Sacheen Littlefeather

Sacheen Littlefeather

Born: November 14, 1946
Died: October 2, 2022
in Salinas, California, USA
Sacheen Cruz Littlefeather (born Marie Louise Cruz; November 14, 1946 – October 2, 2022) was an American actress, model, and Native American civil rights activist. Littlefeather was born to a Native American (Apache and Yaqui) father and a European American mother. During the 1969 occupation of Alcatraz, she became involved in the Native American activist community.

Littlefeather represented Marlon Brando at the 45th Academy Awards in 1973, where she—on Brando's behalf—declined the Best Actor award that he won for his performance in The Godfather. The favorite to win, Brando boycotted the ceremony as a protest against Hollywood's portrayal of Native Americans and to draw attention to the standoff at Wounded Knee. During her speech, the audience's response to Brando's boycotting was divided between booing and applause.

After the Academy Award speech, she went on to work in hospice care. She continued to work in activism for a number of health-related and Native American issues, and had produced films about Native Americans. In June 2022, the Academy sent Littlefeather a statement of apology, which was read in full at An Evening with Sacheen Littlefeather on September 17.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Sacheen Littlefeather, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Movies for Sacheen Littlefeather...

Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
Title: Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: November 13, 2022
Type: Movie
The portrait of the last cowboy Hollywood legend dives into the 65 years of an extraordinary career in Hollywood, highlighted iconic films like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, as well as Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River and Gran Torino all the way to Cry Macho in 2021. It is no small task to cover more than 60 years of cinema history, especially when it is trying to surveyed with such breadth and diversity: TV star, international star, controversial icon, contested director, filmmaker with a capital F, Eastwood has been through it all, experienced it all, and it is first of all this romantic trajectory, this true American pastoral that the documentary wants to tell with all the passion it possibly can.
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Sacheen: Breaking the Silence
Title: Sacheen: Breaking the Silence
Character: Self
Released: April 5, 2019
Type: Movie
Revisiting the achievements of Sacheen Littlefeather, the first woman of color to utilize the Academy Awards to make a political statement.
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And the Oscar Goes To...
Title: And the Oscar Goes To...
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: February 1, 2014
Type: Movie
The story of the gold-plated statuette that became the film industry's most coveted prize, AND THE OSCAR GOES TO... traces the history of the Academy itself, which began in 1927 when Louis B. Mayer, then head of MGM, led other prominent members of the industry in forming this professional honorary organization. Two years later the Academy began bestowing awards, which were nicknamed "Oscar," and quickly came to represent the pinnacle of cinematic achievement.
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Reel Injun
Title: Reel Injun
Character: Herself
Released: February 19, 2010
Type: Movie
The evolution of the depiction of Native Americans in film, from the silent era until today, featuring clips from hundreds of movies and candid interviews with famous directors, writers and actors, Native and non-Native: how their image on the screen transforms the way to understand their history and culture.
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The Last Days of Marlon Brando
Title: The Last Days of Marlon Brando
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: March 1, 2008
Type: Movie
July 1, 2004, Hollywood lost one of its biggest stars - Marlon Brando. He succumbs to pulmonary fibrosis at the age of 80. Even during his lifetime, the versatile actor was a legend. Surrounded by a unique aura and blessed with great talent, he advanced to become a celebrated star. But his private life resembles a Greek tragedy.
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Shoot the Sun Down
Title: Shoot the Sun Down
Character: Navajo Woman
Released: January 1, 1978
Type: Movie
Couple of strangers arrive in a small town, each one after a different thing.
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Winterhawk
Title: Winterhawk
Character: Pale Flower
Released: November 5, 1975
Type: Movie
Smallpox plagues Chief Winterhawk's tribe. He seeks cure from the white men, who in turn, in fear of getting the smallpox, kill two of his companions. Winterhawk comes back to kidnap a girl and her brother from the white men's settlement, and thus begins the chase...
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Johnny Firecloud
Title: Johnny Firecloud
Character: Nenya
Released: August 1, 1975
Type: Movie
An American Indian war veteran avenges the hanging of his grandfather by local thugs.
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The Trial of Billy Jack
Title: The Trial of Billy Jack
Character: Patsy Littlejohn
Released: November 13, 1974
Type: Movie
After Billy Jack in sentenced to four years in prison for the "involuntary manslaughter" of the first film, the Freedom School expands and flourishes under the guidance of Jean Roberts. The utopian existence of the school is characterized by everything ranging from "yoga sports" to muckracking journalism. The diverse student population airs scathing political exposes on their privately owned television station. The narrow-minded townspeople have different ideas about their brand of liberalism. Billy Jack is released and things heat up for the school. Students are threatened and abused and the Native Americans in the neighboring village are taunted and mistreated. After Billy Jack undergoes a vision quest, the governor and the police plot to permanently put an end to their liberal shenanigans, leaving it up to Billy Jack to save the day.
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Counselor at Crime
Title: Counselor at Crime
Character: Maggie
Released: August 30, 1973
Type: Movie
When the godson of San Francisco's crime lord asks permission to leave "the business," Don Antonio agrees, but reluctantly. Such behavior by either one is a violation of the code, and a bloody mob war breaks out. It is only through the strong support of his family connections in Sicily that Don Antonio is able to survive the mêlée and come out on top. Aghast at the situation he has caused, the godson becomes his leader's "consigliere," or Counselor at Crime.