Mitchell, instead of Jeannie, I could have mentioned the violet-eyed actress who played an Egyptian queen, all the Northern European types who have played biblical characters, and all the Caucasian actors who have played American Indians, Polynesian natives, and Hispanics. None of which keeps me awake at night, and if it's now moving in the opposite direction, I'm not going to let that disturb my sleep either.
But getting back to your comment, Mitchell, I was and remain a fan of the show (which I've always found funnier than Bewitched) and there are numerous episodes where Jeannie refers to Baghdad as her hometown. As I'm sure you know, Baghdad is in present-day Iraq. Maybe Jeannie knew Saddam Hussein.
Mitchell, I reread my comment and decided that before I start using the term "Caucasian" too loosely, I should look it up and see who exactly qualifies. This from Wikipedia:
"The Caucasian race (also Caucasoid[a] or Europid, Europoid)[2] is an obsolete racial classification of human beings based on a now-disproven theory of biological race.[3][4][5] The Caucasian race was historically regarded as a biological taxon which, depending on which of the historical race classifications was being used, usually included ancient and modern populations from all or parts of Europe, Western Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, North Africa, and the Horn of Africa.[6][7]
"First introduced in the 1780s by members of the Göttingen school of history,[b] the term denoted one of three purported major races of humankind (those three being Caucasoid, Mongoloid, and Negroid).[12] In biological anthropology, Caucasoid has been used as an umbrella term for phenotypically similar groups from these different regions, with a focus on skeletal anatomy, and especially cranial morphology, without regard to skin tone.[13] Ancient and modern "Caucasoid" populations were thus not exclusively "white", but ranged in complexion from white-skinned to dark brown.[14]
"Since the second half of the 20th century, physical anthropologists have switched from a typological understanding of human biological diversity towards a genomic and population-based perspective, and have tended to understand race as a social classification of humans based on phenotype and ancestry as well as cultural factors, as the concept is also understood in the social sciences.[15]
"In the United States, the root term Caucasian is still in use as a synonym for white or of European, Middle Eastern, or North African ancestry,[16][17][18] a usage that has been criticized"
Obsolete classification or not, you rarely find people born and raised or with roots in the Middle East with blond hair. But then genies are fictional beings, much like hobbits.
I picked a great time to return to the fold, good buddy, (and a great week to stop sniffing glue) because this one had me completely stumped until I dug around for clues and discovered the following headline:
‘The Lord Of The Rings’ Star Sir Lenny Henry Applauds Amazon’s Move Away From Tolkien’s Fair-Skinned Characters To Diverse Cast.
So, I am gathering that Lord of the Rings, a book and movie series that I have not followed, is coming to Amazon as a series starring the above-named British comedian-turned actor, and that the cast will be more racially diverse than previous book and film iterations. I'm happy to know about this bold move which is sure to draw push-back from the far right. Upon further reading, I learned that LOTR author J. R. R. Tolkien is today considered by scholars to have been anti-racist in spite of having been labeled to the contrary.
I also applaud the producers of the 1960s TV series I Dream Of Jeannie for doing their part to bring diversity to television. In later seasons, Barbie Eden wore different colored genie costumes. You go girl!
Shady, you didn't have to dig around for clues. I'm not Agatha Christie. All you had to say was, "Kirk, what the hell are you talking about?" and I would have told you.
You can't say Tolkien's work lacks in diversity. There are hobbits, elves, dwarves, ents, orcs, and "men", all fictional beings except for, of course, men, but his novels are never from that particular ethnicity's point of view (though one does get crowned king.)
When I was looking for pictures of Jeannie, I did notice different color outfits, but I remember pink the best, so I went with that.
In order to keep the hucksters, humbugs, scoundrels, psychos, morons, and last but not least, artificial intelligentsia at bay, I have decided to turn on comment moderation. On the plus side, I've gotten rid of the word verification.
Should have had a gif of her wiggling her nose.
ReplyDeleteJeannie blinked, Mike. It's Samantha Stevens who wriggled her nose.
DeleteAnd Jeannie was so Middle Eastern.
