# Iron Eyes Cody: Indian or Italian?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-eyes-cody-indian-or-italian/166160>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 3, 2003, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-eyes-cody-indian-or-italian/166160 "2003-04-03T09:02:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\
**Post date:** [April 3, 2003, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-eyes-cody-indian-or-italian/166160/1 "2003-04-03T09:02:44Z")

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This has a factual answer, which is why I’m putting here instead of CS.  
Iron Eyes Cody, the famous crying indian from the anti-littering commercials in the 70’s. You might remember on the Sopranos how they made a claim that he wasn’t really a Native American.  
I though that was a joke, but I see [Dead Or Alive](http://www.deadoraliveinfo.com/dead.nsf/cnames-nf/Cody+Iron+Eyes) also claims this. What’s the Straight Dope?

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**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\
**Post date:** [April 3, 2003, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-eyes-cody-indian-or-italian/166160/2 "2003-04-03T12:02:41Z")

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[Snopes has the answer.](http://www.snopes.com/movies/actors/ironeyes.htm) No, he wasn’t a Native American Indian.

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**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\
**Post date:** [April 3, 2003, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-eyes-cody-indian-or-italian/166160/3 "2003-04-03T14:15:25Z")

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This was also covered on this site in the “Straight Dope Archives,” but I don’t feel like providing a link. Too dang early.

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**Author:** ![NE\_Texan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e99b99/32.png) [@NE\_Texan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NE_Texan)\
**Post date:** [April 3, 2003, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-eyes-cody-indian-or-italian/166160/4 "2003-04-03T14:28:56Z")

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Here’s a link to the Straight Dope Mailbag report,  
[Was the Indian who shed a tear in that anti-pollution commercial really Italian?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mindiantear.html)

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**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2003, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-eyes-cody-indian-or-italian/166160/5 "2003-04-04T03:13:08Z")

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IN additon to **Euty’s** nicely done article, we did a thread to death about it [HERE](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2010&highlight=cody+iron).

But it makes good reading.