The Homecoming

[Marion]

Serena Lewis said:

Or maybe I've got an ancient encyclopedia or...something...

The last time Trinidad was part of Africa, I expect dinosaurs roamed Pangaea

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangaea
I would sue the publishers, if I were you - or put it up for auction at Sotheby's as the earliest book known to man. You'd make a fortune!

[Serena Lewis]

Witty
Hmm...now i've checked an internet encyclopedia through a link on MSN...and this one says 'Most of the population of Trinidad and Tobago are Africans.'
Is that anywhere near correct? If not, I have absolutely no idea why I'm the one who gets all the rubbishy resources...

xx

[Marion]

Serena Lewis says:

Hmm...now i've checked an internet encyclopedia through a link on MSN...and this one says 'Most of the population of Trinidad and Tobago are Africans.' Is that anywhere near correct? If not, I have absolutely no idea why I'm the one who gets all the rubbishy resources...

That would be on account of the slave trade, I imagine. Wikipedia has this to say about the islands:

Originally settled by Amerindians of South American origin at least 7,000 years ago, Trinidad and Tobago was occupied by Arawakan- and Cariban-speaking peoples at the time of European contact in 1498. A history of slavery and indentureship has left the country with a mixture of African, Indian, European, Middle Eastern and Chinese people. All these groups have left an imprint on the national culture, and there is an increasingly high percentage of mixed-race people. Trinidad and Tobago became an independent nation (from the United Kingdom) in 1962 and a republic in 1976.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinidad_and_Tobago

Does that solve the mystery?

[DreamerAngel]

I
5. Just a small thing. No offence meant at all by this, but if Greens father is black, and presumably her mother is, why is Green mixed race? My theory is that they made her father black because, otherwise, if they made him white, some people watching would be wondering 'How come Green's mixed race?' if they hadn't seen her bio thing which says her mom is Trinidadian.

xx

Again no offense AT ALL but could Gerry Anderson be telling Black youths that they don't have to let their background get in the way of what they want to be when they're older and telling them there are positive black people out there??

[Skybase Girl]

This topic is rather old, but I decided I'd post a reply to it. That was about an hour ago, which, due to various home computer problems, I struggled with. Then I had problems with the site, which decided unilaterally to delete my post. Of course, I hadn't saved it, so I have to start again, assuming I can remember what I wrote in the first place, which is frankly, rather unlikely.

However, never say die, so here goes;

Yes, I believe Gerry was ahead of his time in promoting characters of colour to leading roles and this may have had a lot to do with his admiration for Cy Grant, who was the voice artist for the original puppet version of Lt Green. Cy was born in what was British Guyana, a part of the West Indies which is in essence now part of South America. It's not Africa, although it is a soup cauldron of influences. Cy Grant was, along with Sidney Poitier, one of the few actors and musicians of colour to break through all entertainment barriers.

Chris Bentley's 2008 version of "The Complete Gerry Anderson" tells us that the production team looked to base each NCS character on characteristics of actors, models, sports personalities, family and friends and then used those composites as the basis for the development of the characters. Well, that may be so, but they did a rather sloppy job of it. For instance, Captain Black is described as hailing from Brooklyn, New Jersey. The last time I was there, Brooklyn is slap bang in the middle of New York State, where it's always been. So much for geography. There are other things, but I won't go on......

As for NCS Green.... well, she was born in Houston and is described as an Afro-American. Her dad's appearance is based on the actor Danny Glover, who looks African in origin. We don't get to see her mother. The only thing we know is that she's Trinidadian. Since we know that NCS Green is based on the actress Halle Berry, whose mother is white, it seems reasonable to assume that her mother, Charmaine, may be a white, or very light coloured West Indian.

Gerry was ground-breaking in everything he did - relationships between species weren't impossible as far as he was concerned. Look at Maya and Tony Verdeschi in "Space 1999". It just depends how it's handled. Personally, I love the dynamics between Blue and Green in NCS - the blond Scandinavian good looks, partnered with her exotic-ness, is fabulous!

[adam blue]

I wounder how they got Blacks background wrong then? I think your right about the relationships. Gerry new no limits when it came to things like that, as he new the right way to do things. I wounder if well get anyone who had a mind like his again?
It would of been nice to see more of Blue and Green together but i guess Gerry made it so Adam was nerves about doing anything.