I am a huge fan of Jean-Michel Basquiat. When I got the press kit for the new documentary about his too short life, I was immediately hooked.
Film Description
BOOM FOR REAL: THE LATE TEENAGE YEARS OF JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT follows Basquiat’s life pre-fame and how New York City, the times, the people and the movements surrounding him formed the artist he became. Using never-before-seen works, writings and photographs, director Sara Driver, who was part of the New York arts scene herself, worked closely and collaboratively with friends and other artists who emerged from that period: Jim Jarmusch, James Nares, Fab Five Freddy, Glenn O’Brien, Kenny Scharf, Lee Quinones, Patricia Field, Luc Sante and many others. Drawing upon their memories and anecdotes, the film also uses period film footage, music and images to visually re-recreate the era, drawing a portrait of Jean-Michel and Downtown New York City – pre-AIDS, President Reagan, the real estate and art booms – before anyone was motivated by money and ambition. The definition of fame, success and power were very different than today – to be a penniless but published poet was the height of success until everything changed in the early 1980s. This is New York City’s story before that change.
I will just get straight to the point: Oprah Winfrey cannot run for president.
I don’t dislike like her, and it’s nothing personal. To the contrary, I think she is a pioneer and a role model for many people who work in media. For a woman who survived extreme poverty and sexual abuse in racially segregated Mississippi to emerge as a billionaire TV mogul, this is something to be admired. She is also a kind, smart and an all-around great person.
However, this doesn’t make her qualified to be president. It seems like a lot of people want her to run for the highest office simply because she is a TV celebrity. We already have a TV celebrity president who is not working out well because he has no experience with governance and policy. Having appropriate experience still counts for something today. While some people would argue that Trump’s business acumen is enough for running the country, I have yet to see his boardroom skills translate well into how he runs the government. To his credit, at least actor-turned-politician Ronald Reagan was governor of California for 12 years before running for president.
Also, Trump isn’t well-versed on the issues. When I saw him during the immigration discussions last week, he looked like he was in over his head. Where does Winfrey stand on any of the issues? What is her position on immigration, healthcare or criminal justice reform? I think she intentionally doesn’t take public positions on issues because she doesn’t want to offend the millions of people who love her brand. If she is seriously considering a run for office, she can’t be neutral on anything. And if she were to take a position, then the next question is how knowledgeable she is on the issue and how would she enforce it. It might disappoint her supporters that she isn’t as well-versed on the issues either. Sure, she could hire the best political consultants, but if the captain doesn’t know how to steer the ship, we are all lost.
Also, this is just continuing a disturbing trend in how Americans select presidents. As you might remember, many people voted for George W. Bush just because he is the type of guy they would like to have a beer with. Voters are now, unfortunately, equating kindness and likability with competency. Maybe if we had elected Al Gore, or Al Bore as some call him, perhaps we wouldn’t be still going through the global disaster better known as the so-called “War on Terror.” Maybe Hurricane Katrina would have been handled differently. I would be the first to admit that Hillary Clinton has a boring, cold personality; however, I voted for her because she is smart, competent and I wouldn’t have to worry about her starting World War III unnecessarily like the current moron-in-chief. Trump was mainly elected because of this country’s obsession with celebrity culture worship (mixed in with racism and tribalism), and now Oprah might be the next celebrity president. And before you know it, we will have President Kim Kardashian, President The Rock, President Beyonce, President Caitlyn Jenner, or whoever celebrity has the most likes on social media.
Giving a good speech at the Golden Globes doesn’t equal to being a good president. Oprah will not save us, but experience will.
I loved watching the TV show Sex and the City back in the day. I liked the first movie and I could have done without the second movie. The third SATC movie was about to go into production but was halted suddenly because Kim Cattrall, who played Samantha, didn’t want to be in the movie. Apparently, Cattrall has had a longstanding beef with Sarah Jessica Parker. However, the biggest takeaway from Cattrall’s reasoning for not doing the movie, for me at least, is that the storyline lacks relevance towards today’s sensibilities around diverse media images.
