#Italian American Stereotypes

[marlowe1-blog]

Another Story (The Stories of John Cheever)

Italian Prince comes to America. Has a bad time

This is a weird one. Mostly it's making me think of stereotypes because everything that Marcantonio Parlapiano (what the hell is with that last name? Parlor Piano? Also the first name is two names - Mark Antonio - Mark Antony?) does is an Italian stereotype, but why are Italian stereotypes so different than Italian American stereotypes. Italian American stereotypes are gangers, tough guys, distinguished gentlemen who are very polite until you don't give them what you want and then there's a horse head in your bed.

Italians have weird stereotypes. Despite Mussolini and Machiavelli and Garibaldi, Americans typically think of Robert Beningi as the stereotype. The goofy heavily accented guy who just is whacky all the time. Even in Fellini movies, there's a bit of a wild horny element going on. I guess "talking with one's hands" is there, but frankly, it's just interesting that Italian Americans have managed to create a scary stereotype while Italians are stereotypical goofballs (and then we can also talk about how Jews and Italians look alike to the point that when an Italian seems nebbish or goofy, he plays Jewish characters and when a Jew can seem tough and nasty, he plays Italians.)

And if I start talking about Nicholas Cage, we could be here all night.

Suffice it to say that Mark Anthony Player Piano, aka Boobee, is the harmless Italian stereotype. Cheever wrote this one in 1967 and it's all about the cultural divide. Poor Boobee (yes, he prefers to be called Boobee) can't speak English that well, keeps getting shit from people, marries a woman whose family hates Italians (and Jews!) and then confides in the narrator who is a New England blueblood schmuck who can't deal with "emotions".

So the narrator is telling the story of Boobee and it's one of those in-and-out relationships where the narrator keeps tacitly comparing himself to Boobee. Boobee can't deal with his wife wanting a career in music. Boobee can't deal with his wife trying to do something. Boobee won't stop talking about it to the narrator. The narrator hates this honesty.

Poor Boobee. Finally Boobee just goes home. The wife gives a concert and it's terrible according to most accounts. But since Boobee never respected her in the first place, it doesn't really matter, now does it?

And then we get this anecdote at the end where a guy tells the narrator a story about how his wife worked at Newark airport and how she kept taking her work home with her. Like she sounded so official when she told him to come to dinner or come to bed.

So how the fuck are these stories related? I mean, did John Cheever just not know how to end the story? So he felt like it was a wet fart of an ending and had to include this other sad husband?

Or maybe it's all about how marriage is hard, especially if you are man who doesn't even want your wife working in the first place? Or maybe it's just that there is a foolishness when it comes to women happening here. This is the 1960s.

But honestly it's a weird sad story about weird sad people who don't understand each other and can't really get over patriarchy. Boobee expects his wife to be ok with being a wife. The other guy expects his wife to at least stop with the work and maybe that's also about how he resents the fact that she's working. The narrator doesn't really care much for his wife. Everyone is drunk.

Buy cigarettes!

#John Cheever #1967 #drunks #italians #italian stereotypes #robert benigni #life is beautiful #tony soprano #italian american stereotypes #racism #ethnocentrism #jews #suburban America #new england #Tim Lieder #unhappy marraiges #divorce #singing #failed ambition

[jccheapalier]

Rocky Marciano: A Life Story (2004) | Full Movie | Marino Amoruso

#Rocky Marciano #boxing #boxer #Jersey Joe Walcott #Joe Louis #Roland La Starza #Carmine Vingo #Archie Moore #Italy #Italian American #Italian Americans #Italian American Stereotypes #Undefeated #Undefeated Boxer #Undefeated Boxers #Heavyweight Boxers #Ezzard Charles #Jack Dempsey #sports #athlete #Italian American heroes #Brockton Massachusetts #Brockton BlockBuster #Retired Undefeated #Joe DiMaggio #Muhammad Ali #Angelo Dundee #Deaths by Plane Crashes #Youtube

[pikslasrce]

cousin richy may be italian by choice but i see him for what he truly is. that balkan blood is so strong in him 😌💅

#i say this with love but yeah #he is soooo giving stereotypical balkan man mixed with growing up w italians. and being american ofc #the bear

[doraspenlow]

“are you in the mafia”

“am i WHAT”

….

“ITS A STEREOTYPE AND ITS OFFENSIVE”

#sopranos sunday #tony deeply offended his daughter is perpetuating completely correct italian american stereotypes

[lockerandom]

So, Oda said that Robin's real world ethnicity would be Russian. What would we think of an Romani actress for her?

