Peopling of New York City, Spring 2012

The classroom consists of three prominent ethnic groups: Puerto Rican, African American, and Italian American. The fact that the forgotten, remedial, underachieving students consist of these races may be seen as racist or stereotypical. But in Bakhtin, Polyphony, and Ethnic/Racial Representation, Robert Stam says, “spectators themselves come equipped with a ‘sense of the real’ rooted in their own social experience, on the basis of which they can accept, question, or even subvert a film’s representations.” The placing of these particular figures in the remedial classroom was a conscious choice, and I believe it was an attempt to show “realism” in this show. The humor based on someone else’s ethnicity is shown many times in Welcome Back, Kotter. For example, Epstein, the Puerto Rican Jew, is known as the “toughest kid in school.” The school had voted him “most likely to take a life,” which the class seemed to think was humorous. There is also Arnold Horshack, who doesn’t speak unless allowed to by Vinny. He makes other people laugh by putting himself down, and takes orders from Vinny to do tricks. The fact that the only white guy in the class is the sweathog leader and seemingly a “master” over Horshack might be a bit unsettling but the class seems not to have a big problem with it. Again, as Stam says, spectators can judge for themselves if the film is being racist or not, and “the cultural preparation of a particular audience (…) can generate counterpressure to a racist or prejudicial discourse,” perhaps allowing them to enjoy the film nevertheless.

Humor has the capability of taking many forms and accomplishing many different goals. Depending on the type of humor, various messages can be presented. In the case of Welcome Back Kotter, we find many different uses for humor, primarily to represent different ethnic stereotypes. We see stereotypical statements being made not only about different ethnic groups but also about a few typical job positions. The students and the school staff shown in the series serve as the butt of the joke. However, Kotter isn’t the only one that plays on the stereotypes. The students are more than happy to show their ethnic pride.

We begin with Barbarino, since he clearly dominates the classroom, or so he says. Barbarino is portrayed as the typical Italian pretty boy with a pinch of criminal mixed in. He’s the head of the classroom. He is the first one to talk, speaks for others, and tells others when they’re allowed to talk. He is the Brooklyn champion of insults, or should we say he WAS until he was schooled by the teacher(Kotter). Barbarino is full of schemes and words. He tries to cheat on his test, he attempts to bribe the teacher so that Washington could pass the exam and remain on the basketball team, and he distracts Kotter and his wife while the rest of the class takes their television. Clearly the director used distinct jokes and somewhat exaggerated personalities to represent the stereotype of the Italian ethnic group.

Italians are not the only group that is made fun of. We have stereotypes of African Americans, Foreigners, and Hispanics demonstrated by Freddy Washington, Horseshack, and Epstein respectively. Washington is the typical Black basketball player that is highly conceited and loves to mess with the teacher. He allows his conceitedness to assure his position as a future college basketball player, although this position is not guaranteed at all, as we are shown during the course of the episode. With Washington the stereotypes become even more clear, especially when Kotter speaks to him about Joe Franklin. Kotter makes fun of Franklin by saying that he wanted easy classes like Hair Combing 101 and Advanced Toenail Clipping. In the second episode Washington makes an ironic joke by telling Kotter that he should lock his windows because there’s a lot of “ghetto trash” out there now a days, after he himself just climbed through the window.

Then we move on to Horseshack, the foreigner in the series. He is portrayed as being very slow and the major target of jokes. When the teacher tells him to distribute the exams, he walks outside of the classroom. When the teacher tells him that he meant in the classroom, he begins to explain how he thinks of the English language as being a precise tool and that he should be more specific. He has a ridiculous laugh and smile and likes to make a fool of himself (hunchback of Notre dam). The group constantly picks on him and Barbarino tells him when he is allowed to speak. He is obviously the odd one out, but perhaps the most stereotypical example for Horseshack was when the group was at Kotter’s apartment and they confessed to Kotter that they stole Horseshack’s father’s cab and tied him up. Epstein’s case is without a doubt the most stereotypical of them all. Barbarino explains that Epstein was voted most likely to take a life and Epstein laughs and says that his favorite subject is assault.(very negative stereotype of hispanics) Kotter finishes off by jokingly saying that Epstein is a menace to society and by telling the class that they must choose something to study even if it is how to look good in a line up or how to speak clearly with a stocking over their head.

