Indians at previous Oscar ceremonies

American Indian Oscar Winners, Nominees and ActivistsThere have only been two Native actors to be nominated an Oscar;

1970, Chief Dan George for his role in Little Big Man
1991, Graham Greene for his role in Dances with Wolves
1999, Graham Greene for his role in The Green Mile

There has only been one Native musician to *WIN* an Oscar;

1982, Buffy Sainte-Marie WON--Best Music, Original Song for An Officer and a Gentleman, for the song Up Where We Belong.

The Oscars' All-Time Most Outrageous Moment—and What It MeantThe ceremony has seen a streaker (behind David Niven, 1974), and old dude doing pushups (Jack Palance, 1992) and a famous case of surprisingly low self-esteem (Sally Field, "You like me," 1984)--but nothing touches Sacheen Littlefeather's stand-in appearance for Marlon Brando. Brando, long a friend to Native American causes, declined his Best Actor Oscar for his performance as Don Corleone in The Godfather, and sent the young actress and activist to deliver a statement in his stead. Brando had tasked Littlefeather with making a lengthy speech that would never have fit into the allotted time; the remarks Littlefeather did manage to share (interrupted at one point by simultaneous boos and applause) were eloquent and humble.

Littlefeather brought up two points. One was Hollywood's long tradition of portraying Indians in a negative light, as evildoers or savages, ever the bad guys to be bested by virtuous cowboys and cavalry--and to those who'd argue, in 1973, that we were living in more enlightened times, Littlefeather mentioned re-runs shown on TV, racist propaganda that was still being broadcast despite some progress in the contemporary film industry. (One might wonder what Marlon Brando would say about the Encore Western channel, which continues to show movies that have been condemned as racist.) Littlefeather also mentioned a then-current event that would come to be known as the Wounded Knee Incident--a takeover of the town of Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation by Oglala Lakota and American Indian Movement followers. The action was tied to the Pine Ridge population's attempts to remove Chairman Richard Wilson from office, but what ensued was a standoff between armed Indians and U.S. government forces that rallied American Indians nationwide and elicited sympathy from many non-Natives.Comment:  For more on Sacheen Littlefeather, see Littlefeather Fought for Native Actors and All About Sacheen Littlefeather.

Graham Greene does sketch comedy

Graham Greene goes Nuts for local sketch comedy show

Spoofs his famous Dancing with Wolves role for APTN network program

By Ben GelinasLegendary aboriginal actor Graham Greene was in Edmonton on Friday, hamming it up on the set of a local sketch comedy show.

Edmonton-produced Caution: May Contain Nuts is shooting its third season for APTN (Aboriginal Peoples Television Network).

Greene filmed multiple sketches with the cast Friday, including a spoof of the CBC reality show Dragons' Den.

Called Grizzly Bear's Den, the anachronistic bit has white people pitching concepts like "currency" to a panel of elders when Europeans first came to Canada.And:Naturally, Greene will also feature prominently in a scene inspired by Dances with Wolves, specifically the role that garnered him an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor.

In the scene, Greene tends to a wounded cowboy, played by the show's head writer Matt Alden. Everything Greene provides Alden is made of buffalo, from the fuzzy blanket to the campfire.Comment:  For more on Graham Greene, see Who Are the Great Native Actors? and Interviews for The Wild Child.

Below:  "Graham Greene finds himself in the middle of comic mayhem with cast members of the Edmonton-produced show Caution: May Contain Nuts." (Candace Elliott/Edmonton Journal)

Who are the great Native actors?

On Facebook I reposted "We Can't Find the Talent" with some comments:Hollywood claims it wants good Native actors but can't find them.

All those great Native roles and no one to fill them? Yeah, right!Others chimed in:No kidding....They've been claiming that since the turn of last century!

Hahaha...what BS, can't find them...or don't want to pay them?

That's pure bullshit--they are either woefully neglected or outright rejected by Hollyweird....Who is the talent?

But someone asked a reasonable question:Do you know of any? Seriously, do you? I've been wondering about this myself. Who are the great Native actors/actresses?On the male side, Graham Greene, Wes Studi, Eric Schweig, Gordon Tootoosis, Russell Means, August Schellenberg, Gary Farmer, Gil Birmingham, Adam Beach, Michael Greyeyes, Nathaniel Arcand, Raoul Trujillo.