ReplyDeleteMitchell, instead of Jeannie, I could have mentioned the violet-eyed actress who played an Egyptian queen, all the Northern European types who have played biblical characters, and all the Caucasian actors who have played American Indians, Polynesian natives, and Hispanics. None of which keeps me awake at night, and if it's now moving in the opposite direction, I'm not going to let that disturb my sleep either.
DeleteBut getting back to your comment, Mitchell, I was and remain a fan of the show (which I've always found funnier than Bewitched) and there are numerous episodes where Jeannie refers to Baghdad as her hometown. As I'm sure you know, Baghdad is in present-day Iraq. Maybe Jeannie knew Saddam Hussein.
Mitchell, I reread my comment and decided that before I start using the term "Caucasian" too loosely, I should look it up and see who exactly qualifies. This from Wikipedia:
Delete"The Caucasian race (also Caucasoid[a] or Europid, Europoid)[2] is an obsolete racial classification of human beings based on a now-disproven theory of biological race.[3][4][5] The Caucasian race was historically regarded as a biological taxon which, depending on which of the historical race classifications was being used, usually included ancient and modern populations from all or parts of Europe, Western Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, North Africa, and the Horn of Africa.[6][7]
"First introduced in the 1780s by members of the Göttingen school of history,[b] the term denoted one of three purported major races of humankind (those three being Caucasoid, Mongoloid, and Negroid).[12] In biological anthropology, Caucasoid has been used as an umbrella term for phenotypically similar groups from these different regions, with a focus on skeletal anatomy, and especially cranial morphology, without regard to skin tone.[13] Ancient and modern "Caucasoid" populations were thus not exclusively "white", but ranged in complexion from white-skinned to dark brown.[14]
"Since the second half of the 20th century, physical anthropologists have switched from a typological understanding of human biological diversity towards a genomic and population-based perspective, and have tended to understand race as a social classification of humans based on phenotype and ancestry as well as cultural factors, as the concept is also understood in the social sciences.[15]
"In the United States, the root term Caucasian is still in use as a synonym for white or of European, Middle Eastern, or North African ancestry,[16][17][18] a usage that has been criticized"
Obsolete classification or not, you rarely find people born and raised or with roots in the Middle East with blond hair. But then genies are fictional beings, much like hobbits.
Hi, Kirk!
ReplyDeleteI picked a great time to return to the fold, good buddy, (and a great week to stop sniffing glue) because this one had me completely stumped until I dug around for clues and discovered the following headline:
‘The Lord Of The Rings’ Star Sir Lenny Henry Applauds Amazon’s Move Away From Tolkien’s Fair-Skinned Characters To Diverse Cast.
So, I am gathering that Lord of the Rings, a book and movie series that I have not followed, is coming to Amazon as a series starring the above-named British comedian-turned actor, and that the cast will be more racially diverse than previous book and film iterations. I'm happy to know about this bold move which is sure to draw push-back from the far right. Upon further reading, I learned that LOTR author J. R. R. Tolkien is today considered by scholars to have been anti-racist in spite of having been labeled to the contrary.
I also applaud the producers of the 1960s TV series I Dream Of Jeannie for doing their part to bring diversity to television. In later seasons, Barbie Eden wore different colored genie costumes. You go girl!
Have a great week, good buddy Kirk!
Shady, you didn't have to dig around for clues. I'm not Agatha Christie. All you had to say was, "Kirk, what the hell are you talking about?" and I would have told you.
DeleteYou can't say Tolkien's work lacks in diversity. There are hobbits, elves, dwarves, ents, orcs, and "men", all fictional beings except for, of course, men, but his novels are never from that particular ethnicity's point of view (though one does get crowned king.)
When I was looking for pictures of Jeannie, I did notice different color outfits, but I remember pink the best, so I went with that.
I don't know why people get so bent out of shape about diversity casting. The whole effin' world isn't white!
ReplyDeleteDebra, worldwide whites aren't even in the majority (I say this as a white myself.)
DeleteI did not know anything about this new Lord of The Rings and Lenny Henry is in it! Good to see changing times.
ReplyDeleteI was a bit unsure like Shady, so had to google it too!
As I told Shady, Ananka, you don't have to google. Just ask me and ye shall receive.
DeleteI watched the first episode of The Rings of Power. I enjoyed it. Can't wait to watch the second one.
ReplyDeleteSo diversity didn't hold you back, JM.
ReplyDelete