** Evidently, Kotter plays the most important role in this parody because he makes fun of each of the students, the gym teacher and principal, the ghetto, and religious conflicts. By saying things such as “Any more notes… diseases, religious conficts”, he sets up the ethnic parodies that the show revolves around. The show, although very stereotypical, was interestingly humorous and enjoyable.

The urban space – the ethnic neighborhood of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn – that Gabe Kotter (Gabe Kaplan), his wife, and his students inhabit is depicted in an interesting way in these two episodes of Welcome Back, Kotter. For all intents and purposes, it is a “dangerous” ghetto – a place where the poor and the ethnic non-whites live (and sleep on foldout couches in the middle of the living room) and interact on a day-to-day basis and where the gangs that hunt the streets at night are so dangerous, “they don’t use guns. They insert the bullets manually.” The ethnic students of this neighborhood – the “hip” African American basketball player, the Italian American who is religiously devoted to his mother, the “toughguy” Puerto Rican Jew, and the class clown with the funny last name (that is apparently a slang term for brothel?!) – are not expected to amount to anything. Instead, they are all shoved into a remedial class on the topmost floor of the local high school, where no one else has to think about them and they can soon become forgotten (after all, they will probably drop out before anything else).

This is how Gabe Kotter characterizes the neighborhood in the pilot episode – both through his conversation with his wife and through non-diegetic voiceover (and with the aid of frame setup). And yet, despite this image, the viewer cannot help thinking of the urban space as an inviting one. The students are “delinquents,” but they get along very well with each other and with their teacher, whom they seem to treat with some sort of respect (despite the attempts to outsmart him with forged doctors notes and other similar antics). The jokes that do permeate the classroom setting in the two episodes are less symbols of disrespect, and more signs of how – despite coming from unfortunate backgrounds – the students and the teacher are happy (or at least, satisfied) with their positions in society and in life. They are not troubled by poverty and racism. There is hope in the face of adversity. Mr. Kotter was a Sweathog, but he made it out of high school and became somebody. With his help, there is the chance that the new generation of Sweathogs will also do the same.

THIS image of the urban space is an unrealistic one. I can hardly imagine a group of delinquents acting with the same kind of respect for their teachers that the Sweathogs show for Mr. Kotter. It is more likely that a delinquent student dissatisfied with his grade in a class would key his teacher’s car than offer to take a makeup exam or challenge him to a basketball game. And if the neighborhood was as dangerous as Gabe made it out to be when talking to his wife, I doubt any of them would be walking around with smiles on their faces or cracking jokes. Because the show chooses to depict it in this way, the neighborhood becomes an ethnic utopia, where – though they talking about the adversity they face – the characters seem to be impervious to its effects. They are one big, happy, non-white family, and the viewer sort of wants to be part of this family too – because, let’s face it, the world we live in sucks by comparison.

In the case of Woody Allen, I believe that he ignores the idea of race. I don’t think Allen embraces or even slightly acknowledges ethnic backgrounds. Most of his characters, as in his most important ones, are white. The only way in which an ethnic person would be involved in one of Woody Allen’s films is through some sort of task. (i.e. The moving men in Manhattan, or the performer in Radio Days.)  The one that thing that shines through Allen’s work is the use of white actors. Basically, whiteness. He embodies the literal idea of whiteness by using whites as the basic “go to” race.

If one takes Allen’s jewish heritage into consideration, it can be said that Allen presents his jewish roots through humor.Now, maybe its because I’m not jewish and I don’t feel the sting of Allen’s jokes, but I don’t believe Allen uses humor in a hateful way. I actually think that Woody Allen is entirely neurotic. I think he makes these jokes because he’s just a liberal jewish man that is nervous about what people think about him. It’s just a tick that he has that spills over into his films. I truly do not believe that Woody Allen hates his jewish background. Maybe he does take some stabs at the “homeland” through the rabbi, but when I saw that scene I thought it was more geared toward comments on the leniency of child abuse laws.

In comparison, Welcome Back, Kotter deals with stereotypical “reform” students found in inner city Brooklyn. Kotter himself is very resistant to go back to his old neighborhood and teach in his high school. In the two episodes I watched, I couldn’t decipher who Kotter identified with. However, it was very clear who his students were. There was the typical black man aspiring to be the star basketball player and play in the big leagues. The italian guy who was tougher than everybody else. And last but not least, (and my personal favorite) the spanish jew who was a in simple terms, a pretty bad kid. Welcome Back, Kotter plays into the stereotypes because technically that’s what Kotter is most afraid of. He hates being back in Brooklyn and doesn’t want to be teaching there at all.

