing his colleague Jake, Alonzo avidly kisses her for a quite long time. After some time Jake enters the flat and sits on the sofa. Alonzo’s sexual appetite is not directly depicted by a passionate sexual scene, instead of that viewers watch Jake, who is waiting for Alonzo in the living room with Alonzo’s son as long as they both fall asleep.

Another showy example of Alonzo´s sexual lustfulness is illustrated with his obscene speaking manner. Alonzo, standing next to Jake, yells to two young women in the street that he is ready to have sex with them.

The analysis of the film Training Day which is based on Black Buck stereotype gives evidence that negative stereotype have persisted till the present. Training Day which was shot in the third millennium and depicts a violent criminal is awarded by an

Oscar. Dr. Boyce Watkins, a cultural critic, notices connection between stereotypes and several African American players when he states, “It’s so interesting how black people tend to be recognized the most when we play roles that fit into inaccurate stereotypes that fit white America’s vision of what it means to be “authentically black”: They don’t recognize Denzel Washington for his brilliant performance as Malcolm X, but they fawn over Morgan Freeman’s role in Driving Miss Daisy.” The worst thing you can do, however, is play a role that communicates intelligence, integrity or courage…that’s “not realistic” (2012, [online]).

25 The last eminent feature of Black Buck and his modern version Thug is the ability of evoking fear and being violent. The Black Buck´s actions full of violence and criminality lead to his destruction in the end, just as Alonzo. Alonzo produces fear amongst a number of groups and misleads also his fellow Jake. Alonzo influences Jake by abusing his superiority as an officer. Through his manipulation, Alonzo is able to dominate Jake, not only because he is above Jake, but because Jake accompanies him out of fear. Alonzo displays animalistic, criminal, destructive, self-serving behaviours.

4.3 Ray

The film Ray describes a life story of the legendary singer Ray Charles. The film follows several important events which influenced his life and music career.

Neverthlesss, there are also scenes depicting his lack of self dedication and motivation, addiction to heroin and women without regarding to his immediate family. The films also occupies with his love life and eternal triangle. Ray, as an eager lover, is involved in many love affairs, apart from his wife, he keeps in touch with his mistresses. This film introduces the newest stereotype Famous person.

There is no doubt that Ray Charles was a great musician, singer and composer, however, there is not much space in the film where a spectator can observe his educational experience and/or his common everyday life with family is not shown there.

Most of the film is dedicted to Ray´s excesses, reverlies with mistresses and his delight in taking drugs. David Ritz mention in his essay “It's a Shame About Ray” the fact that,

“...at that state school he was taught to read Braille, play Chopin, write arrangements, learn piano and clarinet, start to sing, and discover sex. Ray shows none of that. Such scenes would have been far more illuminating than the unexciting story, which the film does include, of Ray changing managers in midcareer” (2004, [online]).

26 Ray´s behaviour can be perceived as the Coon childish behaviour. I have describe the Coon in the second chapter by paraphrasing Donald Bogle. He states, “The Coon stereotype acts childish, even he is an adult. He is lazy and cynical but he does not attempt to change his low position” (7). Charles´s behaviour resembles the Coon when he is presented as an adult child who enjoys the life full of sex and drugs and he is just lucky to meet the right people who help to start his carreer.

Apart from the Coon stereotype, the film refers to a myth that African Americans are great singers. The film Ray does not mention his musical education, his real piano practices.14 A great amount of film scenes where Charles composes and sing his songs without any remakes or repetitions can present the myth that all African American were born wih a phenomenal voice and are able to sing excellently.

It is apparent that a famous African American figure can not be played by a white actor but when Scott Timberg (a former staff writer focusing on culture) asks one data scientist a question if kinds of roles for an actor of color are limited compared to what a white actor, the scientist answers, “And not only limited. But also from the numbers, the

Academy Awards rewards certain kind of roles for minorities. For [playing] famous people -- that is very disproportionate: A little over half the roles won by minorities were depictions of famous people” (2016, [online]). Ray Charles´s biographical film could have dealt only with his musical ability and talent, educational experiences and the ways how he becomes an excellent musician, yet a significant part of the film is devoted to Ray´s childish flippant behaviour, typical for the Coon stereotype.

14 As the website theviolin.sectionfiles.wordpress.com mention a life story of Ray Charles, Charles was taught classical music at school where he became a premier musician and later he could play piano a compose songs in the South Campus Literary Society (sec Early life:1930-1945)

27 4.4 The Last King Of Scotland

The film tells the fictional story of a young Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan who travels to Uganda and becomes the personal physician of President Idi Amin.The film is based on events of Amin's rule. The story is told by Garrigan who decides to work in a rural clinic in Uganda during the 1970´s. Garrigan is offered a job as Idi Amin´s personal physician. Very soon Nicholas is more than Amin's personal physician. He becomes his most trusted advisor. As the time passes, Nicolas observes Amin´s torturing and cleansing of unwanted officers as well as kicking all Asians out of

Uganda.Nicolas longs for returning to Scotland but Amin rejects his appeal saying that

Uganda is his home. In the final scenes, Nicolas decides to poison Amin by pretending of giving him pills for headache but he is caught. Nicolas colleague, a doctor Junju, helps him to leave the place and Nicholas escapes with in a plane.

