Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs

The censored 11

The censored 11 is a group of Looney Toons and Merrie Melodies cartoon shorts that have been banned because they are considered extremely racist. One of them is from 1943 and titled Coal Black and De Sebben Dwarfs. This is a spoof of 1937's Disney animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs with a twist. All of the characters are black and speak all of their dialogue in rhyme and in the manner that some black Americans used during a specific period of time coming out of slavery.

You can watch Coal Black in its entirety in the first video and in the second one the story is broken down for better understanding. The tale is set during World War II in the United States, and instead of the innocence of the original tale, there are sexual overtones and hot jazz music. Some would look at this as conveying that Snow White was pure and Coal Black is worldly.

The Snow White connection

Initially, the title was to be So White and de Sebben Dwarfs but producer Leon Schlesinger decided that was too close to the name of the Disney cartoon so it was changed. There are some scenes that are unique to Disney's film version of Snow White, like the kiss to awaken the sleeping beauty, the wishing-well sequence, and the forest that is filled with staring eyes. These are all directly parodied in Coal Black.

Coal Black was to be both a parody of Snow White and also a celebration of 1940's film musicals with all-black casts like Stormy Weather and Cabin in the Sky. The idea for Coal Black came to producer Bob Clampet after he had seen Duke Ellington's 1941 musical revue Jump for Joy. It was actually Ellington and the African American cast who suggested to Clampett that he make a black musical cartoon. This should be kept in mind before passing judgment.

Behind the scenes

Clampett and his crew made a couple of trips to a black club in the Los Angeles area called Club Alabama to try to gain a feel for the atmosphere of the music and the dancing. Clampett then cast popular radio actors as the voices of his three main characters. Vivian Dandridge, sister of actress Dorothy Dandridge was So White, and Lillian Randolph who was the voice for the black female character and the screams of Jerry mouse in Tom and Jerry voiced Mammy.

Danny Webb is the voice of the Wicked Queen and Ruby Dandridge was the Queen's sweet voice. Leo Watson voiced "Prince Chawmin" while The Sebben Dwarfs and all other characters are voiced by Mel Blanc who is known as the man of 1000 voices. Blanc and Web were the only white voice actors in the film short.

Those who consider this classic cartoon as racist should consider the era in which it was produced. Also, keep in mind that Mel Blanc and Leon Schlesinger made numerous animated shorts that devalued everyone except white males. Women were often portrayed as nothing but sex symbols, Asians, the Irish, the French, Italians, the Scottish, Native Americans, southern characters, and even the British are portrayed with exaggerated accents, stereotypical lines and looks.

A product of the times

Something else to keep in mind is that many African American actors chose stereotypical roles in the hopes that their talent would open the door for better parts moving forward. It is also true that some of the scenes that are considered to be racist can be related to by older African Americans. As an example, I knew quite a few older black women whose voices sounded like Randolph as Mammy and who did use the term "Honey Chile."

Some of the issues could also be that had Blanc, Schlesinger, Webb and Clampett been black there would not be a problem. People of all walks of life can laugh at themselves but do not like it when outsiders do it. However, you feel about this cartoon or any of the other banned 11 those who participated in its production made it happen and that's about the size of it.