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Roy Disney against cutting Disney films for PC (1 Viewer)

James Reader

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I'm waiting for the R2 (UK) versions of Melody Time and Mike Mine Music. These were on schedule to be released by now, but seem to have slipped again (again).

I hope these are uncut... if not I'll buy the existing R1 versions as they will undoubtedly be cheaper.
 

Jeff Jacobson

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How much power does Roy Disney have over what goes on at the Disney company? I hope he can do something to end all of this censorship nonsense.



Wow, I haven't heard this before, and I don't remember any DD episodes with any controversial topics. Can you provide more info on this (or a link to another website with more info)?
 

Paul Penna

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For what it's worth, the new "Mickey Mouse in Black and White" set includes the original, uncut version of "Steamboat Willie," unlike the laserdisc set. See Ron Epstein's answer to this and other questions in the relevant thread.
 

Brian Kidd

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Cigarette smoking and racial caricaturing are two very different things. As much as I would LOVE to see an uncut FANTASIA, it's never going to happen. SOTS may eventually get a release (conjecture) as it truly NOT a racist film. The only thing that may be holding it back, in my opinion, is the "Tar Baby" sequence. As harmless as it is within the context of the film, the term "Tar Baby" has quite negative connotations in modern society. All we can do is hope and wait.
 

Paul Penna

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I'd think the term "tar baby" would draw a blank stare from the vast majority of the public these days. To recognize the reference, you'd have to be either a race relations scholar or have a firm grounding in cultural literacy of the past. There's a higher representation of the latter on this forum than in the general public. For the biggest chunk of people around these days, "the past" means back until the 70s, at the earliest. Even back then, I'll bet that most people who knew the term did so because of familiarity with B'rer Rabbit stories and cartoons, the Disney version in particular (in my case, via a "Little Golden Book"). I'm a child of the 50s, and was unaware of the racial implications until well into adulthood. I just had always thought that the Tar Baby was, well, a baby made out of tar.
 

Brian W.

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I wonder if those who want to bury "Song of the South" realize they're burying the first Oscar-winning performance by black (male) actor. James Baskett received an honorary Oscar for his portrayal of Uncle Remus.

The positive and negative threads of history are intertwined. You can't lose one without losing the other.
 

Brian Kidd

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Just because you're not familiar with the term, doesn't meant that its derogatory meaning has died out within living memory. There are a great many people alive today who are well aware of the misuse of "Tar Baby," myself included. I was born in 1972. Please don't think that I'm trying to label SOTS as racist. I own a copy and love the film. I just think that it's too bad that the film is tainted because of the misappropration of the term.
 

Jim Peavy

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Here, here!! Films are a valuable historical document of their time, as well as being art. If you start cutting films for "un-politically correct" content, where does it end; where do you draw the line?
 

Ruth_F

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I wonder if those who want to bury "Song of the South" realize they're burying the first Oscar-winning performance by black (male) actor. James Baskett received an honorary Oscar for his portrayal of Uncle Remus.
Exactly! But the PC Police tend to forget to mention that will they discuss blacks and oscars. As black woman who happens to love movies, I'm really irritated that I can't find a DVD of this in America. And having only heard some of the routines, I'd really like to see Amos & Andy for myself!

I don't know maybe my teachers didn't care, didn't know beter or what but as a first grader my class went to the theater on a field trip to see this movie. And while i don't remember much of the movie, the song has ALWAYS stayed with me.
 

Lyle_JP

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I wonder if those who want to bury "Song of the South" realize they're burying the first Oscar-winning performance by black (male) actor. James Baskett received an honorary Oscar for his portrayal of Uncle Remus.

The positive and negative threads of history are intertwined. You can't lose one without losing the other.
Remember, the same people that would supress Song of the South have also called for the censoring or outright banning of the film "Barbershop", a film written, directed, and starring Afican Americans which was the number one movie in the country for two weeks; quite an achievement for any low budget pic!

By the way, it was number one for a very good reason; it's a fantastic piece of cinema. Not just Black cinema, cinema period! The fact that the race warlords of today's "civil rights" movement would go after this film shows just how little they have to do that's important anymore.

-Lyle J.P.
 

Ruth_F

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The fact that the race warlords of today's "civil rights" movement would go after this film shows just how little they have to do that's important anymore.
Lyle,

I'll have to respectfully disagree --- there is a great deal of work to be done --- AND in Hollywood as well --- they just don't have enough sense to know what truly needs their attention.

but we digress.
 

John Berggren

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Much like GLAAD attacking Kevin Smith over Jay and Silent Bob, sometimes NAACP, and individuals attack the wrong target in defense of their community.

There is still important work to be done, but the effort must be focussed properly.
 

Brian Kidd

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Before this thread gets closed for being too political, let me offer some more of my two cents.

The fact is, Disney is holding back SOTS out of fear of what might happen. The solution to the problem is for them to supply tapes of the film to pertinent organizations ,along with a description of how the film is to be marketed, and ask these groups if they would find it problematic. That way, they could garner an honest response before money is spent on a mass release. I'd bet that they'd discover that the furor would be far less than they predict. I doubt that they'll do that, though. Who can say?
 

Ruth_F

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The solution to the problem is for them to supply tapes of the film to pertinent organizations ,along with a description of how the film is to be marketed, and ask these groups if they would find it problematic. That way, they could garner an honest response before money is spent on a mass release. I'd bet that they'd discover that the furor would be far less than they predict. I doubt that they'll do that, though. Who can say?
i figure if they aren't going to protest birth of a nation (which i think is getting another dvd release) then whatcan they possibly say about SOTS.

for the record, i finally saw BON this year and though i find the depliction of blacks horrible, i can appreciate is a very well made film and shouldn't be censored.
 

Scott Leopold

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I've been hoping for a decent American release of SOTS since I bought a couple European copies a few years ago. It's one of my favorite Disney titles, and the whole family loved it. The strongest impression my son got from the movie was that Uncle Remus was a great friend and a caring individual. I personally don't see anything negative about the movie, but maybe that's just me.

I think it's interesting that this receives as much attention as it does for its alleged negative racial overtones, but other movies are virtually ignored. One movie that I found to actually be a bit shocking recently was The Jazz Singer, with Jolson's performance in blackface. What really got to me about it was the fact that it was presented so matter-of-factly. He was getting into makeup while carrying on a dramatic scene with his girlfriend. It just blew me away that that style of performance was so accepted just 75 years ago.
 

James Reader

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Going back to the original post of this thread *cough* :)
Recently the supplements for "Make Mine Music" and "Melody Time" have been certified by the BBFC.
In light of Roy's comments in 2001, it will be interesting to see how these are released in the UK (their first release since the R1 Gold Collection).
The VHS release of "Make Mine Music" released in the UK in July 2000 was missing the "Martins and the Coys" segment.
 

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