#One Piece #One Piece Live action #OPLA #Nico Robin #OPLA cast #I would not have thought of Robin as Russian #I would have thought indian #but I guess Jinbei is Indian? #I thought he was going to be Samoan #I also don't see Nami as Swedish #I have thought Irish #I think all the rest are good #I think Usopp is now South African? #Instead of just Africa #But make Robin Romani #and she can still be from Eastern Europe #And overzealous fanboys have one less reason to complain #in the future I hope they get a very obvious Italian American to play Franky #Because I fucking love that he's an American stereotype #and he's got that mafia thing going on #and I swear growing up all of my friends with Italian ancestors had dads that worked at an auto shop #and they all know how to fix cars #which works with Franky being a shipwright

[allthecastlesonclouds]

not to go crazy about these tags but you just simply must say more on the thistlesprings as italian i’m obsessed with that

I OF COURSE WILL I WILL PUT IT UNDER A CUT THO BC IT GOT LONG

i do mean italian american because that is what i know. and also slightly catholic italian american but. yeah.

alright so it did first strike me with the extended family. i do believe that the vision that the sphinx showed gorgug in the forest had some amount of truth to it– everyone else's did, and wilma and digby are very much the idea of "we don't need anybody but each other! :D"– and so, therefore, what's the reason the extended family isn't in wilma's and digby's lives? misguided kindness on both ends.

the thistlesprings (extended) have prejudice and boy howdy the italian grandparents i know. they try and they cook and they have their laws but also they have their beliefs. my (italian, catholic) grandmother called unitarian christianity a cult and tried to stop my (jewish) aunt from marrying my (catholic) uncle in front of a rabbi (that meme of "i consent" "i consent" "i don't!"). it's giving "all they know is wrong and they must change but you cannot change them without being hurt." We cannot accept people of other beliefs so you cannot let anything else in to prove us wrong, all under the paper-thin veil of wanting to protect.

and wilma and digby are such contradictions. they're so, so self-sacrificing, and yet they'll fight the whole world. they have a tank (wonder what happened to that lawn mower, actually...), for gods sake. they care so much about their boy but they also left their families at the drop of a hat? there simply must be more but also the self-sacrificing and yet horribly defensive... they are trying so hard because they know what they want and they are willing to do anything to get it but they would prefer to not fight extensively. but they do, because they over-corrected from their upbringing, and gorgug doesn't have the solidest of ground at home to rely on.

there's also just the gnomish/orcish culture mashup of focusing so much on food. i love food so much guys. you reach out and share those dishes with others– if you're having an event, you best bet you're getting up crack of dawn and making a multi-course meal that anyone and everyone can enjoy. the frosty fair folk festival being right up w+d's alley– of course it was, it was bonding. especially the as-homemade-as-we-can-get-it. never met an italian american who prefered canned sauce or preshredded cheese over homemade. that shit is as fresh as it gets.

there's also the dramatic family gatherings where everything goes wrong. why did gorgug see basically his entire extended family. i know that. the grandchildren are in the basement playing twister or some shit and the parents/grandparents/in-laws are Hashing Shit Out. there is a veil of politeness until 5 year old is gone and then it's a Shouting Match. gorgug saw "Digby and Wilma [are] having a fight with a lot of other gnomes. [He knows] that [he has] aunts and uncles and grandparents and stuff like that." that was Moonar Yulnear or some shit and stuff Went Down. Everyone was there. the cousins were in a tire swing or something but the extended family was there.

point 5b actually both sides of the family know each other. why do italian americans know either nobody or Everybody In Your Life and Their Life and The World Actually.

they just. they have so much (misguided) care and they mean so much to me. and do you think that any side has tried to reach out or has it just been years and years of blame game, of they'll never accept him and this is just how it is and how could they destroy themselves and how could they destroy something good. it all feels very italian american to me. homegrown experience gone sour because you want to thrive.