There you go. I challenged myself to come up with a dozen names without looking at any source. I.e., from memory only. And I did it.

Now that I've said that, some caveats:

1) I'm a poor judge of acting ability. I usually can distinguish only good, average, or bad.

2) Several dozen other Native movie actors get only small supporting roles and never have an opportunity to shine. If someone gave them a chance, they might be just as good as the leading men I named.

3) I believe there's a whole subculture of Native theater actors who usually don't try for movie roles. I know little about them. They also may be good as the leading men.

But if asked, most people probably would name at least 7-8 of the people on my list. Again, I won't swear they're the best. They're kind of a mix of best and most popular.

And the point...

The point isn't that they're great or worthy of Oscars. The point is that they're experienced and professional, with dozens of roles each. Any of them could step into a role and do a credible job.

This contradicts the Hollywood claim that producers can't find any Native talent. My answer is: Have you tried these 12 guys? And the second 12 guys on my list? If you've tried them all and they couldn't do the job, I guess you were right. But if you haven't tried them all, you're wasting our time with lame excuses. Try them first, then complain.

The same applies to the female side. I just did the male side to prove a point. Namely, that high-quality Native actors do exist.

For more on the subject, see Hollywood Ghettoizes Native Actors and "Bottom Line" Argument Is Racist.

Below:  Russell Means, actor.

Interviews for The Wild Child

EXCLUSIVE--The Wild Girl--Graham Greene on his character Joseph--Hallmark Movie Channel



EXCLUSIVE--The Wild Girl--Graham Greene on relationship between Joseph & Albert



EXCLUSIVE--The Wild Girl--Graham Greene on acting--Hallmark Movie Channel



EXCLUSIVE--The Wild Girl--Lola Tash on working with Graham Greene--Hallmark Movie Channel



Comment:  For more on the subject, see Preview of The Wild Girl and The Best Indian Movies.

Preview of The Wild Girl

The Wild GirlNed Giles, an aspiring news photographer, joins the 1932 Great Apache Expedition on the search for a young boy who was kidnapped by wild Apaches. Ned finds himself on an unexpected and perilous journey through rugged terrain, when a captured wild Apache girl must be exchanged for the kidnapped boy. Stars Brian Austin Green, Graham Greene and Kathleen Munroe.Brian Austin Green & Graham Greene to Star in Hallmark Channel's THE WILD GIRL

The book it's based on:

The Wild Girl: The Notebooks of Ned Giles, 1932 (Paperback)From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Depicting the dusty Depression-era West this grandly, cinematically imagined sweat- and bloodstained saga, inspired by events that took place in Arizona and south of the border in the Sierra Madre badlands, dramatizes latter-day conflicts between whites and Native Americans. During the fall of 1999, an obscure, financially struggling photographer, Ned Giles—now in his early 80s—sells, for $30,000, La Niña Bronca, his only copy of a photo of a young Apache girl lying on the rude floor of a Mexican jail cell; the buyer's curiosity about the picture's provenance sparks Ned's memories. The rest of the book, set in 1932, reveals a legacy of heroism and lost love through Ned's scrupulously detailed diaries, which vividly recount a nightmare of harrowing misadventures beginning the day he signs on to be a part of the Great Apache Expedition, one of dozens of men hoping to free the son of a wealthy Mexican rancher kidnapped by the Apaches. (The wild Apache girl will be used as ransom.) The narrative unfolds as a series of flashbacks, intermingling short passages from the third-person POV of the fierce Apache girl and first-person excerpts from the diaries of the 17-year-old Chicagoan photographer on his first big assignment. Fergus (One Thousand White Women) makes unforgettable characters move against vivid landscapes in this laudable encore.But...the book seems to be pure fiction. As far I can tell, there was no such thing as the 1932 Great Apache Expedition.

Which makes sense. I think a safari-like hunt for "wild Apaches" in the midst of the Depression would've been big news.

This Just In...News from the Agony Column05-03-05: Jim Fergus 'The Wild Girl'; Michael Cobley 'Shadowmasque'

Rip Roaring Historical Fiction

[O]nce again, we're in the realm of well-mixed fact and fiction. On the fictional side is the premise of the novel, the aforesaid Great Apache Expedition of 1932, out of Douglas Arizona in search of the son of a wealthy landowner who has been kidnapped by wild Apaches. Ned Giles is a photographer who tags along, takes notes and with the rest of the band, encounters a wild Apache girl in a Mexican jail cell. The Expedition hits on the idea of exchanging her for the son of the landowner. The execution of the idea, of course, does not go as planned.

