I saw Aquaman on Christmas Day and loved it. Jason Momoa’s carefree, hippie superhero was charming and engaging, and there were even a few black people in the film. A very few, two really, but both had lines and a prominent role in the story line. They were also atypical. No one was on drugs, … Continue reading Aquaman Shows Us Why Representation Matters
Excuse me, Scott Mendelson? I’ma need you to find your mind quick, ‘cuz I’m pretty sure you lost it. His Forbes piece “Box Office: Black Panther’ Should Terrify Every Hollywood Studio” starts off ok, running down the film’s stats and comparing it to some other heavy box office hitters in recent history. But things quickly take … Continue reading Geez, When Did Success Become Toxic? When It’s Black Success
So, Black Panther is like the King of the cinematic world right now, and the movie is still two weeks out. There goes the myth that black movies don’t sell to anyone except black people. The film has already broken several pre-release records including first day advance ticket sales, and it’s Fandango’s top-selling superhero film … Continue reading About That Myth That Black Films Don’t Sell…
Hollywood remains a cut above when it comes to industries actively trying to correct their diversity issues. You know, as opposed to some lukewarm acknowledgement of a problem and vague, ephemeral plans to work on a solution. This week FX CEO John Landgraf went on record saying that he’s made significant changes to ensure the … Continue reading Lights, Camera, Diversity Action
So, earlier this week actress and Fox News Contributor Stacey Dash said in an interview that we should not have Black History Month or award shows that only feature black actors. She was responding to questions after several prominent, black Hollywood names publicly declared their intention to boycott the Oscars because for the second year … Continue reading Stacey Dash, Please Stop
OK, men throw the word slut around way too easily. It is unbelievably tiresome to hear that insult used for a joke, like it has no effect on the people who hear it.
Society already puts an unreasonable amount of pressure on women to behave a certain way. This is feminine. That is not feminine. You shouldn’t do this, or that, or the other. Why? Well, if you do people will think you’re a slut.
Apparently, having breasts and being charming is enough reason for people to call you a slut — including your coworkers — as Scarlett Johansson found out following a stop on the press junket for her new Avengers movie “Age of Ultron.” Continue reading “Did You Really Just Call Your Co-star a Slut? #gender #Avengers #AgeofUltron”
The Interview, the comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, has been yanked from theaters following the now well-publicized leak of emails from Sony Co-chairman Amy Pascal and others. There are three important things we can all learn from this communication debacle.
1. Nothing is private. If you think anything affiliated with the internet is private, don’t kid yourself. If someone built it, someone else can hack into it. Period. It’s best to operate under the assumption that there is a clear glass wall between what you write on the ‘net, what you say in public – and occasionally in private – and the entire civilized world. So, keep it classy.
2. Keep it professional. Write all email communiques as though your mother is looking over your shoulder. And if your momma was mean, write like somebody else’s momma is looking over your shoulder. It doesn’t matter what kind of relationship you have with the person you’re writing to. You could have been friends for 30 years, been intimate in a biblical sense and/or have shared a bank account or a last name. Assume someone will hack into your email and air out everything. Continue reading “3 Things the Sony Hack Can Teach Us About Communication #Sony #TheInterview #AmyPascal #diversity #race”
Congrats to Lupita Nyong’o for becoming Lancôme’s first Black spokesperson. The world should celebrate black beauty. It is as common as any other kind, after all. And congrats to Lupita for riding a very elegant magic carpet of success all the way to the top.
I’m not sure there was an award she qualified for that she didn’t win this past award season. And damn did she look good every single time anyone saw her! Lord have mercy she was fabulous! Not because she was runway ready but because she owned every scrap of fabric that graced her body. She was proud. She was different, and she quite obviously could care less. Every graceful line of her body seemed to wink and say, yeah, I know. She looked in the face of traditional definitions of beauty and had a big ole belly laughter, and seemingly everyone – certainly every big name in Hollywood who rushed to shake her hand and offer congratulations – laughed right along with her.
But did it occur to anyone else that she, and Halle Berry before her, were essentially rewarded for playing the lowest, most degraded and humiliated characters it’s possible for a Black woman to play? Continue reading “The High That Comes From Being Low…#Lupita #diversity #films #beauty”
So Quvenzhané Wallis is playing Annie, and as the moment of truth – also known as the film trailer release came and went – there has been a ton of, um, concern from people who are confused and chagrined the nine year old African-American is playing the iconic role.
For those of you who are unfamiliar, the original film Annie was a little white girl with curly bright red hair. Wallis is far from that, and the backlash has been impressive. Continue reading “What’s Wrong With a Black Annie? #Annie #diversity #discrimination #film #movies”
A Life Not Grey 