To be honest, I think that even though his (maybe sometimes snotty) humor, Woody Allen relates more so back to his ethnic backgrounds than Kotter does. I think Welcome Back, Kotter is more so about the students ethnic identities than Kotter’s himself.

The urban space depicted in Welcome Back Kotter is, in my opinion, the most positive view of New York City we have seen in any film this semester.  The Brooklyn classroom where the majority of the two episodes we watched is a place of great diversity that seems relatively representative of the diversity of New York City as a whole.  It contains many different ethnic groups and each individual seems to really embody their sense of ethnic identity.  There is the typical Italian stereotype embodied in Vinny Barbarino, the black basketball star in “boom-boom” Washington, and the Puerto Rican Jew in Epstein, among others.  Despite the differences in each character’s culture and traditions, they all seem to get along.  There is a perfect mix with little to no racial discrimination among its participants, perhaps because they identify most closely not with their ethnicity, but rather with the culture associated with being a sweathog.

The urban space itself is welcoming and inviting.  It seems kind of safe because everyone gets along and there is little conflict.  I would definitely want to be a part of this urban space.  Even the space that we are shown outside of the classroom seems inviting.  We are told that the area that Kotter is residing and teaching in is not the best of neighborhoods and is almost a “ghetto.”  Despite this, the relationship that his students have with him and each other is a good one.  There is definitely a feeling of acceptance and understanding in all parties depicted in these episodes.

As I was watching these two episodes, I could not figure out what Kotter’s ethnicity was. (I later asked my parents and they told me he was Jewish, I don’t know for sure if this is true or not, but whatever, that’s besides the point.) I wonder if it was just me, or if this was done on purpose.  Is he supposed to just embody whiteness? Or is he a mix of all the cultures that can be found in his classroom? He plays basketball like Washington, is white like Barbarino, and is Jewish like Epstein.  Is he simply the successful embodiment of a bunch of different things? Just as they can all exist in each other in Room 118, maybe they can all live inside of a single person as well.

Every ethnic family is made up of unique values and customs. Such characteristics are shaped by factors such as religion, society, and socioeconomic statuses. The influence of these factors is quite evident once we try comparing the families in Radio Days (1987) to those in Goodfellas (1990). On one hand, we have Joe’s (Seth Green) Jewish-American struggling financially yet escaping from reality by listening to the radio, while on the other hand we have Henry Hill’s (Ray Liotta) Italian family admiring crime and using it as a way to get wealth and fulfill their fantasies.

The nuclear and broadly communal families depicted in Radio Days and Goodfellas is different from each other on many levels as well. On a broader perspective, Joe’s family is normal and fits into the society. Joe’s father drives a taxi, Uncle Abe loves fishing, and Joe likes to watch Mast Avenger. There is nothing about this family that makes it stand out in its community. In contrast, Goodfellas is completely opposite. The ethnic family of gangsters isn’t the social norm, and Henry, Jimmy, and Tommy aren’t fitting into the society. They stand out as killers, robbers and gangsters. They forcefully put themselves on a pedestal and use violent and immoral means to earn wealth and respect. The nuclear family in each family is obviously different as well. Joe’s family is linked by blood and regardless of their ups and down, all the members come together in the end. On the other hand, this made-up mafia family might stick together through crime, but it can turn its back on anyone at any time. An example of this is when Jimmy plans on killing Henry.

Although the two ethnic families are very different, they consist of many similarities as well. The connection of Joe’s family to the mob family in Goodfellas was evident right away when the film began introducing each of Joe’s family members. Every person played a different role in the family. Joe’s parents fought over ocean lengths while Ruthie (Joy Newman) giggled away to the personal matters of the Waldbaums next door. The first ones were representative of the difficult financial conditions of the family and hence their anger at trivial matters, while the latter escaped familial troubles via the world of gossip, where things were temporarily amusing. Uncle Abe (Josh Mostel) was busy fishing as grandma tightened her corset. Aunt Bea was one of the more interesting characters among the family. She was introduced dancing to the radio, and her nature was portrayed to be very free spirited and jolly. I found her to be the epitome of the Golden Age of Radio where dreamy personalities were formed –just swaying to the music and dancing away. Unlike tradition, she openly expressed her interest in men and marriage as well. The times were changing and the film made sure to point this out. The eclectic nature of the family reminded me of the variety of family members found in Henry Hill’s family. We had Pauly (Paul Sorvino), one of the leaders of the mafia, Jimmy (Robert DeNiro), infatuated with hijacking cars, and Tommy (Joe Pesci), the ill-tempered robber. Each of these gangsters obviously had their own role in the crimes that they pursued. Moreover, their wives and children played a role in the entire image of these goodfellas as well. Families were sometimes the backbone of the entire clan because it gave them a sense of normality. They were made average at the slightest bit, because they had birthdays to celebrate and honeymoons to attend.