'The Wild Girl' had its genesis in the travels of author Jim Fergus. Back in 1998--damn, such a pristine time; the world was filled with promise then, was it not?--Fergus was traveling in Mexico. In the village of Casas Grandes in the state of Chihuahua, he met an old man who told him the story of a young Apache girl they called la niña bronca, who had been treed in the mountains by the hound dogs of an American mountain-lion hunter in 1932. He didn't know what to do with her, so he brought her into town. She was so wild that she tried to bite anyone who touched her, so they tossed her into jail. Apaches played a sort of mythic part in the beliefs of the Mexican populace, and there were a lot of people who came to see her out of sheer curiosity. So many that the sheriff was able to charge admission, and the old man, at the time a young boy was among those who paid to see her. He confessed his story with shame to Fergus. And he would not say what happened to the girl. Fergus concludes, "I couldn’t get the story of la niña bronca out of my mind, and I knew I had to find out for myself what happened to her. In this way the novel was born."So a young man found a wild child in a tree. He told the story to Fergus 66 years later, when he might've exaggerated or forgotten the details. Nowhere in the old man's story is there any indication of "wild Apaches."

Yes, it sounds like it might've made a good story in 1882, when "wild Apaches" were an actual problem. But 50 years later, in 1932? Hmm.

I wonder what the "wild Apaches" of 1932 will be doing in The Wild Girl. Driving their Model-T trucks? Working as migrant farmhands to survive the Depression? Dreaming of setting up a tribal government under the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934? Or acting like Geronimo and his band of followers did 50 years earlier?

But it's interesting that Fergus has now written two books featuring Indians. Both have gotten good reviews, I think. Good for him.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies and The Best Indian Books.

Preview of Casino Jack

Sundance documentary to include Jack Abramoff-El Paso casino connection"Casino Jack and the United States of Money," a documentary on disgraced super lobbyist Jack Abramoff, will include El Paso, according to the film's director. The film will debut at the Sundance Film Festival this month.

After the Tiguas' Speaking Rock Casino in El Paso's Lower Valley was shut down by the state in 2002, Abramoff told the tribe he would try to help them reopen. It would later be revealed that Abramoff had helped shut the tribe's casino down, according to a US News & World Report article.

Oscar-winner Alex Gibney, director of the film, told indiewire.com that he wanted the film to "wanted to try to capture that secret agent quality of Jack which meant going to all sorts of places--from Miami to the Marianas, from El Paso to Washington, DC. We wanted a look that morphed and evolved like the movie festival of Jack's mind. Sometimes a Western, sometimes a thriller, sometimes a slapstick comedy. So the film has a number of different looks. It's playful and dark. It's a comedy; but the joke is on us."Comment:  On IMDB.com, Eric Schweig is billed sixth as "Chief Poncho." "Graham Green," which may mean Graham Greene, is at the bottom of the cast list with no role assigned. I don't see any other Native actors in the cast.

I guess "Chief Poncho" isn't as bad as Chief Grey Wolf or Chief Running Mouth, but it sounds phony. I believe the tribal "chiefs" involved included Martin, Milanovich, and Sinclair. Not a funny Indian name among them.

Since the Abramoff scandal was primarily about Indian gaming, I would've thought this movie would have several Indians in supporting roles--not just two. Is it going to downplay the Indian aspect of the scandal? Lots of gaming people will see this movie, and they'll lambaste it if it's inaccurate.

And I'll be among them. I did a cover story on the Tiguas for Indian Gaming Business magazine in 2004. That was after the scandalous events happened but before the scandal broke, I think. In any case, I'll be watching for mistakes and stereotypes.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

Below:  Jack Abramoff and Kevin Spacey.

TV pilot about urban Indians

'Tales of an Urban Indian'TALES OF AN URBAN INDIAN is the very first series of its kind; a quirky comic-drama about Canada’s urban Native population. The series follows the escapades of BRIAN DOUGLAS (Darrell Dennis), a First Nations actor who is disillusioned by the stereotypes of Native people in the media. To battle these stereotypes, BRIAN has resolved to expose the truth about the urban Aboriginal experience and change the perception of Native people forever. If only he could get his personal life together first! His first major endeavor in this quest is a homemade documentary entitled, “TALES OF AN URBAN INDIAN.”

