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What Is Happening Here | Canadaland Investigates

Johnny Depp and the Hollywood Phonies | Pretendians #5

What Is Happening Here | Canadaland Investigates

Canadaland

Society & Culture, Documentary, True Crime

4.81.5K Ratings

🗓️ 11 June 2024

⏱️ 41 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

There are no shortage of stories about movie stars who played Native and kept the act going even after the cameras stopped rolling. Iron Eyes Cody, Sacheen Littlefeather, and Johnny Depp – being a Pretendian is a Hollywood tradition! A history of how they did it, and how well they were paid for it. 


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Transcript

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0:00.0

Canada Land, funded by you.

0:04.0

So, Robert, do you remember watching your first film with Native people?

0:10.0

What do you remember seeing?

0:12.0

Probably Westerns.

0:16.0

You know when I was home from school

0:18.0

and this is the 80s, so it was the only thing really on TV.

0:22.0

I saw a bunch of Indians getting shot and having really toned

0:25.6

abs. I mean I watched a lot of films as a kid. The first one I remember with actual natives in it was

0:31.9

probably lost the Mohohicans seeing West duty who's like from

0:35.5

my own state that was like a big fucking deal to me.

0:38.8

And he's on the big screen and this is blockbuster film.

0:45.0

But I also kind of remember, you know, Daniel Day Lewis is like the adopted brother cousin of the tribe. And's the good guy right he's the white

0:55.1

good guy and West Judy's the bad guy and that kind of freaked me out like why is the

1:00.7

real native the fucking bad guy here like that's that's weird I really identified with West studio I was like hell yeah kidnap people do what you got to do friend

1:09.5

You know I never seen that whole movie. I've just seen their fight with the tomahawks. You know I have to admit and this is my

1:16.2

dirty secret I'll just fill it here. Fucking love that soundtrack man. It's fire. Acting, it's all about

1:27.0

acting, it's like all about pretending you're somebody else

1:30.0

and Charlton Heston, he pretended to be Mexican.

1:34.0

I'm not supposed to talk English can't you?

1:38.0

I'm no cop, no I'm a husband.

1:40.0

You better come outside with me amigo.

1:42.0

Lawrence Olivier. I think he's the one that played a fellow. Oh yeah in blackface. Yol Brenner is the king of Siam

...

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