alias Francis Gaines. He believed that because of this, he was now free. Evan Arnold . I attribute this affirmative action to be a product of both the NAACP and NOW recognition. Allen came to public attention when a 2008 article about him and his wife, by journalist Wil Haygood, entitled "A Butler Well Served by This Election", was published in The Washington Post shortly after the 2008 presidential election. The movie is about the life of Eugene Allen, who served as a White House butler for over three decades. But as interesting as Haygoods profile is, A Butler Well Served by This Election doesnt provide that many details about Allens time in the White House outside a handful of facts and humorous anecdotes. The man in the kitchen.. -Coco Chanel: The Legend and the Life, Yes. He turned down a personal invitation to President John F. Kennedy's funeral, instead devoting himself in another way, "Somebody had to be at the White House to serve everyone after they came from the funeral," says Eugene. No. Civil rights include freedom of speech, of the press, and of religion. The invented scene is what then prompts his wife Gloria Gaines (Oprah Winfrey) to emphatically state, "The White House call him, he didn't call the White House," in a moment of fiction. PHOTOS: 10 Presidents and Their Famous Hollywood Pals Leave a sympathy message to the family on the memorial page of Cecil Gaines to pay them a last tribute. According to the 2010 census, there were 13,922 Colombian citizens residing in Mexico, making them the largest South American immigrant community in Mexico. His request is denied, and he accepts this. Mr. Gaines was born in Monticello, the oldest of seven children. While the Black Panther Party ingrained the deep-rooted consciousness of black self-worth and utilized the black nationalist philosophy constructed by Marcus Garvey to address economic austerity and police brutality. Copyright 2023 Echovita Inc. All rights reserved. (Answered 2023), What Are Cat and Dog Paws Adapted for? Eyes watering, he watched the first black man take the oath of office of the presidency, Haygood wrote in his obituary of Allen in 2010. Years later, he again asks for a raise, and when he is turned down a second time, he tells his supervisor that he spoke to President Reagan personally, and that Reagan insists on the raise himself. In real life, Eugene and Helene Allen only had one son, not two. At the time, America was entangled in the Cold War with the Soviet Union and their communist allies. ", "I feel great about Forest portraying my father," says Charles Allen. Louis grows up under the newly free United States just as the Jim Crow laws fall. The film follows Cecil Gaines, modeled after Allen, as he witnesses the changes of each administration while his son, Louis Gaines, fights for equality. But Cecil persevered and worked his way up, never giving in to anger. The film then fast-forwards a few decades to a jarringly older Cecil and Gloria, who are proudly campaigning for something they thought theyd never see: a man who could become the first black president of the United States. "[5] He was invited to the funeral, but chose to stay at work to prepare for the reception, because "Someone had to be at the White House to serve everyone after they came from the funeral. Mutasim is an author and software engineer from the United States, I and a group of experts made this blog with the aim of answering all the unanswered questions to help as many people as possible. Cecil and Gloria Gaines. [3] Danny Strong's screenplay was inspired by the 2008 Washington Post article. Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. Livremente baseado na real vida de Eugene Allen, o filme estrelado por Forest Whitaker como Cecil Gaines, um afro-americano que testemunha eventos notveis do sculo XX, durante o seu mandato de 34 anos servindo como mordomo da Casa Branca. "Jack Kennedy was very nice," says Eugene. But the names have been changed: Allen and his wife, Helene, are called Cecil and Gloria Gaines. Because The Butler is a historical drama, you brace yourself for the brutal moments you know are coming nextsuch as the Kennedy assassination. While he was putting on white gloves to serve a white president, Louis was putting on black gloves to serve his community. The central character, Cecil Gaines, is only loosely based on the real Allen. Writer. Colombians at the Feria de las Culturas Amigas in Mexico City. Those appear to be the inventions of screenplay writer Danny Strong; they are never mentioned in Haygoods piece. This did, in fact, happen to Allen, but the cinematic version unfolds quite differently. Urban professionals from the Andean interior tend toward conservative, dark-colored suits, while farmers and members of the lower classes prefer loose skirts or pants [source: rquez and Roadfield]. The sanctions would have also impacted the least affluent in the country first, who were mainly the blacks there. Cecil and his father working the cotton field Check out the hottest fashion, photos, movies and TV shows! The Butler true story reveals that Eugene Allen was working in the White House kitchen on the day that President Kennedy was assassinated. Unable to learn a thing. Write your message of sympathy today. He is survived by : his children, Sheri Wood (Steve Drewel) of Lake Ozark, MO, Matthew Gaines (Adrian) of Plattsburg, MO and Chris Gaines (Erica) of New London, MO; his grandchildren, Erin Krupps (Philip), Emily Wood, Kaitlyn Underhill (Joey) and Brooklyn Gaines; his great grandchildren, Crew and Auley; and his friends, Jay and Sue Garrelts of Palmyra. Is the movie The Butler based on a true story? At the time of the civil rights, it was inspired by African-American, Hispanic, Native Americans, and another citizen that was against what forms of discrimination there was at that time. 1214 Words; 5 Pages; Decent Essays . Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker) was a sharecropper's son who grew up as a domestic servant for the white family that accidentally killed him in the 1920s. The true story behind Eugene Allen verifies that he was born on a plantation in Virginia (not Georgia). Since the Civil Rights Movement racial equality has improved through things such as African Americans government roles, and their rights in everyday life. African Americans did not see know what their truth was Its not easy to know what is true for you or me (Hughes, ln 16). This case study will identify each character's life stage as well as the psychosocial crisis each is experiencing. Gaines recalls saving Gerald Fords life one afternoon when he almost tripped in the bathtub (clumsy bastard, pardon me for saying so), taking Jimmy Carters Chevy Impala to get gassed up on even days (back before the 70s, they let the presidents drive), chopping wood alongside Ronald Reagan on weekends (A kind man, but what a space cadet, pardon me for saying so), and polishing George Hs WWII medals (He sure loved them medals). Cecil Gaines: That was the first time in my life I had ever seen my father cry. One of the most famous tourist attractions in Bolivia is the Salar de Uyuni, a 4,000-square mile salt flat. The Butler movie depicts President Ronald Reagan (Alan Rickman) stating that he will refuse to impose sanctions against South Africa for its racist policies. He shuffled around to her side of the bed. Sadly, Helene did not witness the election. Yes, in his last year as a butler at the White House, Cecil Gaines had the opportunity to meet President Barack Obama. The film opens with young Cecil in Macon, Georgia, in the 1920s, working in a cotton field alongside his father. Just imagine, Gloria says. In the movie, the Gaines' youngest son Charlie (Elijah Kelley) dies in Vietnam, requiring Cecil to maintain his composure and poise while confronting Nixon. Cecil grown up in a cotton plantation with his father and mother. Allen was particularly affected by the murder of President Kennedy in 1963. The Newton Record; 04 Aug 1965, Wed; Page 8 FIRST GAINES REUNION HELD AT DECATUR'S ARMORY JULY 25 The first reunion of the Tom, Frank and Jim Gaines and Mattie Gaines Dunagin families was held at the National Guard Armory in Decatur, Sunday, July 25. Nothing like this had come to the Supreme Court before so it was a new experience. Allen finally attained the most prestigious rank of butlers serving in the White House, Matre d'htel, in 1981, during the presidency of Ronald Reagan. In The Butler, Whitakers Cecil Gaines is a slightly fictionalized version of Allen, one whose storythough very close to Allens ownplays better as the stylistic, sweeping melodrama the film sets out to be. Colombians (colombianos in Spanish), are citizens of Colombia. He became junior butler under President Kennedy, and says . job he works nearly 34 years to serve the presidents in the White House. he said. There is no photo or video of Cecil Gaines.Be the first to share a memory to pay tribute. Cecil had a wife, Gloria Gaines, and two sons, Louis and Charlie Gaines that were with him after he became a butler in a Washington Hotel. After a two-hour tour through the ugliest moments of the countrys history, The Butler concludes with one of those lump-in-the-throat rousing moments that wins applause at the end of screenings. Which is why he can speak with authority on the subject. Thats the mark of a failed leader. I cant tell if Allen ever actually met the president, but he did get a VIP invitation to the inauguration in 2009, and was in attendance on that historical day. Cecil's youngest son, Charlie Gaines, is struggling to find his identity and decides to join the military and fight for his country. In real life, Jackie insisted on wearing the suit for the swearing in of Lyndon B. Johnson that took place aboard Air Force One, the same flight that transported her husband John F. Kennedy's body back to Washington, D.C. He then acts in a manner that undermines his belief in the authenticity of his life's work. The life of that man, Eugene Allen, is the basis for Lee Daniels The Butler, which debuts in theaters this weekend. (Yahoo! So how much is real and how much has been slightly embellished? Alex Haley demonstrates this idea of racial equality in The Autobiography of Malcolm X., The Kennedy Assassination: Just or Unjust? Lihat dokumen lengkap (68 Halaman - 1.57MB). . Photo illustration by Slate. Allen had one son, Charles, who served in Vietnam, just as Cecils younger son (also named Charles) does. (Answered 2023), What Will Deter a Dog From Peeing in the House? His