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Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant

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beatrice2000
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
I posted this before, but it's a great interview with her on NPR about the creative process and work for actors and artists, and not delivered in a pretentious way, but recognizing the strive for creativity and working hard for it, not waiting for "inspiration."

I love her voice.
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ellaesther
02/11/09

@beatrice2000: Gah! No link!
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Lisabel (ne: Dagnabbit)
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
First, DAMN she looks better and better everytime I see her. I'm excited to see how she's gonna bring it on the red carpet.

Hahah, "my sister being Fred Sanford". Damn, I wish I had a time machine and see that. I love hearing stories of when actors caught the proverbial bug. From the living room skits to Oscar nom. Good luck, V!

I gots good memories of acting out sitcoms as kid. Ah, Good Times*.

*Uh, we didn't act out "Good Times", tho.
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marshmallory
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
Her laugh makes me want to laugh. I love laughs like that.
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Ulookinatmyjunk, JOC
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
She's a pretty, pretty lady. We can haz more pretty, pretty chocolate, Black ladies, plz? No offense to the Beyonces, but you just don't see very many darker-complexioned black women in the limelight. I love her voice and her personality puts me in mind of Angela Bassett when I see her in interviews; whip smart, funny and super intelligent.

And her voice is deep and musical like my mama's...gotta love that.

I think I've just developed a girl crush.
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ellaesther
02/11/09

@Ulookinatmyjunk: Diary of a Mad Black Blogger: Ok, here's my annoying question for today: Do you think she would have spoken that bluntly about her experience growing up Black in an entirely white town a year ago? It feels to be like she was able to bring more truth to the table, more of her actual Self, than might have been comfortable a very short time ago (for, yes, the obvious reason of the election).
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oh.geez.
02/11/09

@Ulookinatmyjunk: Diary of a Mad Black Blogger: Thank you so much for saying that. When I saw her on the show last night, part of what mesmerized me was that EVERY time you see a black woman occupying that seat (Leno, Letterman, etc.), she's always cream- colored black.

disclaimer: Do not bust back with the "what about Oprah?" chorus. She had to do better than even every white man on the planet to get the attention she does (black female billionaire, etc.)

I was just thrilled to see representation from the darker side of the moon for once. I've watched Viola creep me out as a murderous policeman/ guard on Law & Order, as well as many other tv roles, and I hope she takes that Oscar back to her house for Doubt. It's about time for brown women to be able to participate whether they're pale white or really dark. Wesley Snipes nightvision ass has been able to get in the door bc it's always been okay to look like any kind of black as long as you're male. It's about time everybody with talent got that shot.
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Anna-Stesia
02/11/09

@oh.geez.:

I spit out my iced tea at "nightvison ass". Awesome
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Lisabel (ne: Dagnabbit)
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: Thanks for bringing that up. Since I'm not african-american, I kinda held back from saying "how awesome is it to see non-light women getting recognized" because I wasn't sure how to say it.

And "Junk's" Angela Basset comparison is on-point. Even that voice.

Also: DEAD at nightvision. Wow.
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ellaesther
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: @nyc-caribbean-ragazza: Didn't the content of the interview feel a little revolutionary too, though? Not in that it told African-Americans anything new, but in that that part of life was told on national television, from one of its most popular couches.
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Ulookinatmyjunk, JOC
02/11/09

@ellaesther: That's hard to say. Perhaps she's always spoken the truth about her life experiences and only now, because of the media attention surrounding her Oscar, has been able to express her views on a real platform. If anything, I would say, the election of Obama has given white people, the ears (no pun intended) to actually hear about our pain and struggles without ignoring or scoffing (this is not to say that a fair amount of this isn't still taking place). However, I get very concerned when I feel that people use this election as a means to rest on their laurels when it comes to combating racism. I feel that some whites are using the election as a sort of, "So, we're cool now?" which it is not. We've only scratched the surface. However, it has made black people more visible.
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oh.geez.
02/11/09

@ellaesther: YES!YES!YES! It was one of the first times I was able to hear my OWN experience told from another mouth! I've been so sick of hearing the ghetto to riches stories of black stars who've made it. Am I happy for them? Hell, yes. But, I was wondering- where are the people who grew up as the only black person in their environment, has two parents, etc., & has made it? Finally, we get to hear another kind of voice out of the crowd. I'd like to hug Viola so tight, I could just pass out.
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Ulookinatmyjunk, JOC
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: I've always had this secret theory that Oprah was an FBI operative or plant who was put out into the media so that black people can never complain about anything, ever. Complain about poverty: Look at Oprah. Complain about race relations: Look at Oprah. Complain about lack of access to wealth and job opportunities: Look at Oprah. Oprah is all things.