BRIAN is pulled in many different directions by an eclectic mix of characters: DOMINIQUE (Katya Gardner), his spoiled heiress girlfriend, TERRI AND TANYA (Shauna and Shannon Baker), the two beautiful Native twins that live next door, ADAM (Graham Greene), the grouchy spirit that haunts Simon’s apartment, and KYE7E JOSIE, SIMON’S grandmother and voice of reason. These people, combined with the countless girlfriends, bosses, producers, enemies, etc., will continue to help or hinder BRIAN in his “Tales.”Comment:  Once again, APTN leads the way with innovative television about Indians.

For more on the subject, see TV Shows About Indians.

Secret Pass passes by

I mentioned the animated movie Legend of Secret Pass when it was in development. I've been waiting to hear more about it.

Now I've learned that it came out in 2008. Since it didn't get one word of publicity, perhaps it went straight to DVD.

Here's the summary on IMDB.com:The 'Legend of Secret Pass' takes place in the mountains of the South West and involves Thunderbirds of Indian mythology and an animal refuge of mystical proportions. An unlikely troop of animals and humans are caught up in a clash of ageless magic. In this moment of crisis, the barest chance to avoid cataclysm falls into the hands of an Indian boy, Manu.A few little problems with this:

It still sounds like a generic Indian story with no connection to any culture of the Southwest. In particular, thunderbird myths are more common in other parts of Native America, not the Southwest.

I don't know where they got the name Manu, but to me it sounds like an Asian Indian character: a stereotypical servant or beggar boy. With all the Southwestern Indian cultures, couldn't they have come up with an authentic Indian name?

In the cast list, the only recognizably Native name is Graham Greene as the voice of Grandpa. Frankie Muniz voices the title character Manu. Nor are there any recognizable Indian names in the production staff. Most of the animators seem to be French.

This still could be a great movie, although great movies usually don't disappear without a trace. Or it could be what I called it before: "a romanticized look at Southwest Indian life with none of the harsh realities." Only time will tell.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

How Graham Greene got started

An Evening with Graham GreeneWhen asked what advice he gives to young, prospective actors, he says, "First, get your cab-driver's license. Then learn to wait tables; and how to tend bar." Actors, even very successful ones, he points out, are not acting all the time. And his principal justification for choosing particular roles at particular times is admirably pragmatic: "I've got a mortgage."

Greene followed a curious path to the acting profession. During his high-school years, he says, he never thought about being an actor. Instead, he wanted to be a draughtsman--and he actually did that for a time in his youth, along with other construction-related and manual labour jobs. Eventually he found himself working as a tech guy in the music industry, touring around with bands. It was only when an acquaintance harassed him incessantly to appear in a play he'd written--Greene even once turned out the lights to pretend he wasn't in when the man showed up at his office one day--that he got his first acting role.

Years of working in small-scale stage productions in Canada and Britain followed, until, one break leading to the next, Greene eventually found himself nominated for an Oscar for his work as Kicking Bird in Kevin Costner's epic Dances With Wolves.Comment:  For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

Spacey making Abramoff movie

Exclusive:  Abramoff Gets Hollywood Prison Visit; Kevin Spacey Starring As 'Casino Jack'My sources tell me that 2-time Academy Award winner Kevin Spacey and film director George Hickenlooper (Factory Girl, Hearts of Darkness) are right now visiting Washington DC lobbyist Jack Abramoff in Cumberland Federal Prison. Abramoff, of course, was responsible for one of the biggest political scandal to hit the nation's capital since Watergate, and is the subject of a screenplay Casino Jack starring Spacey and directed by Hickenlooper and written by Norm Snider (Dead Ringers) and produced by Bill Marks, George Vitetzakis and exec-produced by Donald Zuckerman and Richard Rionda of Hannibal Pictures. ... The story is described to me as a modern day GoodFellas set in Washington DC that plays like a thriller involving Karl Rove and others in former President George W. Bush's inner circle. Cameras will roll later next month.

