Everybody loves the song White Christmas, for the season isn't complete without hearing Bing Crosby sing those familiar notes.
White Christmas is one of the nations favorite Christmas songs, and puts everyone who hears it in the Christmas spirit. Of course, the song comes from the movie of the same name, right?
Nope. You'd be wrong and the reason of this oversight is simple: the movie that originally had the first rendition of White Christmas is one of the most horribly offensive movies ever made, for an infamous Black-face scene completely places the soon to be discussed film in the category of unwatchable.
Holiday Inn, starring Bing Crosby is that film, and the film has the incredible honor of being one of the most offensive films for Black people to watch in the history of cinema:
"Holiday Inn is a 1942 film starring Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire, with music by Irving Berlin. The film has twelve new songs, one brief use of "Oh How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning," written in 1917 for the World War I musical "Yip Yip Yaphank" which was reprised on Broadway in 1942 under the title "This Is the Army" and a complete reuse of "Easter Parade," written for the 1933 Broadway review "As Thousands Cheer". An original song from this movie is "White Christmas".Oh no. Much like Al Jolson, Holiday Inn uses Black-face in a prominent scene that induces cries of racism and insidious intentions on the part of white people to lynch and "keep down" Black people:
Beginning in the 1980s, some broadcasts of the movie have cut out the "Abraham" musical number entirely, undoubtedly because of its depiction of a blackface minstrel show incorporating what is now considered offensively stereotyped mannerisms and dialect.[1] Turner Classic Movies has left the "Abraham" number intact during their screenings of Holiday Inn both for historical purposes, and because it is TCM's policy to show films uncut."
Oh no. A movie with Black-face, made by people who comprised The Greatest Generation and Pre-Obama America... yikes!"The New York Times has been running an end-of-year appreciation of classic holiday movies. Today, A. O. Scott actually appreciated the Bing Crosby movie “Holiday Inn.”
"I have already expressed my view of this movie in this blog. Its (horribly) extended blackface song sequence, with whites singing in “Negro dialect” about “Fadder Abraham” is unconscionable, sickening, and impossible to excuse or rationalize. A. O. Scott does both.
The problem with this terrible racist scene, for Scott, is that it “dates” the film “somewhat”, and makes it “unpalatable” for “current sensibilities.” But “it’s important to remember that this movie is more than 65 years old.” Problem solved! My current sensibility is satisfied now.
Racism is never excusable because there was simply never a time in history when people did not know racism was used to hurt and oppress others. And frankly, to excuse a movie playing when people I know were alive for being from some ancient, distant time (65 years ago) is beyond lame. There is no place for accepting and softening crap like this in the United States of America at any time, but perhaps especially now."
Let's be straight-forward: the day will come when anything unpalatable to Black people is thrown into a great big funeral pyre that will represent the purging of Pre-Obama America from the new world Disingenuous white liberals have created for us all.
Holiday Inn, a timeless classic that has the unfortunate scene of white people dressed incognito behind a facade of Blackness, will be one of the first films to be decimated in that funeral pyre.
For the time being, Stuff Black People Don't Like includes Holiday Inn, for this film is the 1st Day of Christmas at SBPDL. It prominently features a Black-face scene that wasn't met with antipathy when it debuted in the 1940s, for this wasn't a 'racist' act then. Only recently have people decided that every brick of Pre-Obama America must be pulled down and the singing of Bing Crosby while wearing black make-up represents a pivotal yule-block of that nation.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, or so it has been said, but in the case of Black-face, it is grounds for having your classic movie boycotted or being expelled from college.
9 comments:
When black folk lived in slavery who was that it set the darkie free - I can't stop laughing. I almost wet my pants. Been singing this song to my self all day.
Those were the days. For President's day we all should do the black face!
Movies aside, I would think that just the title 'White Christmas' would be enough.
Damn racist snow!
How is Linoln suppososed to be a hero for Black folks. He only freed the slaves because he HAD to.
"My paramount objective, in this struggle, i to save the Union and it is not to either save or destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slaves, I would do it. If I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it;and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would also do that"
-Lincoln in a letter to Horace Greeley
Most Black people know this which is why you'll get, at best, an apathetic response towards him. It whites who seem to like to shove Lincoln the Martyr down our collective throats.
Speaking of Abe Lincoln:
"I will say, then, that I am not nor ever have been in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the black and white races - that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of making voters or jurors of negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people; and I will say in addition to this that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which will ever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality. And inasmuch as they cannot so live, while they do remain together, there must be the position of superior and inferior, and I, as much as any other man, am in favour of having the superior position assigned to the white race."
- 4th Lincoln-Douglas debate, September 18th, 1858
As well:
"If destruction be our lot, we ourselves must be its author and finisher." Lyceum adress, 1838
I can see why blacks may not like the man, but I can't see why whites don't, or at least why they shouldn't, like him more. Why don't we follow his words, lest "destruction be our lot", and every US city turns into a Detroit.
I'm glad you posted Lincoln's words. A lot of people black and white don't understand history beyond the crap on the History channel. If that were the case they would know that black people live in other places besides Detriot.
-Black guy
B. Herder,
We've been listening to Christmas songs all week and one of those songs happen to be White Christmas. I think this time you guys are making a mountain out of a mole hill.
-Black guy
Black guy,
I don't think anyone disputes that "White Christmas" isn't a fantastic song and worthy of admiration and constant playing.
The crux of this post regards the film "Holiday Inn"...
SBPDL,
I enjoy classic movies. I always have,because I have a love of history. Regardless of who is telling the story. It's very wise to understand the truth about other people. This site will never teach me anything about black people but everything about whites.
I find the clip of the movie Holiday Inn hilarious and I plan to add it to my Netflix Que.
-Black guy
"This site will never teach me anything about black people but everything about whites."
Brilliant.
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