Diet & Fitness Blog

Friday, February 22, 2008

Every year, a new generation of actors is anointed Hollywood royalty at the Academy Awards and -- while we've seen great strides in diversity for award recipients -- every year one group is continuously shunned on Oscar night: The food actors.

From being the object of affection in Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle to being the villain in Super-Size Me, food has played an integral role in countless films throughout history while breaking down Hollywood's most bigoted barriers.

To celebrate these forgotten heroes of the silver screen, eDiets sat down with a few of the most famous foods from some of history's most popular films to find out what it was like to rewrite the rule book -- and honor their achievements as social trailblazers.

In coordination with the Food Actors Guild, eDiets presents the first annual Film-Changing Food Awards. These tasty treats changed the way food is represented on film through daring roles and outside the breadbox thinking. These apt cinematic pioneers changed history...

Breakthrough Role as a Pastry
In The Godfather trilogy, food was an indispensable element of the story and culinary accuracy was precise and paramount. The Godfathers also jump-started the careers of many Italian-American foods that -- up until that point -- were only playing pizzas, pastas and organized crime dinners.

"When I got the part, I knew it was a big opportunity in my career," explains Tony Di Cannoli. "I took some heat from the Anti-Italian Food Defamation League, but I think it really changed people's perception of what ethnic foods could portray on screen."

He now sits in an Italian Market window in an undisclosed Midwest town -- past his acting prime and in the witness relocation program -- but remembers those glory days working with Pacino, Coppola and the rest.

"The original line was, 'Leave the cannolis. Take the gun,' but I says to Francis, 'that's not realistic -- an Italian never leaves a cannoli behind," he explains. "It changed the whole movie and showed that food is more important than guns, which is the underlying theme of those films."

Indeed it is, so we salute you Mr. Cannoli, wherever you are, for your daring role in The Godfather. And as Peter Clemenza said, "Leave the gun… Take the cannolis." Bravo!

Best Man-on-Food Romance
In American Pie, a film about the relationship between young men and their desserts, most of the stars went on to TV and movie fame while one cast member -- who bared all -- watched her life crumble.

"Originally, when the director offered me the part, he said it would be done very tastefully," explains Ms. Apple Pie (who asked we not use her real name). "Of course I was nervous. I had never done a love scene, and man-food love was seriously frowned upon at the time!"

It turned out to be one of the hottest, steamiest love scenes ever filmed, as well as being crucial in bringing the sexual rights of food to the forefront.

"Sure, people had seen man-woman, woman-woman, man-man and a few other combos, but this was the most graphic example of inter-culinary lovemaking ever shown on the big screen. It was truly groundbreaking," remembers Ms. Pie.

However, many rightwing religious groups spoke out against her "immoral and inappropriate relationship," both on and off the set of American Pie, with costar Jason Biggs.

"I got death threats, but we were in love," she recalls. This fairytale, however, would not have a Hollywood ending for the aspiring starlet.

Due to the backlash from her love scene, she never worked in mainstream film again, her relationship with Biggs ended and she fell into a life of drugs, alcohol and selling slices on the side of the street.

"It opened a lot of doors for a lot of foods," Ms. Pie recalls. "It was hard, but I know I did the right thing. I just hope people can accept love -- in whatever form -- and foods today realize what things were like for film foods in the not-so-tolerant nineties."

A true pie-oneer, who let love lead. Kudos!

Lifetime O' Chocolate Award
In a time when lady sang the blues, a clockwork was orange and the great hope was white, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory dared to put a darker shade of chocolate into their film.

"At the time, it was difficult to find work in film as dark chocolate," says star of the Chocolate Factory, Jermaine J. Goodbar. "All the good parts were going to white chocolate and some to milk chocolate, but nothing for my dark chocolate brethren."

Then he got the call: "They, were gonna take a chance, and wanted me to audition for the role of golden-ticketed Wonka Bar. This is the role I was made for."

It wasn't all gumdrops and lollipops for this veteran stage and commercial actor -- he would have to prove himself. A lot of people on set were not happy about the producers hiring a dark chocolate bar in the starring food role, but he persevered.

"Some people called me names like fudge-face and tried to melt me down for cocoa, but after I proved myself on the set, most of them came around."

Often regarded as one of the bravest food actors of all time, Goodbar put on one of the finest on-film food performances ever, while paving the way for future generations of food to appear on the silver screen -- regardless of color.

"I heard after that, green beans were getting parts, red potatoes were being played by real red potatoes, not regular potatoes just painted red," he recalls. "And, have you seen the remake of Chocolate Factory? That's my grandson, J.J., playing the part I played over 30 years ago."

He is a proud chocolate bar who has overcome a great deal to pass on an acting legacy that will not soon be forgotten. Many said he was nuts for taking the part, but he simply smiled and said, "No, I'm just chocolate."

True bravery, thy name is Goodbar.

Shawn McKee graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a BA in Journalism and has written for The Broward and Miami New Times.

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