Jennifer Beals (1963- ) is an American actress, best known for playing the lead in “Flashdance” (1983). Since 2004, she has played Bette Porter in “The L Word” on the cable television channel Showtime. People magazine once named her one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world.
She was cast for “Flashdance” while still at Yale University. It was her second film – in 1980 she had a small part in “My Bodyguard”. She did not do most of the dancing in “Flashdance” – that was done by her body double, Marine Jahan, a French actress. A fact that did not come out until after the film was a big success. Beals is remembered for wearing her sweatshirt off her shoulders. Like in the film, Beals loves photography.
She has appeared in dozens of other films, many of them directed by independent filmmaker Alexandre Rockwell, who became her husband. None of the films were the big hit that “Flashdance” was. She lived in the shadow of her own success.
In 1995 she starred opposite Denzel Washington in “Devil in a Blue Dress” where she plays a mixed woman who passes for white. In 2001 she was in “The Feast of All Saints”. She also played the bride of Frankenstein and a vampire.
She was considered for the female lead in “The X-Files”, but it was not till 2004 that she broke out of her own shadow by starring in “The L Word”, where you can see her still. The show tells the stories of lesbians in West Hollywood. She plays Bette Porter, one of the leading characters, who is lesbian and mixed race.
Although Beals is not a lesbian herself, she is mixed race (black father, white, Irish-American mother) and likes how she can now play a biracial character on American television, still a rare thing. It was not something the makers of “The L Word” had in mind – it was something she pushed.
She says being biracial makes it easier for her to play a lesbian: being half black and half white meant that growing up she “always lived sort-of on the outside.” So: “The idea of being the other in society is not foreign to me.”
She had played a biracial character only twice before. All her other characters were either white or, like in “Flashdance”, assumed to be white.
Growing up a half-white, half-black girl in Chicago her story as a biracial person was rarely told in the books and songs and films and television shows that she knew. The closest thing was Spock on “Star Trek” and Cher’s song “Half Breed”. She did not know about Faulkner or “The Imitation of Life”.
She hopes “The L Word” can break down the narrow picture people have of both lesbians and biracials:
They talk about the fact that history is written by the victors, but if you can make yourself victorious by writing your own history and supplying your own images, then you’ve done yourself and the world a great service.
See also:
- Beals at the GLAAD Awards – on YouTube. Excellent.
- The Feast of All Saints
- biracial
Jennifer Beals is a beautiful and talented actress with versatility to play any given role. Unfortunately, Hollywood didn’t give her much chance to develop her gifts because they are interested in putting people in narrow boxes and is more interested in the white dollar than anything else, leaving her with fewer parts to play.
That’s my opinion.
Stephanie B.
LikeLike
I have read some Jennifer Beals hate mail and want to comment. I would have to say that we are all a product of our environment, regardless of what race. Those who accuse a person of “running away from their blackness” need be careful. Sure we are all aware of the story “Imitation of Life”. To this day, that behavior has not completely dissolved away, yet it is very inappropriate to make such strong accusations without being sure.
When you were born, the doctor smacked you on the bottom and I guarantee that your first words were NOT ,“say it loud, I’m black and I’m proud”. No, you were taught to be proud of that heritage. You were influenced by grandma ‘nem, and those who sat you down and shared with you the stories, the photos, the emotions, the feelings and the wisdom of our rich Black heritage. You were shaped by your aunties, uncles, neighbors, teachers, black entertainment, black music, the wiered guy on the corner, and so much more. Most of us were MAJORLY influenced by the Black Church. You speak ebonics and slang because that is the way people around you spoke. You enunciate your words and speak eloquently, because that is the way people around you spoke. You like the rich foods you eat because that is what you were fed.
A person who has not experienced what you have, is not going to become the person you are. Yeah, we all have a little this and a little that in our blood, but we all identify mostly with the community that reared us. That’s why some say a person of African ancestry may be accused of acting like one of another culture. It’s likely the culture that had more influence on them.
My mix is Black, White and Native American. But I identify as black because that is the strongest heritage I was fed and I have brown skin. I would love to discover my Indian heritage but I have no one around me to embrace me and give me that experience. Unfortunately, I find nothing to be proud of my white heritage. Sorry white people, no offense so don‘t take it personal.
I can tell you stories of my mother who was tied to a chair by her cousins and they cut her hair because her hair texture was fine, long, soft and wavy. Or my sister who was called names because she has light bright skin and long black wavy hair. Or my grandmother who had a car full of her children and told them to duck down in the back of the car so no one would see them, while she goes into the white gas station to pay for gas and get food. All because she could pass as an Indian woman but her children could not. She lived in a town where Indians were left well alone.
A person who was reared in an African American culture are not likely to just run from it. I’d like to say that I feel it’s important to have people of different races and celebrate the variety of this earth and the people herein. Heritage/race is a tie that connects people, uplifts people, gives something to be proud of, something to be remembered. While being human alone should cause us all to behave in a civilized manner toward one another and live in unity and harmony, I do not agree that we should just dismiss the conversation of race and heritage or stop asking people about their race/heritage. We should just stop letting that be a reason to be divided. The conversation of race and heritage should never end. However we should respect whatever a person chooses, or the simple fact if they choose not to choose, after all they are only saying what they know. Just because I identify as black does not mean I reject any other race on earth or even my own mixed heritage. Because, just as stated above, I will gladly discuss all three. There used to be a common practice where the child identifies as the father’s race. So if Mom is Indian and dad is Chinese, then child is Chinese. Times are not that simple anymore and that’s fine.