The most obvious similarity between the two movies was the autobiographical voiceover. Joe plays the same role of tracing his childhood and presenting his views on the people around him as does Henry when he explains his youth. The audience was not only able to see the events that took place in the lives of these characters but it was also able to hear their biased opinions. The audience wasn’t given a choice either – it was just left to sympathize with the protagonist, regardless of his morality.

The radio is probably the most crucial object of this movie. Not only does the radio’s constant background music give a sense of flow to the movie, but it sets the tone as well. The entire film is given a jolly and colorful tone with the radio’s music, and this works very well for the comedic element of the film. The radio seems to play an interesting socioeconomic role as well, and this is evident quite early in the film. Joe brings us into his family and introduces his tiresome mother as she works hard and does the dishes while listening to her favorite radio show, Breakfast with Irene and Roger. He mentions that Irene and Roget sit in their high-class Manhattan townhouse and talk about places they had only dreamt of. The contrast on each side of the radio is what gives the radio a characteristic of setting apart the wealthy and the mediocre people, in this case. In many instances in the film we see the opulence of radio singers and actors by their clothing and the parties that they attend. Sally White (Mia Farrow) is exemplary of this class division that stands on each end of the radio. In the beginning of the movie, Sally struggles to make ends meet as she works as a cigar seller at parties. She enjoys listening to the radio very much and aspires to sing one day. When the woman finally makes it big and reaches into the radio to actually be able to sing on it, she attends the same parties as a wealthy guest now, rather than a poor worker. One’s financial status and thus indentity seems directly related to the side of the radio that he/she stands on.

Another interesting characteristic of the radio is it ability to be the entertainer and unifier of the nation. The radio entertains people of all ages. Joe is obsessed with Mast Avenger, his mother likes Breakfast with Irene and Roger, Aunt Bea loves the music, Uncle Abe likes listening to the sports, and Aunt Ceil loves listening to the ventriloquist. The identity of each person is set apart by the type of show he/she sees. As incomparable as it might feel to us, the radio actually takes the role of a television in this society. It provides entertainment for everyone. Just like television, it comes with a negative connotation as well. This is evident is Joe’s case most of the time. His obsession with Mast Avenger always gets him in trouble with his parents, especially when they meet the Wizkid, a mathematics genius who pretty much makes Joe look dumb in front of him. Joe’s mother even tells Joe that his parents can listen to the radio because their lives are ruined already, while he still has time to make something of himself. Our society today looks down on television as a time-waste as well. The key to success and intelligence is considered to be found in books rather than movies. Of course the television today unifies the nation. The east coast watches the same shows, movies and sports, follows the same fashion trends, and listens to the same news as the west coast. Similarly, the radio is that unifying element that assures unity as it plays songs, shows, and music across the nation. A tragic example is seen in the movie when a young girl is trapped in a ditch and authorities are trying to rescue her. The entire nation doesn’t know this girl, but it does take part in following the story and eventually grieving over her death. The film has various cuts with different characters placed in different settings to show how the entire nation is involved and concerned about this girl, thus, making them unified. Moreover, the radio can be the newspaper for the nation as well. It interrupts shows to inform the nation about World War II, and it even begins new America vs. Japan war shows that have to do with the current events. By having such shows, the radio speaks out the views of American society as a whole. We do see the Japanese being placed as antagonists and fighting the Americans in a radio show. We have catchy army songs on the radio as well, and these allure men to come and fight in the war. Finally, the radio has the amazing ability to bring back memories. Joe lists many songs that remind him of the memories of his first kiss or the time he went to Radio Hall with Aunt Bea and her boy friend. In a nutshell, what I’m trying to stress is that the Radio not only reveals the identities of people based on what where they stand in relation to the radio and what they like to listen, it unifies the entire nation as well.