mother (Mariah Carey) is raped by a white plantation overseer, Thomas Westfall (Alex Pettyfer), loud enough for everyone to hear. It is nevetherless estimated that 37% of the Colombian population can be categorized as white, forming the second largest racial group after mestizos (at 49 percent). In the movie, the White House calls Gaines after a white senior staffer witnesses Cecil in action at the D.C. hotela point Cecil, in voiceover, emphasizes proudly. Cecil Gaines: [laughing] Ain't nobody done nothing to spite you. A 1993 documentary profiling the life and career of award-winning author Ernest Gaines, whose work is inspired by his childhood experiences of growing up in . Mr. Allen worked for 34 years in the White House under eight presidents. Eugene Allen was actually serving Eisenhower and his advisers on that dramatic daythere are photos to prove itbut his real first day was during the Truman administration. Allen, born on a plantation in 1919, joined the White House staff in 1952 as a pantryman who washed dishes. The butler and the Reagans The first question he asks him is, "Are you political?" Who was the U.S. president in 1957? You've taken a great story about a real person and real events and twisted it into a bunch of lies," Reagan wrote. James Marsden as John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States. [6] He retired in 1986, after he worked for Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and Ronald Reagan, a total of eight presidents. [7] Reagan invited Allen and his wife Helene to a state dinner in honor of Helmut Kohl at the White House. Looking for info on THOR FORSYTHE GAINES born Jan 31, 1890. and Central America (Honduras, Costa Rica, etc.). During our research into The Butler true story, we quickly learned that the Louis Gaines character, portrayed by actor David Oyelowo, is entirely fictional, as is the subplot involving the character. I thought me and the president, we were on good terms, but he turned out to be a real bastard from hell, pardon me for saying so., After the election, according to Gaines, the president he was cursing and swearing and kicking the furniture in the Oval Office, looking for someone to blame for his defeat. Did Gene Allens son really go to Vietnam? Cecil never did quit when the presidents had died, he continued his job as being the butler. The following breakdown is based on Haygoods profile and the accompanying book. Menu. On Wednesday, April 7, 2021, Cecil Lamont Gaines aka Bunz, 46 years old, made his transition home. If the liberals in Hollywoodand Washingtonever start looking at people the way he did, the country will be a lot better off," Reagan wrote. Days before Election Day, Helene passed away. After his mother (Mariah Carey, in a wordless performance) becomes catatonic after being raped by the plantation owner (Alex Pettyfer) and his father is subsequently murdered, Cecil is essentially orphaned. The importance of saying "I love you" during COVID-19, Effective ways of dealing with the grieving process, Solutions to show your sympathy safely during the Covid-19 pandemic. Louis Gaines represents the radical voice in the fight for social justice. To begin with, Dred Scott was an African Slave that had spent time in a free territory. Cecil and Louis, the warring father and son played by Whitaker and Oyelowo . In the Washington Post article, Eugene and Helene talk about praying for Obama to win the White House. The Butler tells the story of Cecil Gaines, a black man who rose to become White House butler and served eight presidents, witnessing some of the most tumultuous events in 20th-century America, including the Civil Rights movement. But even today, where skin color should make no difference, black people still experience segregation., Stop sweet-talking him (Bagwell n.pag.). In the movie, Cecil asks for equal pay among the black and white service staff, who each perform the same level of duties. The film also gives the butler a second son who is a civil rights activist, and who, in real life, did not exist. Cecil leaves his position at the White House during the Reagan administration in The Butler, after which he reunites with son Louis at a protest against apartheid at the South African embassy. No, she was not an alcoholic. About 50% percent, or up to 500,000 of those who escaped the country headed to the U.S., which was already home to over 10,000 Salvadorans, making Salvadorans Americans the third-largest Hispanic and Latino American group, after the Mexican American majority and Cubans (when not including Stateside Puerto Ricans). Not much. He suffers some of the worst punishment and violence of the United States institutions. Guess which butler feels the pain of America's racial injustices so deeply that he quits his White House job and joins his son in a protest movement? There has been a lot of debate as to whether or not President Obama was asked to be in the film, as well as what his response was if asked. And Gloria Gaines stage as well as the Jim Crow laws fall, are called Cecil Gloria! A butler at the White House kitchen on the day that President Kennedy, and of.. He accepts this life & # x27 ; t nobody done nothing to you! James Marsden as John F. 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