#questionnn! #bird :D #not maintagging this #but they're!! projection time baybeeeeee #i don't write the w+d all that often though because parents are Difficult To Write #but yeah! they're so. sitting u down and talking about generational trauma #sitting them down and handing them a book on breaking racial stereotypes and fleeing from the premises bc i don't wanna get fuckin SLAPPED #i do think this level of self defense is very italian american. we (as a fandom) don't touch on w+d's defensiveness much bc they've got- #-their lawnmower but they ARE still defensive they ARE CERTAINLY NOT ALWAYS HAPPY #and i do think it was a detriment to gorgug to not see them feel anything besides happy or Regulate Emotion #in some way i do think porter was good for him (showing emotion can be healthy– emotion does not have to be gentle to be good) even tho- #-i detest the man #anyway. sorry. 1am stream of consciousness #i hope this is coherent <3 #and i'm talking i guess

[5weekdays]

my new favorite theory about medic tf2 is that he isn’t even from germany. like i know the voice lines are hacky sort of on purpose but what if he really is that bad at speaking german. it’s just a bit that he’s doing

#he’s like that pizza chef in teufort who got stuck speaking in a stereotypical italian-american accent #tf2

[strozzaprete]

whats good guido pasta lovin fuck!!!!! eyyyy bada bing bada boom pizza pepperoni eyyyyyy

come scusa?

#and why did they block me #once again it's about italian american stereotypes WHEN I AM JUST ITALIAN #''pizza pepperoni'' is not a fucking thing here

[storyofmorewhoa]

Martini from Olive the Other Reindeer (1999), voiced by Joe Pantoliano

Tip from The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea (2000), voiced by Max Casella

If I had a nickel for every time a male Italian American actor voiced a cartoon penguin who served as comedic relief to a plucky female protagonist in the late 90s/early 2000s, I would have two nickels-- which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

#max casella #tip the penguin #martini the penguin #joe pantoliano #I can not tell you how nostalgic these two are for me #olive the other reindeer #the little mermaid 2 #the little mermaid ii #the little mermaid ii return to the sea #the little mermaid 2 return to the sea #yes i have crushes on both these actors #is it a little stereotypical that martini was a kinda shady and had a distinctive italian american voice? yes #but i love him

[bioswear]

Actually I think we as America could potentially Benefit by more white people digging into their white culture (barring people like nazis bc that’s the bad side of history and you should not be taking up Nazi history as your identity and yet😬 but I digress), but like if your family is Finnish or German or French, I think we should let the white insta-girlies connect to it more.

At least it would give them a more interesting facet to their personality beyond iced mochas, Pilates, and social media.

#when people say white culture I think they really mean American Culture #personal txt #i think america just needs more culture #we’re not the melting pot people think we are lmfao we’re not even number one in anything #like if I see a white instagirlie wearing Dutch clogs and traditional Dutch wear GOOD! you’re expanding ur horizons beyond america #and you are learning about what the rest of the world or at least one location has to offer #i think america is like a cult when you look at the big picture #we expect everything to revolve around us and our limited views #I think the term cultural appropriation lost its meaning several years ago and now everyone is afraid of being problematic #even if you’re exploring your family’s own culture #like I call myself Italian-Chinese bc I was born in China but was raised by Italians #I’m more Italian culturally than I am Chinese #altho tbh I don’t think I look like stereotypically identifiable as being Chinese I look super westernized for an Asian person

[ask-artsy-oncie]

"Actually, it's good that Mario's voice is just normal because Martinet's impression is stereotypical and therefore offensive! All stereotypes are wrong and bad regardless of who it targets!!" Bro we spent a month ridiculing british culture after the queen died and taking potshots at Europeans (namely countries that participated in colonialism) has always been considered like fair game. Like would you be making this argument if Mario was (godforbid) french???

I promise you that Pratt refusing to do an Italian accent so that Mario can sound "normal" while throwing ethnic slurs around on twitter is much more offensive than Martinet exclaiming "mama mia!"

#Like I also have to imagine that actual Italians don't take issue with this or it would have been addressed like a decade ago #When all the looney tunes were being scrutinized for their offensive stereotyping #I know that Italian-Americans *adore* both Martinet's and Albano's voice work on Mario #So yeah this feels very much like a Speedy Gonzales ordeal. #Where people who aren't of that ethnic group think it's bad and wrong and should be gotten rid of #While people of that ethnic group are just like 'hEY #That's our boy!!'

[sunspira]

The Watcher show on netflix is really good so far as far as being weird and goofy and fairly campy intentionally . horror genre needing that so badly. (raining, so needed voice) it's not even that colorful compared to older stuff but like the different types of weird neighbors are so good as far as shitty new england people you might realistically meet

#the stereotypically italian american father should have been a good sign right off the bat #almost done with the first episode so if it takes a down turn my apologies but i'm enjoying

[simptasia]

yeah i hc that PT9 speaks very broken simlish

#plays into the wacky foreigner being overly american stereotype #except like he's an alien #''yes i'm normal sim i love my human jenny wife and the grill'' #by this logic stella terrano also speaks with an alien accent #cuz she's new in town/planet/solar system #i talk for my sims when i play so i've thought about this #like in veronaville. capps are upper class english. montys are italian. and summerdreams are irish #the first two are obvious but when i thought of these fae beings being irish i was like ooooh #plus i just like doing that

[commodoreshock]

I’m curious as to why Amy Jo Johnson didn’t want to do the Power Rangers nostalgia thing. That “maybe I didn’t want to wear spandex in my 50s” rings kinda hollow because girl you KNOW they aren’t making the actors dress up in the power ranger suits for the most part.

