In the commercial breaks of the Skins/Philly game, while surfing the web, I came across a very interesting and dynamic interview on 60 Minutes with Tyler Perry. Being a Madea, laugh-until-it-hurts, fan, I had to check it out.
Perry had the chance to visit his childhood and some family in his old New Orleans neighborhood. Not only did he get emotional when he described his troubled past, but he gave a little secret away-where his hilarious characters originated from! Some those very same church-going inspirational ladies in Perry's films came from his family. His grandmother and aunts were some the very same gun-toting church-going women in films like Diary of A Mad Black Woman and The Family That Preys.
Although these parts the interview was very interesting, they were not what prompted me to write this message.
First, I have a question.
Who is Amos and Andy?
Don't burst a brain vessal trying to figure it out. I will reveal the answer later for those who don't know.
The interviewer told the Madea superstar of some of Spike Lees views on his films. Check out the interview below.
I didn't think Lee was doing the right thing when he said some foolishness about Tyler Perry's films imulating coonery and bafoonery, casting African Americans in a negative stereotypes when he see advertisements for them. Honestly, I was a little hurt by Spike Lee! He is one of my hero's in black cinema. I couldn't believe him of all people felt this way. We are entitled to our opinions.
Lee was quite hypocritical himself. Jungle Fever had a slew of negative Black stereotypes. What message was he trying to convey when he casted Halle Berry as a crackhead in Jungle Fever?
Perry responded to Lee's comments by saying very slyly, Lee should tell that to his fan base. I knew what that meant. His die-hard fans would tear Spike Lee apart trying to defend their beloved Madea and Brown. Those characters are meant to uplift and bring humor to real-life situations that we all can relate to.
I completely supported Perry in this one!
Amos and Andy is a stock sketch comedy based around 1920-1950's. It depicted racially driven stereotypes of three African American men that often found themselves in a pickle of situations with women and other drama. The two white actors that created the radio-turned-television series from their minstrelsy show in Durham, N.C. The actors voiced their idea of so-called Black dialect. Quite naturally this infuriated many people. Eventually, when it went to CBS, Black actors played the parts and actually paved the way for many successful African American actors today. But anyway, there you go...a little piece of history, not HIStory.
Never seen Amos and Andy? Click the link below:
Amos and Andy Clip
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