Coming February 6, 2024 . . .
MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE
by Michael Wolraich
Pre-order at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop
Coming February 6, 2024 . . . MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE by Michael Wolraich Pre-order at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop |
By Eugene Daniels @ Politico.com, Sept. 20, with video
Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang is sticking by his calls for forgiveness for Shane Gillis, the 31-year-old comedian who was hired and quickly fired by “Saturday Night Live” over past racist statements.
“I actually sat there and watched some of Shane's comedy to figure out whether I thought that he was truly malignant or evil or just a comedian who'd made some terrible and distasteful jokes,” Yang, who is Taiwenese-American, said in an interview this week.
Gillis has called it a “hassle” to have to speak with a waiter at a Chinese restaurant, mocked Asian accents, and used a racial slur to describe Asians, including calling out Yang as a “Jew c***k.” But Yang, who jumped to Gillis’ defense when the comments came to light, said he concluded Gillis “was not an evil person and did not intend to somehow advocate for racist ideas or ideologies.” [....]
Comments
“White Like Me” – Would SNL Do Whiteface In 2017?
2017 Article currently trending @ Isitfunnyoroffensive.com
by artappraiser on Fri, 09/20/2019 - 8:06pm
Controversy's too much when it comes to comedy. Keep it straight. I mean LGBTQ-aware straight. Actually get rid of the straight stuff - LGBTQ is enough. And ducks. People laugh at ducks. And kittens. And white people. And clowns.
ETA - and baby goats.
by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 2:10am
Ah but by following just one professional comic on twitter for like just a week, and seeing his interaction with colleagues, I get the impression that a lot of black comics have been suffering mightily in the recent past from not being sufficiently woke to LGBTQ concerns. The victim olympics seem to be highly operational right now in comedy world. Almost seems like comics will soon become the next oppressed identify group.
I will just note that the baby goats are of mixed colors and play well together!
(Aside: I am a Paul Bronks supporter and fan too, am aware of all his detractors who think him a terrible appropriator and content thief. What he is is a curator of funny animal videos, he curates the best of the best of the huge amount of content out there. I was following him for a while but I took him off the list because he uses up too much feed--I know where to go when I am in the mood, though. )
by artappraiser on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 4:29pm
Oops, another comedian taken out - let me here you yell "Freedom!!!" (skip to 4:30 for Asian, or beginning for Latina - if lucky you can be offended by both parts)
by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 5:56am
Awkward - no black female household names in UK besides Naomi Campbell.
https://www.theguardian.com/global/2019/sep/21/london-hughes-comedy-to-c...
by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 3:30pm
Ah but I would argue that's cause black native born Brits are fully assimilated citizens of empire. Entitled to all the quirks and prejudices of their fellow citizens of other skin color. They actually had to create Brexit to divide the people again?
So what is Her Royal Highness, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Countess of Dumbarton and Baroness Kilkeel ,chopped liver? An American divorcee to boot!
by artappraiser on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 4:40pm
She's a Yank! She hasn't even lived there long enough to have citizenship. Of course there's Mel or Scary Spice, not sure which one, but to me it is a pretty amazing fact or lack - no Oprahs, no Beyonces, no Halle Berry's in a country well known for its entertainers. Black female politicians or entrepreneurs? Coming up blank. (and Naomi's pretty ancient at this point, happening back when Oasis and George Michaels were a thing some 30 years ago).
by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 10:33pm
I don't really get involved much in pop culture. I don't watch the oscars or SNL or most of these programs where these controversies come up. But I pay a bit of attention to it when it comes up in the news. This video doesn't begin to address the issue brought up by Shane Gillis' podcast. It's not about emulating an accent. It's about using ethnic slurs in an insulting manner. It would be similar if Johnson had said,
Or how about a bit on a Jewish nail salon.
Decide for your self whether Gillis is funny or not, But if you're going to address the issue address the real issue. Comparing Gillis to this video of Johnson doesn't.
by ocean-kat on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 5:28pm
Johnson is funny, Gillis isn't - just nasty comments and expressions spurted out. Part of Johnson's effectiveness is she worked hard on the Vietnamese (I think?) accent. If it were a Jewish nail salon the quips about upselling might be offensive, but here the kind of tricky suave greediness seems more the nature of salon work than Vietnamese. Is faking the accent insulting to Vietnamese? Dunno. Is a mixed Latina using her accents and culture offensive to some Hispanics? And how many?
An Indian responded to portrayals of an Indian on The Simpsons with "at least we were there". Awareness often precedes proper respectful treatment. You get a few bit parts before they make you a star. But in comedy, it's never simple.
by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 10:42pm
it can be hard and it can be complex but it seems to me some of it is pretty simple. This chinese guy walked into a bar. How does it get funnier if we say, This chink walked into a bar. The vast majority of Americans have moved so far beyond the casual use of ethnic slurs that it can only be shockingly "funny."
by ocean-kat on Sat, 09/21/2019 - 10:59pm