Regarding Jenn Beals, I don’t claim to know her but I do think the race of her parents have been communicated accurately. With her mother being Irish and father being Black/African American, she is not part white at all, by historical definition, as Irish were not considered white. Rather they were treated as minorities, the same as free slaves. SOME of the Irish chose to take advantage of their light skin and use it to get ahead, so they chose to oppress blacks, the same as whites did, in order to win the acceptance and privilege of whites. See “How the Irish Became White” http://academic.udayton.edu/Race/01race/white13.htm.
There are many races in this country who are accused of acting white and denying their own. There are even examples of people who have in fact done such thing. But I think mostly, anyone who has been truly accepted, taught and allowed to experience love and security within the heritage of their blood line, would not readily deny nor run away from it.
Now we have public information that says her father died when she was young and we have no information regarding any of his side of the family who could have remained an influence to her. So if you want Jennifer Beals to “act black” then maybe you should, throw a fish fry and invite her over. Or you can introduce her to black radio such as Tom Joyner morning show (www.tjms.com and http://www.blackamericaweb.com), Rev. Al Sharpton show (www.sharptontalk.net), Warren Ballentine (www.thetruthfighters.com), Steve Harvey (www.steveharvey.com), Michael Baisden (www.michaelbaisden.com). Or maybe you can invite her to come to church with you. Or maybe you can take her to your grandparents, aunts, uncles or elderly figure of your family and let them share their stories, experiences and pour their love into her. Maybe you should invite her along with you to see the latest Tyler Perry Movie. But if you don’t have enough guts to speak up for her when one ignent (no, I did not misspell ignorant, that‘s just how some black people say it) person says something out of the way to her, then don’t bother her at all. Because I’d bet good money that she has, in many ways, experienced more rejection from every direction than a human would like to know about.
I did not know much about Jenn Beals before LWord and it’s been only a few weeks since I discovered she is biracial. Now that I know that she is part black, I will keep my eye open for her work and go out of my way to support every movie, and TV show she’s in. No, not just because she is part black but because she is part black, GOOD at what she does, and deserves more recognition for her work. That’s just what some of us do. I don’t think I need to explain that, we all know what world in which we live.
Every mixed person should be most privileged to have the honor of experiencing and representing the richness of more than one culture. A Jewish-Black-Scottish person should be able to have a Barmitsfa with pride, wear a Kilt with pride and sing the Black National Anthem with pride. Furthermore, they should be able to create a new heritage based on their experiences as those who share a story that no other race shares. Multi. However we have reduced them to a tug of war in which they were never willing participants, demanding they “pick one“. We try to take away their multi.
I personally choose to claim anyone who is any part black, who wants to be claimed. PERIOD. I know some people don’t want to hear that but I just believe that the African heritage, the triumph over the Slave experience, and the current strength of the Black community is such that binds us all together and gives us all something to be very proud of. We are such a strong people and I want everyone even remotely associated with it to at least have an opportunity to embrace, know and love what is a part of us all. Now if there are other cultures in your mix, then by all means, we can love that too and teach our children.
Go Jennifer!
LikeLike
1
LikeLike
That was beautiful. Thanks! And thanks for the link about the Irish – it is something I always wondered about.
LikeLike
thank you for that. I really do have a greater understanding of it all.
LikeLike
I love Jennifer Beals, I have seen pretty much everything she has ever been in. She is an amazing actress. I think that the fact that she is bi-racial, really does make her so much more of an asset to the acting community. I also think her protrail of Bette Porter on The L-Word was amazing. Being a lesbian myself, it made me happy to know that some like her is out there protraying us in a positive manner, isn’t pretending that she cares about us. I love the fact that she is truly supporting the GLBTQ community.
LikeLike
Wow, that is great. I think that is part of what Beals wanted to do since when she was growing up she did not see people like her on television.
LikeLike
To Abagond:
Wow, that is great. I think that is part of what Beals wanted to do since when she was growing up she did not see people like her on television.
Really? To me Jennifer Beals looks Italian or possibly Jewish. I didn’t know she was biracial when I first saw Flashdance. I hadn’t thought about her for a while until I saw this thread, when I looked her up on Wikipedia, I realized that she was playing a character in a TV show I’ve been following: “Lie to me.” Again I didn’t know the actress (before I knew it was Beals) was biracial.
In the same vein the man second from the left in this photo has a black father:
I was pretty amused, when a number of years ago a local magazine described him as being “pasty”.
LikeLike
When I saw “Flashdance” I assumed she was white – it is the default in Hollywood films. But looking at her I did wonder if she was part black.
LikeLike
If I saw Beals on the street and didn’t know who she was, I’d assume her to be some type of “Hispanic”.