And NightVision almost killed me...all I can hear is Dave Chappelle, Darkness!!!
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ellaesther
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: My only real concern here is that our friend Viola might pass out, too! So hug gently, my friend, because it looks like everyone on this board would be on your ass if you hurt Viola.

@Ulookinatmyjunk: Diary of a Mad Black Blogger: I think my question was reaching in the direction of oh.geez's response -- the idea that the Black community has so many, many different stories and yet to the extent that our broader culture has been able to hear them/admit them in the door, the choice has been very narrow. I just have this sense that a year ago, or two, a Black actress might have thought twice about being so straight-forward, or when she went through her pre-interview, the intern would have tried to steer her away. And my sense, from a decidedly outside position, is that the election and allllll the conversations it started, freed something up. I think some white people are, indeed, saying "Ok, we're cool now, right?", but I think a lot of us are also looking for new ways to actually hear a broader truth. Or more truths. And it moves me, very deeply, to watch people reaching out for that.
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oh.geez.
02/11/09

@Anna-Stesia: Yes, I said it. Any actress with that color & those features would be relegated to Hollywood's equivalent of the "back of the bus".
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oh.geez.
02/11/09

@Yes.We.Did.Dagnabbit.: I understand. When I say something online, sometimes I feel like I should say at the end that I'm black bc even if what you're saying is true, you feel like a dick for just sprawling it out there like a pair of drunk legs.
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Ulookinatmyjunk, JOC
02/11/09

@ellaesther: Yea, I guess it takes black people out of the box of being only "hood stories". However, I've never understood why people would believe that every black person had a war story in their upbringing, anyway. Maybe it shows that there is diversity in diverse groups and that we're not all homogenous. Still, I'm not 100% sure that she hasn't always been as honest and frank as she was in that interview, maybe people, specifically white people are just more inclined to really hear it now, and not just dismiss or trivialize it.
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Ulookinatmyjunk, JOC
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: Have you read what the other blogs have said about her? It's my own damn fault for going to trashy blogs like Perez Hilton or the Yahoo, but everytime a pic of her comes up, she is treated very unkindly.
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ellaesther
02/11/09

@Ulookinatmyjunk: Diary of a Mad Black Blogger: Also, of course, I'm using this one snippet of conversation as an example of something larger, and in the case of this particular actress gaining prominence after this particular election, it could really be entirely coincidence, not correlation. The mind tends to seek out patterns, I suppose. I hope it is an example, though.

And for me, it kind of was a war story, in the sense that it was an Outsider story. I will bet you that a whole lot of white people watching went, "Well I grew up with so-and-so, and she was the only Black kid in school, and she never felt out of place!" Truth comes in dribs and drabs, sometimes.
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oh.geez.
02/11/09

@Ulookinatmyjunk: Diary of a Mad Black Blogger: Unfortunately, I don't have to go to other blogs. I'm pretty sure I can guess correctly:( Here, in S. Louisiana, light skin & "good hair" are still MAJOR currency (and as long as you're light, you can have a face like a turd sandwich). I imagine some other people in other places might have those same feelings. I'm actually scared to go look.
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Ulookinatmyjunk, JOC
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: My mom once told me this story about how she went to a club one night looking in her words, "Cleaner than the Board of Health". She sat there all night and not a single man approached her. In walks a very unattractive, light-complexioned woman, with a limp, cane and weight problem. And according to my mom, the club tipped on it's axis with men trying to get to this woman. So, yea, this happens EVERYWHERE! So, don't visit those sites, save your self-esteem and patience.
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Lisabel (ne: Dagnabbit)
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: "just sprawling it out there like a pair of drunk legs."

Nearly spit out my coffee @ that one. Lols.
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ArtfulSlinger
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
Her performance in Doubt is amazing. Hell everyone was great in that movie, but her 12 minutes on that screen were gut wrenching. I saw it in Nov and said "OSCAR"! Im hoping she gets it, because it is deserved.
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brendastarlet is on it
02/11/09

@ArtfulSlinger: I thought her performance was remarkable. I'm afraid the Academy is going to give it to Penelope Cruz, in one of those "it's time for her to get an Oscar" sentiments. But if Viola wins, it will be entirely right.
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ellaesther
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
I just watched the clip and I cannot stop smiling! I want her to be my friend. Only I suspect I'm not quick enough to keep up. But I am sending in my application, you bet!

