'What is a Gronk?': 11 User-Generated Highlights From the Blackface War of '09

It's said that history is written by the winners. But as it pertains to this week's Australia vs. United States blackface-controversy culture-clash debacle, history is really written by hundreds of pundits, commenters and other blogger agonistes -- an international community for whom the appearance of "the Jackson Jive" on an Aussie TV special was the equivalent of setting global race relations back between 200 and 400 years (depending on whom you ask). Harry Connick Jr. started things off with his sincere complaint, but once the story hit Movieline's pages, it yielded an outpouring of angst we haven't seen since, like, ever.

It took a while to muddle through it all, but now, for posterity, here is your abridged tale of the Great Aussie/U.S. Culture War of 2009 -- the fury, the rationalizations, the name-calling and hopefully closure -- as told to Movieline by you. Table of contents after the jump.

(and heavy on the [sic])

1. THE SHOT HEARD 'ROUND THE WORLD

2. AUSSIE-ON-AUSSIE VIOLENCE

3. THE SMACKDOWN

4. THE TROPIC THUNDER ARGUMENT

5. THE MICHAEL JACKSON FACTOR

6. THE REALITY CHECKS

7. THE "GRONK" AFFAIR

8. THE WHITEFACE ARGUMENT

9. THE BATTLEGROUND

10. THE PACIFISTS

11. THE ARMISTICE

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1. THE SHOT HEARD 'ROUND THE WORLD

· From Al Jorgonson

Posted 07 Oct 2009, 9:18 AM

The American public were so outraged over Robert Downey's recent blackface routine he was given an Academy award nomination. Fair dinkum the hypocrisy is pathetic!

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2. AUSSIE ON AUSSIE VIOLENCE

· From Liz

Posted 07 Oct 2009, 9:28 AM

You are actually wrong it wasn't after the break that the apology was given it was at the end of the show. There was nothing sinister in this SKIT. To Australian's who never did the kinds of racist things American's did to the African people(the people you treated as slaves!) A lot of Aussies know nothing about this 'blackfacing' to us, they were dressing up like the Jackson 5. Not dissing them for being black. If the Jackson 5 were orange they'd have gone out wearing orange faces. Don't bring your American guilt over to Australia!

If a black person painted there face white, would we care? No. Get over yourselves. If you want to let your guilt go, then go and help out your fellow (African)Americans, don't go treating the rest of the world harshly because you were/are racists.

It was singing and dancing, until Harry brought the race card into it, no-one was even thinking it.

· From Ted

Posted 07 Oct 2009, 11:50 AM

Wow. That's just the dumbest comment I've read in a long time. Ignorance is never an excuse, in the law or in real life. You have no excuse for being a dingaling, and the show's producers have no excuse for letting that happen on stage.

user-pic

· From Liz

Posted 07 Oct 2009, 8:37 PM

What part of what I said was ignorance? The fact that we didn't do backfacing here? So we don't know that it's against something American? Do you know everything about every other culture, good and bad? If not don't call me ignorant. Go and learn everything about everything and get back to me.

· From Ben

Posted 07 Oct 2009, 9:59 AM

Can all the Australian's who have simply found this via Google maybe, oh, shut the fuck up?

As an Australian who comes to this site everyday, you are embarrassing me.

To everyone else, this show is for a specific demographic. Harry Conick was too kind (if a bit condescending) in presenting this as though it were merely a case of cultural differences at work. The implication of that position is that all Australians are backward, tone deaf morons, as opposed to just the people on screen (and the mouth breathers posting in this thread).

The majority of people in my country will be horrified when they see this tomorrow morning on the news. ...Now I know how the French must feel about this Polanski thing.

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3. THE SMACKDOWN

· From metroville

Posted 07 Oct 2009, 10:05 AM

I'm not sure what's more astounding--the actions depicted by the vile clowns in the video or the comments defending them.

I wonder if these ersatz protectors of "comedy" would be so outspoken in the case of, say, a skit that depicted an entire country as the descendants of prison rape.

· From Ben

Posted 07 Oct 2009, 10:11 AM

Oh Metroville.

That cut deep, man.

How I wish we didn't deserve it.

Cries

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