Dish of the Day
Just some film musings of a more succinct, spontaneous and sometimes seditious nature:
Tuesday, March 14, 2023
A hot topic that has recently arisen in our Facebook chat room (all readers are welcome to join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/902349343110685) interestingly enough coincides with Bill Maher’s concluding satirical segment of “New Rules” on his most recent talk show. He spotlighted Sacheen Littlefeather’s non-acceptance of Marlon Brando’s Best Actor Oscar for The Godfather. Maher said that it’s been 50 years since Sacheen Littlefeather caused an uproar by delivering Brando’s statement on Hollywood which referred to the industry’s negative portrayal of Native Americans. Maher went on to say that Littlefeather’s message was met with boos and jeers from the crowd, but that now, because of “progress” she would be embraced by the audience.
News reports of an apology from the Academy for the negative reception Littlefeather received, her death in October of last year and subsequent reports from her sisters that she had no Native American ancestry, have prompted some of the aforementioned posts in various film related chatrooms. Many of the comments make me think Maher’s positive idea of what would occur today is wrong: such an incident would still be met with the same divisiveness, if not more antagonism than what Littlefeather received in 1973. Specifically, the numerous negative responses these posts generated focused almost exclusively on her not being a Native American. Many were downright hostile, calling her a fraud. Some, outraged and offended all these decades later, were even less kind. Others were set on debunking the story that John Wayne, a presenter that night, had to be restrained by security from going on stage out of anger for Littlefeather’s remarks, which to be fair, looking at all of the evidence, seems untrue. Still, the negative focus on Littlefeather herself and her sisters’ derisive statements shortly after her passing, prompted my response as follows:
Roger Moore, Sacheen Littlefeather, and Liv Ullman at the 1972 (45th) Academy Award ceremony
“One thing I find odd here [referring to what Littlefeather’s sisters stated after waiting so long] ‘... they didn’t speak out, as they thought their sister’s fame would eventually dissipate.’ What fame are they speaking of? And even if she had achieved some modicum of fame (which she didn’t) why would that have made a difference if her siblings felt some personal offence? Wouldn't her ‘fame’ have made matters worse? Are we to believe it was better to wait until she was dead fifty years later? Obviously Brando okayed her to accept the award on his behalf, which is practically all she did, aside from relaying a few words prepared by Brando about how Hollywood mis-represented Native Americans on screen. Regardless of the motion picture exceptions (and, to be fair, there are quite a few * ) that's what Hollywood did [routinely present Native Americans as collective savages ignoring the reason for their hostility]. Yes, Ford made Cheyenne Autumn but partly to address this Hollywood trend, one he played a role in establishing. So, the Academy apologised for the booing and the way she was treated. Okay, perhaps they didn't have to. They are not responsible for what happened that night and by all accounts, the John Wayne reaction as reported with guards holding him back, looks like b.s. but did she start that (Maher indicates it was a producer of the AA show) or just repeat what she heard? She is, more importantly a human being and an invited guest regardless of her ancestry. Representing Brando, not herself, she was dignified and brief and that’s more than can be said for many AA recipients speaking for themselves. Let’s say she was acting. Hmm, an actress, looking for work, accepting an award for an actor who played an Italian American immigrant is what’s so offensive here? She was snubbed by an audience before anyone there could have verified her ethnicity for something she could not have originally planned on doing. I also think that if the average person aspiring to working in the arts was asked by Marlon Brando to accept an award on his behalf at the time, they’d gladly have done so. Another factor to keep in mind is that although many find it inappropriate for Oscar recipients to discuss political causes, the Academy does allow for this, perhaps because they know that these issues, held so dear to some award winners, can reach so many more compared to any other conceivable platform. Littlefeather was received with boos and jeers, mocked by others and was reportedly threatened with being arrested, so what's so bad about an apology from the Academy anyway? Whole countries have apologised for actions having nothing to do with their current leaders or peoples. Is that a bad thing? Is anyone, regardless of what side of the political fence they’re on, going to claim that Native Americans were treated fairly by the U.S. Government? That seems to be the message that Brando chose to bring to light (if he won of course, not knowing that he would) and therefore what is relevant: the negative stereotyping of Native Americans in Hollywood films and TV and calling attention to the occupation protest at Wounded Knee, South Dakota that was happening at the time of the Oscars telecast. ** It’s not about the person who delivered the actor’s message, even though she stated she couldn’t read his statement to the audience, not to mention, became someone who forever slipped back into obscurity shortly thereafter.”
#Recent news: Littlefeather was excluded from the recent Oscars In Memoriam, her sisters will be relieved to know.
* A number of films that have been forthright concerning the plight of Native Americans have been given credit in my review of Devil’s Doorway (1950): the latter perhaps the bravest of them all and one of the finest westerns ever made.
** It’s not as if the 71 day stand-off at Wounded Knee that Brando was trying to bring attention to was uneventful. Two Sioux men were shot to death by federal agents and several more were wounded.
All responses are not only welcomed but encouraged in the comments section below.
Hope to see you tomorrow.
A.G.