It’s not a concidence that many Latin American women resemble Beals. Many of them, especially those of Spanish Caribbean descent, are the same thing as her: black/white.
LikeLike
Perceptions of race are so fluid and shaped by environment.
In the Creole-filled milieu of New Orleans, there’s many black (identified) Americans who resemble Beals.
However, in the Northeast (tri-state area), there are not. Many of the Puerto Ricans and Dominicans resemble her instead.
(Needless to say, many of the Creoles and PRs share a similar ethnic lineage to Miss Beals, hence the physical resemblance).
Nothing about her looks changed. Just the varying individual perceptions based on what we’ve see around us. Race truly is visual and therefore 100% relative and 100% subjective.
LikeLike
Right, she has the same black-and-white mix of many Creoles and Latinas.
If someone had told me she was Latina, Jewish or Middle Eastern, then I probably would not have given the matter much thought. But going by her name she did not seem to be any of those things (not that you can always tell from a name what someone is).
LikeLike
Contrary to popular negative opinions about Jennifer, she has publicly discussed her complexion and that of her brothers, Gregory and Bobby. To paraphrase her statement in the 8/85 issue of Cosmopolitan magaine: the only racism I have ever faced is from people who assume I am white. Some mistake me for Italian, my older brother, Greg, Hispanic, and younger brother, Bobby, is closer to the black stereotype. In 1996 (I forget which issue, but it can be back ordered), she admitted to Vibe magazine that her light complexion helps her get certain roles. These statements can be verified. Most libraries keep copies of old magazines or they can be ordered from publishers.
LikeLike
It goes beyond possessing a “light” complexion, Beals is (decidedly) racially ambigious. Her star never really “rose” after Flashdance. She actually lost on the title role of Alex Haley’s “Queen” back in the early ’90s. A shame since I believe that Beals could pass for white a hell of a lot eaasier than Halle Berry, who got the role.
LikeLike
I agree with mynameismyname. Jennifer Beals looks white as Halle Berry looks white/black. I have also been enlightened by agreeordisagree. I have always been confused when one is white/black mixture, why most refer to as being black. However, also confused as to having been raised by white, why is President Obama being called the first black president. He is white and black. I would not be surprised if it were researched, more presidents may have some black blood. I risked skin cancer all my life to have color. Half white or half black, does not really matter to me. What upsets me is when a black person refers to themself as an African American. I think that sounds like their pride is with Africa not America. I am Native American, Irish, Scotish, French and German, however, I refer to myself as an American. 250 years ago was 250 years ago. I am 60 years old. I was not raised prejudice, nor was my son, nor his children. We all came from Adam and Eve. There should be no divide, we are all Americans. Actually the most attractive people are mixed and of color. Just as mixed dogs show the most intelligence.
LikeLike
Yes, she’s very pretty.
“She actually lost on the title role of Alex Haley’s “Queen” back in the early ’90s. A shame since I believe that Beals could pass for white a hell of a lot eaasier than Halle Berry, who got the role.”
Yeah, that was a shocker. Halle didn’t fit the role at all.
LikeLike
@ agreeordisagree
Thank you for that comment. It was very insightful and helped me to understand.
LikeLike
really,i was think about her-she is jew or arabian.but she is unknown actress for me.and just my curiosity on this occasion caused me to ask her personality.And if not for curiosity,i would not watch a film about queers.Her family consisted for such controversial things as her father was a protestant,and her mother is a catholic! Her mother is white,and father was black!If two people create a family at such mutually exclusive premises, and give birth to three children – therefore they really love each other.And the rest can only envy.
LikeLike
what Black America wants is for Jennifer to have a black husband.They want to see her playing the mother of 4 black children with a black love interest in a Tyler Perry movie.If she did these things there would be no hate comments in this form.Why do you ask? Because this is a concept Black America is used to seeing.Automatically she’s denying her black heritage because she doesn’t appear in many African American films and tv shows…she must not “associate” with black people.It’s nonsense.The truth is she was raised by a white mother and has the right to befriend whoever she feels comfortable with and marry whoever she’s attracted to.I wish people could at least try to understand that.I mean not every bi-racial person is going to completely disown their white side,some will embrace it.
LikeLike
The moment I saw Jennifer Beals I knew she was biracial…
LikeLike
I had no idea, I thought she was Hispanic.
LikeLike
The film Flashdance was major back in the 80’s i also recall seeing her in one of the films with Denzel Washington inspired by Walter Mosley books. I think it was Devil In A Blue Dress. Another film with Denzel Washington Book of Eli. I think she is an ok actress.
LikeLike
I just remember that soundtack from the film Flashdance by Irene Cara “What A Feeling” and “She’s A Maniac” and pink leg warmers and ripped up tee shirts with Jeans were a fashion trend.
LikeLike
@ Mary
I remember that too. The moderated word was “pink” since it has been used as a slur on this blog.
LikeLike
not all “black” people think Jennifer Beals should play a black mother of 4 in a Tyler Perry movie…. in fact, who gives a “EF” who Jennifer befriends or marry…. none of what she does in her life defines mine in any way… black, white, purple or blue who the “EF” cares… carry on with life like Jennifer Beals is doing
LikeLike