Also: Having heard the "we beat them up" story, her beautiful arms make ALL the more sense and B) I could not sit down that gracefully in a skirt that short if you paid me all the money in the stimulus bill. She. ROCKS!
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Calraigh
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
She is SPELLBINDING. Christ I could listen to her for hours and hours and hours and hours and hours and hours.
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Rare Affinity
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
She sounds genuinely thrilled to be on the show. Unlike other better known faces, she has not had years to polish her anecdotes and endlessly recycle them in different magazines and interviews.
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DangerMouse
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
I can't see the video, so take this without that context and with only the headline to go by:

Other than a brief period in Southern California, I have not lived in a place that was truly integrated. (And I'd be reluctant to say that all of the nearby cities/neighborhoods were integrated.) In some places, different ethnic groups have their own towns or neighborhoods, but it is a rare place that has a straight-up mishmash (outside of a huge city).

I just think it's a bigger problem than New England. Not that it's not a big problem there, but we shouldn't limit our sights to that one place when so many places have the same problems.
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coffee milk
02/11/09

@DangerMouse: Or vast swaths of the American South.
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LaFemme
02/11/09

@DangerMouse: Some parts of DC are pretty integrated. Logan Circle, Dupont, U Street corridor are all very diverse neighborhoods.
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oh.geez.
02/11/09

@coffee milk: I hope you don't count just living in close proximity to a different ethnicity as being "integrated". When those same people drive by in the night & throw things in the yard, or deface your property bc you had the audacity to move where they have to see you a couple of times a week- I'd hardly call that "integrated". To me, truly integrated means your neighbors don't try to sell their house bc the people that just moved in aren't white. It also means that you choose to interact outside of work or school with people who are different than you, just to enrich the experience of your own life, & possibly theirs as well- not just because your boss or your professor forced you to work together on some project. I don't believe it's only proximity, it's the attitude that goes with it.
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brendastarlet is on it
02/11/09

@oh.geez.: I live in an integrated Midwestern town that's so diverse that the population is split up into little segments. Just within a one mile radius of my house, we have African-Americans, Asians from many countries, Russians, people from Arab nations, and quite a large gay community. You can't hate on anyone, because you'd be hating on your next door neighbor. Needless to say, it's a great place to live.
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mllej
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
YESSSSSS!! I happened upon this last nights as she was strutting out looking like a zillion bucks in that dress with the bulging biceps and I was held captive. "We beat people up!"
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Penny
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
Girl Crush. Holy arms. Want dress.
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homoviper
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
She was the best thing about Doubt. Hope she gets lots more work soon.
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jenalicious
02/11/09

@eXXX: oh you know she will.
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brendastarlet is on it
02/11/09

@jenalicious: didn't you think Meryl was pretty incredible, too? In the past two years, she's played a fashion editor, a hippie hotel owner and a nun.
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RainbowBrite
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
She has a great "storytelling" voice. I love it!
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Trashtastic
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
I JUST FELL IN LOVE.
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
02/11/09

In reply to Viola Davis Will Issue A Beatdown To Integrate New England, Win Beauty Pageant
I love her voice. I can't believe she referenced the DeFranco family. haha

Wasn't she in Antoine Fisher?
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RainbowBrite
02/11/09

@nyc-caribbean-ragazza: Ooooh Jinx on the voice!! Great minds...
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Hamsterpants
02/11/09

@nyc-caribbean-ragazza: Heh. The DiFrancos. That is AWESOME.
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BabyJane
02/11/09

@nyc-caribbean-ragazza: I would have opted to sing this one instead:

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BabyJane
02/11/09

@BabyJane:

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BabyJane
02/11/09

@BabyJane: Crap! It's not posting, but it was Heartbeat, It's a Lovebeat.
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hussein persepolis hussein
02/11/09

@Hamsterpants: @BabyJane: @nyc-caribbean-ragazza: I know I'm late to the party but a) I love Viola Davis for being seriously awesome and b) I am immediately embarrassed by the fact that she actually knew and sang something from the DiFranco family. Embarrassed for me that is.
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