Why Isn't Flower Drum Song Getting Cancelled?

Boris, please go somewhere else to try and unravel democracy by trotting out a movie from the 1960's.

You don't belong here.

But didn't this black actress go brownface in South Pacific?

Hi OP, it should be cancelled after BREAKFAST AT FUCKING TIFFANY'S. That portrayal was more offensive if you ask me

[quote] more offensive if you ask me

I can't be bothered getting offended by people who I don't know and who lived and died before I was born.

Because Bali Hai had its share of black residents too.

OP shock be cancelled for promoting the right-wing culture war.

should be ... even.

OP, you're a racist and a troll.

But everyone knows that today African Americans can play anyone, Asians can play anyone but blacks, Hispanics can play anyone but blacks and Asians (unless blatino husbears are involved) and non-Hispanic whites can only play non-Hispanic whites unless there was an African American, Asian or Hispanic who auditioned. American Indians can play themselves or Hispanics. East Indians can play East Indians or anyone located in a country adjacent to India, unless they are playing a victim of the colonial UK.

Similarly, women can play any sex, gay or straight or any sexual identification. Men can play gay or straight men if a woman has not auditioned and proved to the producer, writer and/or director over drinks that the part should go to a woman. Non-binaries can play non-binaries or transgender people. Transgender people can play the gender they identify with or binaries. Incels cannot play anyone, including incels.

Obese people can play people of any size. Non-obese people cannot play obese people and should not play non-obese people if an obese, obese-adjacent or formerly obese person has auditioned for the part. Future-obese people may exist but unless their commitment to obesity has been recently demonstrated they must be treated as non-obese people.

Jewish people count as non-Hispanic white unless they are of other races. Rules for sexuality and size apply to Jewish people as they do to other non-Hispanic whites.

Therefore, obese, obese-adjacent and formerly obese African American women or women of African American or mixed race identity who identify as African American can play anyone they want.

These rules also apply to animated characters. However, primates, crows, Siamese cats, Pekingese dogs and other animals-of-racist-overtones must be played by non-Hispanic whites, who must donate at least 75% of their remuneration to appropriate organizations in reparation for historical offenses.

Obviously.

Juanita was able to get more work as an actress by portraying Asians. It wasn’t her fault how the film industry was. No one made her put on white face and play Caucasian parts. White actors could play black, Asian, Hispanic, indigenous, anyone they wanted to play. The playing field was not in favor of ANY actors of color. But OP knows that.

Don’t hate the player, hate the game.

Serious question: Do Asian-Americans love this film, for offering representation at a time when the only Asian actors ever seen on screen were playing Evil Japs or servants?

I can't love the film myself, as the score is weak and the story weaker, and I'm not quite queeny enough to worship Nancy Kwan. And I grew up in the Bay Area and was surrounded by Asian-Americans, it was like watching a musical about my ordinary everyday neighbors.

R10 I don't think the overall score is weak. "Chop Suey" is a clunker, but the Overture, "A Hundred Million Miracles" and "Love Look Away" are beautiful. And "I Enjoy Being a Girl" was a hugely popular song in its own right back in the day.

A white person isn't the oppressor therefore no one cares.

I've no particular objection to cross-ethnic portrayals in principle. It's just that they're usually cringe-worthy and memorably awful. Think Alec Guinness as Professor Godbole in A Passage to India. Or Robert Donat as the Mandarin and Kurt Jürgens as the Captain in Inn of the Sixth Happiness. Not to mention TR in BAT.

Offhand, the only truly great cross-ethnic performance I can recall is Linda Hunt as Billy Kwan in The Year of Living Dangerously. And that was cross-gender, to boot.

We need to come up with a list of EVERYTHING that needs to be cancelled. Then we can send it to the Council of Cancellers or the Director of Cancellery and get everything taken care of once and for all. Then there will be perfect racial harmony in the world.

[quote] Kurt Jürgens as the Captain in Inn of the Sixth Happiness

He was half-caste, R13.

Alex Mapa did a funny routine about Juanita Hall's "Black Chinese" accent, especially with her pronunciation of "My sister's husband," which comes out as "Mah sistuh's huzbund."

[quote] Inn of the Sixth Happiness

That film contains another abhorrent miscasting which MUST be cancelled.

The main character is the English Gladys Aylward known as 'The Small Woman' and yet she is portrayed by a Swedish giantess who was so statuesque that Yul Brynner called her 'The Horse'.

It will be, OP. Give it time.

Another tired culture war thread.

Because many people have never heard of this film.

Snowflakes are slow readers. They just haven't gotten to the page about this yet. If you want them to discover this and have a subsequent meltdown a lot faster write it down on a slip and pop it in their "What Should We Be Outraged By Next?" suggestion box.

I know something about this issue from my Sinologist parent.

20th century Fox were forced to hire this woman because they spent 6 months trying to find a suitable person for the role.

They tested hundreds and all them were —frankly— unappealing and tiny.

What exactly is the Chancellery of Cancellery? Who is in charge there? How do you contact them?

Let's not forget Auntie Mame with her Japanese houseman Ito....

Imagine how limited his career would have been if Anthony Hopkins had only been permitted to portray Welshmen.

Well this number should be sufficient for to live FOREVAH in the hearts of DLers:

Why?

It's Rodgers & fucking Hammerstein !!!

It's got some great songs in it: "A Hundred Million Miracles," "I Enjoy being a Girl," "Love, Look Away," "You are Beautiful" 9one of the loveliest songs R&H ever wrote), "I Am Going to Like it Here," "Sunday." There are some clunkers ("Chop Suey," although its really cool when they start dancing like in West Side Story, and "The Other Generation") but it's a fine score.

The biggest problem with the show is the book has never been good, and its stereotypes now seem ridiculous. But at the time it was considered a major event in the American Asian community--it was one of the few works where Asians and Asian-Americans were treated like actual people.

Don't feed the beast OP. Have some historical perspective. Wanting to hide, shove under the rug, and entomb artistic endeavors from a different (*not* necessarily less enlightened) era serves no purpose whatever. Faux outrage, or outrage with no context, is not helpful.

Remember that Rodgers and Hammerstein also wrote "You've Got To Be Carefully Taught" -- one of the finest dissections of prejudice and hate during Broadway's golden era.

It was Miyoshi Umeki's greatest work (after Sayanora and The Courtship of Eddie's Father.)

And she was Japanese playing Chinese. Is that bad, too?

And it at least had an actual Asian American playing Sammy Fong (Jack Soo) as opposed to the Broadway choice, Larry Blyden. Juanita Hall was such a good performer and had so few opportunities that, fifty years down the road, it’s hard to begrudge her the chance—especially after Rodgers had her dubbed in “South Pacific,” because he liked the London Bloody Mary’s (Muriel Smith—also African American) better. Given that Hall won the Tony for the performance on Broadway, that must have stung.

This was also the role that Anna May Wong was supposed to do on film—but she died before they began shooting—a kind of makeup for being passed over in favor of Luise Rainer (so young!) for the role of O-lan in The Good Earth.

BTW, the vocal dub for “Love, Look Away” (to my ear, the loveliest song in the score) was Marilyn Horne.

[quote] But everyone knows that today African Americans can play anyone,

Then why was Diahann Carroll passed for the lead of Flower Drum Song, even though Richard Rodgers wanted her for the role?

I would bet if you asked 100 random Americans under 50 "What is Flower Drum Song?" maybe 1 out of 100 would know it was a musical or a movie (without having even seen it).

If you asked the same question to 100 men under 50 strolling through weho, maybe you'd find 2 or 3 that could identify it as a musical. Doubt any of the 100 would have seen it though.