I'm told that Kevin Spacey is set to star as Jack Abramoff, Hayden Christensen will play Abramoff's closest associate Mike Scanlon, Spencer Garrett (Public Enemies) will portray Majority Leader Tom DeLay, and Arrested Development star David Cross will be Abramoff crony Adam Kidan. The production is also in talks with Tea Leoni as Abramoff's wife.Comment:  My question is who will play the casino-owning Indians whom Abramoff scammed. Wes Studi, Graham Greene, Gordon Tootoosis, and Gil Birmingham...call your agents!

For more on the subject, see The Facts About Indian Gaming and The Best Indian Movies.

Graham Greene joins New Moon

'Twilight Saga's New Moon' Cast Revealed

New names include Graham Green and Cameron Bright.After months of waiting, hoping and speculating, the studio behind the "Twilight" saga has finally given millions of fans what they've been wanting: An official cast announcement for "New Moon." And as the currently filming sequel continues to roll cameras, Twilighters can look forward to a good mix of fresh-faced newcomers and familiar film veterans.

"New castmembers include the legendary Volturi, a venerable coven of vampires who weigh and impose the laws of the vampire world, as well as two new members of the Quileute Indian Nation," reads the press release posted Wednesday (April 15) on the Summit Entertainment site. "The Volturi include Charlie Bewley as Demetri, Jamie Campbell Bower as Caius, Daniel Cudmore as Felix, Christopher Heyerdahl as Marcus, all Volturi enforcers. Dakota Fanning plays Jane, a high-ranking and powerful Volturi member, and Cameron Bright is Alec, her brother. Noot Seear plays Volturi member Heidi. Michael Sheen plays Aro, the Volturi leader. Graham Greene appears as Harry Clearwater, Quileute tribal leader and old friend of Bella's father Charlie. Tinsel Korey is Emily, the fiancée of Sam Uley."Meet The Cast Of "New Moon"

Comment:  For more on the subject, see Quileute Werewolves Will Be Real Indians and Seeking Natives for New Moon.

Graham Greene in Slings and Arrows

In episode 3 of Season 2 of the Canadian TV series Slings and Arrows, Graham Greene appears in a faux documentary for a few seconds. He's there to tout the genius of fictional theater impresario Oliver Welles.

Since Greene is a Canadian actor who has worked in Canadian theater, this is a nice touch. Slings and Arrows is another show that has met my made-up standard for inclusiveness. Namely, if you have 100 characters with speaking parts, make one of them a Native.

For more on Greene in the Canadian theater, see Graham Greene as Shylock and Merchant of Venice Trailer.

The real point

Actually, this posting is just an excuse for me to rave about Slings and Arrows. Here's a brief review from Amazon.com:In the fictional town of New Burbage, legendary theatrical madman Geoffrey Tennant returns to the New Burbage Theatre Festival, the site of his greatest triumph and most humiliating failure, to assume the artistic directorship after the sudden death of his mentor, Oliver Welles. When Geoffrey arrives he finds that Oliver is still there, in spirit anyway, and with his guidance (and often in spite of it) Geoffrey attempts to reconcile with his past while wrestling the festival back from the marketing department. Despite a bitter leading lady, a clueless leading man, and a scheming general manager, he manages to stage a remarkable production of Hamlet--the play that drove him mad.And a brief review:absolutely the best TV show to come along in years, 29 October 2006 10/10
Author: cotswoldcutie from United States

You can tell that this TV show came out of a country other the the US because it's so well acted, very funny and just plain brilliant. It's unashamedly aimed at adults with IQs over 10. I've been a huge fan of Stephen Ouimette for years so I expected nothing but the best from him, but what a pleasant surprise to find this show chock a block with actors who actually can act. I watched the first two seasons straight through the night purring like a cat with a saucer of cream. It's great fun seeing how the theatre works behind the scenes--at last a show with a unique theme, original ideas and clever writing. I hope this one lasts and lasts.Comment:  I completely agree with this. The first season may be better than anything else on TV in the last few years.

For more on the subject, see TV Shows Featuring Indians.

America's First Nations video

Here's a clip from America's First Nations, the show that has some Indians infuriated at the Discovery Channel. It's about the Haudenosaunee longhouses and it's narrated by Graham Greene. I don't see anything objectionable or stereotypical, so I'm not sure what the protests are about.

For more on the subject, see Native Documentaries and News.