From It Happened One Night (forgive me, I forget the year) Claudette Colbert, addressing a black man on a bus loading platform: “Oh, boy?” It’s still a good film, but that line makes me cringe.
Tuckerfan writes:
> Geez! Lighten up, dude! Back when the show was made it
> would have been unthinkable to portray cops on a TV show as
> the bad guys.
So? My point is that anyone who really knew what was going on would always have felt uncomfortable about that line. There’s no reason to feel more uncomfortable about it now than then, unless you’ve just woken up to how the world works.
Anything said by Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
Ditto for Ilsa asking “Who is that boy playing the piano?” in Casablanca. Grates like nails on a blackboard in an otherwise perfect movie.
Umm, maybe I’m just misinformed, but what’s so bad about “Who’s that boy on the piano?” 
He’s a full-grown man. She’s calling him boy because he’s black.
Oh… I’ve heard white/asian/native men all called boy… to me it’s just a term of endearment.
“Hey, ma boy!”
This is about Whites, even 10-year old kids, being socailly allowed to call grown, mature Black men “boys”. No term of endearment intended.
This isn’t exactly what the OP was asking for, but a month or so ago I happened to come across a 1999 interview with David Bowie from the British talk show “TFI Friday” (you can see the clip at http://www.tfifriday.com/). In it, David has a merry laugh about Americans being afraid of anthrax. Doesn’t seem so funny now, does it Mister Bowie?
anthing said by Mickey Rooney ever.
Oo Oobley Oo
any reference to “daddy-o” and “cat”
as said by the Jets and their “female groupies” in West Side Story. My students just glare at me and roll their eyes.
“We’ll have a gay old time.”
- The Flintstones
It just doesn’t mean what it used to…
Of course, to quote Seinfeld:
“Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”
Harsh.
I don’t think David Bowie can be blamed for not being psychic now, can he?
No, but you don’t have to be psychic to realize that laughing at a deadly disease isn’t particularly sensitive.
Hmm. Just 'cos it’s Americans, eh?
If what happened last year, hadn’t happened, you wouldn’t have been offended about that comment in any way whatsoever.
In my circle of friends (and possibly everyone I have met), we all make jokes about things like that. You have to. You would all go outta your mind if you didn’t. AIDS, cancer, all of 'em. It’s not funny, but being lighthearted makes things seem less serious. And for you to pick on David Bowie for doing the same as we all do is ridiculous. Yes, in hindsight, we can all be goody goody smartasses can’t we?
What was the OP about again? C’mon guys, this is Cafe Society, not the Pit.
Sorry.
:rolleyes: :rolleyes:
Uh, did you read the subject line?
I think what macunian is saying is that David Bowie shouldn’t be faulted and reviled for making a crack about anthrax, because there’s no way anyone could have known. His statement doesn’t play as well nowadays, but it’s not something that should be held against him, as he wasn’t trying to offend.
Okay…well. I thought of a line in the movie “Quick Change”- where Randy Quaid’s character is saying that it’s too bad they can’t put the stolen money in suitcases instead of taping it under their clothing, because of the x-ray machines. Bill Murray responds, “Yeah, those terrorists ruin it for us bank robbers.” Actually, I guess that’s a line that plays even better right now. It’s just sort of ironic when you watch it.
Well, if the civil rights movement hadn’t happened, I might not find anything wrong with Ilsa calling the pianist “boy” in Casablanca. I don’t blame Ilsa, nor do I blame Bowie, but the lines don’t play as well as they used to, which is all we’re talking about here.
shrug