Video footage obtained by The Daily Caller shows “Hollywood’s golden boy” Tom Hanks caught in a web of offensive racist jokes, set by Eagles musician Glenn Frey, at a 2004 fundraising auction in Los Angeles California. Frey presents a white man dressed as their interpretation of an African native, while holding a gorilla complete with blackface makeup and a giant Afro wig.
Eight years later the actor has expressed his regret for participating at the racist fundraising event. In a statement provided by his publicist, Hanks said, “I was blindsided when one of the parents got up on stage in a costume that was hideously offensive then and is hideously offensive now. What is usually a night of food and drink for a good cause was, regrettably, marred by an appalling few moments,” said Hanks, who is a prominent supporter of President Barack Obama.
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The video surfaced after the Hollywood big wig volunteered his time and voice to narrate a campaign documentary for President Barack Obama entitled The Road We’ve Traveled.
Many Obama supporters are speaking out against Hank’s participation in the racist fundraising event. Congress of Racial Equality spokesman Niger Innis, blasted the skit as “an orchestrated, heinous, and racist ‘Stepin Fetchit’ routine.” While speaking to The Daily Caller Innis adds, “I call upon President Obama, who has Tom Hanks doing the narration to his campaign video, to cease, to remove Mr. Hanks’ voice-over from his video, and end any association or affiliation with Mr. Hanks.”
In the video, it appears that the actor was completely caught off guard when he noticed the white man in blackface. The man was identified in the video as investment banker James Montgomery, CEO of the Santa Monica, California firm Montgomery & Company.
After realizing what was going on, Hanks sputtered “Oh wait a second….Oh jeez!” After co-host Frey continued with his racist joke, Hanks shouted “Easy!”
Hanks’ Hollywood career is likely to survive this ugly ordeal due to his genuine reaction right from the start.