“It’s a great part. I played it past the finish line and then some, and I loved it,” she said. “Another actress should play [Samantha] — maybe they could make it an African-American Samantha Jones or a Hispanic Samantha Jones.”
She makes an excellent point! While SATC was groundbreaking 20 years ago, the show seems really outdated today. When you get down to it, it is a show about four, privileged, heterosexual, white women who seem to only interact with other privileged white people in New York, the most racially diverse city on the planet. Many TV commentators complained about the lack of diversity on the show at the time. In later seasons, Blair Underwood joined the show as a brief love interest for Miranda and Samantha also had a short affair with a Latina lesbian, but, again, this was only after complaints from viewers.
Even the revamped Will and Grace is outdated. This was another groundbreaking show in 1998, but, again, it is a show about four, privileged white people in New York City and their only main “diversity interaction” was with the maid Rosario.
Today, TV viewers expect programs to reflect the current trends and perspectives in America, which includes diverse depictions of characters and relationships. There is a reason why shows like Insecure and Claws are so popular. It is not only expected that programs have more characters of color on TV today but also positive depictions of interracial and same-sex relationships. However, the one perspective that is really lacking today on TV is a balanced view of class diversity. Do you ever notice most sitcoms and dramas today seem to featured upper-middle-class characters? Roseanne was a great show back in the day because it showed the working class Connors struggling to pay bills just like many other American families.
This also made me think about other shows that were groundbreaking when they first aired, but there would be a question if a show like that would be aired today due to changing sensibilities. Here are a few that came to my mind.
Benson – RIP Robert Guillaume! This was a really cool show. I loved Benson, but I couldn’t see a show on TV today that would feature a black main character in a subservient role. However, Guillaume did play the role really well and you almost forgot that Benson was a butler!
Soap – Benson was also on this show and was the smartest person among all the crazy white people he was surrounded by. This show wouldn’t be on today mainly because of Billy Crystal’s character, whom by today’s standards, promoted negative stereotypes about gay men and trans women.
Life Goes On – There are not many shows on TV today that even featured characters with disabilities, let alone the main character. I thoroughly enjoyed watching Corky every Sunday night and learning about his challenges with Downs Syndrome. It would be difficult to have a show like this on TV today without some serious thought and sensitivity around how to present characters with disabilities in a balanced manner.
All in the Family – I don’t even think I need to explain why this show couldn’t be on TV today.
Good Times – No, a show about black folks living in the projects wouldn’t be greenlighted today.
Seinfeld – A show about four white people in New York mostly interacting with only other white people in New York.
Friends – A show about six white people in New York mostly interacting with only other white people in New York. And how were Rachel and Monica able to afford to live in a Greenwich Village apartment on a cafe barista salary?
In Living Color – I was watching reruns the other day of this show on Aspire and realized immediately that almost all of the skits made fun of every possible demographic – homeless people (Anton Jackson), gay men (Men on Film) and even clowns (Homey the Clown). This show wouldn’t pass muster today.
A Different World – It’s interesting that I include this show. This show would definitely be on TV today, but I think some sensibilities would change. I was watching a rerun of an episode where Sinbad’s character was making fun of Cree Summer’s character’s natural hair. I remember her natural hair being a running gag on the show. Today, you can’t make fun of natural hair unless you want the whole natural community coming for you.
I am sure there are other shows I don’t remember right now, but you get my point. Maybe 20 years from now, we might be having the same conversation about today’s shows!
Last week I watched the first live stream in a series of discussions about how “The Resistance” can effectively organize against Trump. Resistance School was started up at Harvard’s Kennedy School as a response to Trump’s election. This discussion was about political advocacy through useful communication, which is very important for everyone.
I thought it was really interesting and educational. The lecturer, Tim McCarthy, did an excellent job explaining the basic principles of effective communication for social change. I discuss this topic ad nauseam in this blog, ranging from AIDS activism to civil rights. So, it was good to hear Professor McCarthy’s perspective.
I am a huge fan of Jean-Michel Basquiat. When I got the press kit for the new documentary about his too short life, I was immediately hooked.