The film The Last King Of Scotland which depicts Ugandian President Idi Amin´s life could be renamed as The Last Black Buck or a Military Thug. The stereotype of

Famous person in this film combines Black Buck and his modern version the Thug. All the characteristic features of Black Buck and his new offshoot Thug are manifested in

Amin´s figure. He is a destructive criminal who evokes fear.

Brutality of Black Buck and Thug´s behaviour is shown in film scenes Amin disposes his opponents, murders his own relatives (his third wife and an unborn baby) and kidnapps undesirable enemies.

Hyper-sexuality of Black Buck and Thug is indirectly presented via Amin´s three wifes and many children. One can be aware of his sexual avidity. By pointing to the plural marriage, polygamy, there may be identified a link between aiming reference to

28 Amin´s sexuality which strikingly resembles one of the siginificant features of Thug stereotype.

Idi Amin as an African American famous person is almost in the whole film presented as the Thug, yet, it is remarkable that the relationship between the doctor

Nicolas and the maniac dictator remains of the black and white buddy formula which was characteristic in blaxploitaion film of 1970´s and 1980´s. Two figures, usually men called black and white duo, argue and hate each other but eventually come to respect one another. They both come to realize what value has their life. “This Awakening” and awareness of the value of the life comes in dangerous, life threatened situation. As one takes into consideration that the doctor becomes aware of his own value as a human being through the dictator´s cruel acts we can find a parallel to the aforementioned black and white duo.15

Addressing again to the closing scene of The Last King Of Scotland, the leading character, the doctor, asks his rescuer (doctor Junju) why he risks his life to save him.

And his colleague asnwers by saying: “They will believe you. You are a white man.”

Matt introduced his opinion via his comments on webpage Ruthless Reviews and glosses the film when he says, “Uganda suffered greatly under Amin; he was a stereotypical African dictator, after all - a military thug who used swagger and black nationalism to secure power before abandoning his promises to build schools and hospitals, while simultaneously lining his pockets with the nation’s wealth. Such a story might not revolutionize the medium, but at least it would allow Africans to tell an

African story; on their own terms, and with their own sense of responsibility. Instead, in

Kevin Macdonald’s The Last King of Scotland Amin is imagined through the eyes of a

15 Black and white buddy formula have been explained in the first chapter; African American Actors in the motion picture industry in a film The Edge of The City.

29 white man; proof once again that audiences are not expected to set foot on the Dark

Continent unless accompanied by a pale-faced interpreter” (2011, [online]).

I have already mentioned that Famous Person is not a typical stereotype such as

Uncle Tom or Black Buck, and that it is rather a combination of characteristic features of general stereotypes, myths and film stereotypes which connects all biographical films.

There are many great famous African American personages. One can believe that depictictions of controversial African Americans in a film will slowly disappear but as the history of the motion picture industry has shown, in my opinion, the changes of thinking of African American people as Thug and/or Black Buck will take a long time.

30 5 Conclusion

Presentation of African-Americans in films has changed over time. Starting from depicting blacks as Uncle Tom, the Coon and the Black Buck stereotypes throughout black and white duo when both black and white audiences could identify with their heroes to modernizing images of the accustomed stereotypes such as magical Negro and black best friend, the motion picure industry of the twenty-first century recurs to the basic typology of African Americans when introduces them as savage strong-arm brutal

Buck and/or complaisant submissive Uncle Tom.

I have analysed the leading roles in Oscar awarded films. The thesis has endeavoured to give evidence of still persisting presentation of stereotypes of African

American actors in films and the research has been supported both by information taken from books written on the subject and from my own research. From the very beginning of the origin of Academy Awards in 1929 to the third millennium only four film with black best actor have won the prize; The Lilies of the Field, The Training Day, Ray and

The Last King of Scotland. Although the themes of these films differr in a plot, period of time and a type of personae, they all are linked by a specific feature which is a title character ´s behaviour and deeds based on historical black stereotypes. Sidney Poitier,

Denzel Washington, Jamie Fox and also Forest Whitaker have played a wide range of characters, nevertheless the Oscar winning roles fit into stereotypes that fit white

America’s vision of what it means to be “authentically black”; a self-sacrificing slave, savage criminal, drug addicted musician, powerful sportsman and/or black famous person.

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