Harry Connick, Jr. Disses Blackface Performance on Australian TV Show

No one seemed to mind the Jackson 5 blackface performance on the Australian TV variety show Hey Hey It’s Saturday except a visibly uncomfortable and well-known American judge; actor and singer Harry Connick, Jr.  Orchestrated to be a tribute (hmmm) to Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5, a group of doctors did a Jackson 5 routine in blackface while sporting Afro wigs. The four brothers, better known as The Jackson Jive, wore blackface while “Michael” was masked in whiteface.

After the performance, everyone booed, only we’re not sure if the booing was because the performers were poking a little fun at the millions of people (not just Americans) of African decent or because the performers were just plain horrible.  I’ll go out on a limb and assume the latter.

Harry was clearly disturbed over the performance and had a few words to say after rating the routine a zero. “If it had aired in the United States, the show would have been pulled off the air” Harry commented.

While one of the other judges gave the performance a similarly low score, the other complimented the choreography and gave the group a seven.

The variety show’s host, Daryl Sommers, apologized to the crooner at the end of the program, noting that it was insulting to Americans. Connick agreed.

“I just want to say, on behalf of my country, I know it was done humorously, but we’ve spent so much time trying to not make black people look like buffoons, that when we see something like that we take it really to heart,” he said.

Connick, however, has since been called a hypocrite, with detractors citing his portrayal of a Southern minister on Mad TV in 1996 as equally racist and offensive. Connick said he still stands by his comments about the Australian show.

Anand Deva, the frontman of the group, which called itself “Jackson Jive,” said the performance was not meant to offend and was a tribute to Michael Jackson, who died in June. Deva said, however, the group would not have performed the routine in the U.S., according to The Associated Press.

Hey Hey It’s Saturday ran for 27 years, beginning in 1971. This was the second of two reunion shows for the program, and “Jackson Jive” was brought back to reprise the same group’s performance 20 years earlier, when the group won the competition.

My Take: I think Harry did the right thing but did he really have a choice NOT to do what he did given the situation he was in? I did not take this personally but I can definitely understand why a “variety” of people would be offended by this.

Do you think it was offensive?  Is Harry really a hypocrite?  See clip of Harry Connick’s Mad TV skit below.

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