#look me in the eye and tell me that svelte man in the red ranger suit looks ANYTHING like Rocky #who comes into this show like every Italian American NYC stereotype come to life #I’m less curious about Jason David Frank because I never liked the green/white ranger lol #(maybe he could only come on if he apologized to David Yost for all the homophobia and bullying and Frank refused) #edit: hey I’m morphin’ here! <— that’s rocky

[duodipersponsh]

okay can i get an italian-speaking person to comment on the whole Mario business? please?

the accent i'm supposed to have - i don't - is being made fun of all the time (and it's not the worst of the representation issues but i'll talk about it some other time). I've heard what the fans and the nerds had to say about the 2022 Mario, the voice actors, the pitch, the "italianisms" (?) and the vibes - now I really wanna know what Italians (and Italian nerds) think as well

#honestly #do you remember those night at the museum movies #the first part had two (2) italian characters Octavius and the Columbus guy #the first one was played by an american and spoke with barely any accent (?) #he only had difficulties with understanding some cowboy phrases #the other one was played by Pierfrancesco Favino #his character spoke Italian only and barely understood any English #and you know what #it worked fantastically? #not an italian here but honest to god i'd prefer my region to be portrayed like this #instead of all the stereotypes #anyway #mario #the super mario bros movie #Chris Pratt #Italian #langblr

[kisbunzies]

Incredibly specific tf2 headcanons.

1.medic wanted to become an a a labor and delivery doctor before he decided to take people out of this world before bringing them in. Thinks babies and small.animals are adorable. The reason he has so many doves is because one of them layed eggs right after he got them and he got two attached to give them away.

2.heavy would love the dark academia aesthetic , study vlogs and booktok. I am correct so i will not elaborate.

3.scouts american italian catholic. Again i am correct so i will not be illaborating.

4. Snipers doesn't like people , loves animals though. Would throw someone into an active valcano for yelling in a walmart. thinks that they should have kept harambe alive because its was the kids fault (he is also right everything has gone to shit since that gorilla died)

5.demomans a desendent of the black people in nova scotia who invented hockey.

6.demoman sleep in the most zebra print pink elastic band statin-y hair bonnet you can imagine. I am black and correct so i will not be elaborating.

7. Engineers back hurts comical amounts. Part of reason he replaced his hand was because he got arthuritis in it. He was an inch taller before he gave himself scoliosis . bros bones are screaming for help.

8. Pyro is creachure , eyes glow in the dark . waits infront of the door for the other mercs to get home , presses their snout to things and sniffs, rolls around in whatever spot their gonna lay in to get comfy. Animal like habits .(i am.projecting because i get told at least twice a week i walk like a deer) oh and their favorite songs mambo .5

9.soldier is the silliest goober , got the biggest dorkiest smile on his face by default . end up in the top of trees whenever people dont look at him. Eats whole jars of peanut butter with his hand. Makes a big mwah noise before he kisses demo on the lips goober stuff.

10. Soldier has the strongest trans-dar know to man . "get out of my way tall women" to a preteen whose gonna have some realizations in the 90's. He knows your trans before you know that trans people exist. Is so stereotypically american masculine that time and gender warps around him.

10. Spies biggest secret is that he loves american fast food , the more sodium the better . loves instant ramen noodles and seasoned fries and burgers , the bigger the burger the better honestly. The mercs will get mcdonalds or something and bring him some back and at first he'll act like its beneath him right ? But then he goes to "throw it out" quote unquote and consumes whatever it is like a ravenous animal , big mac sauce end up in his hair and its gone in seconds. He the rearranges himself and acts like he's just done a line of coke but doesn't want anyone to find out

#tf2 engineer #spy tf2 #scout tf2 #demoman tf2 #engineer tf2 #heavy tf2 #tf2 #medic tf2 #pyro tf2 #sniper tf2 #soldier tf2 #headcanon #tf2 headcanons #boots n bombs #technically