Columbia University, Ph.D., M.F.A.Johns Hopkins University, B.A. Author, "Hollywood's Native Americans: Stories of Identity and Resistance" (2022) "Making the White Man's Indian: Native Americans and Hollywood Movies" (2005) Postdoctoral Research Fellow, American Indian Studies Center, UCLA Fulbright Fellow, University of Toronto
Lily Gladstone could reset the record if she earns an
Oscar nom for Killers of the Flower Moon —... more Lily Gladstone could reset the record if she earns an Oscar nom for Killers of the Flower Moon — and can raise awareness of Indigenous actresses who came before her.
An interview in The Telegraph by Tom Fordy, 24 October 2023
Native Americans have long been ridi... more An interview in The Telegraph by Tom Fordy, 24 October 2023
Native Americans have long been ridiculed on screen, badly treated on set and played by white actors. Is Scorsese's Osage epic any better?
“Killers of the Flower Moon” is both an interesting case study and ultimately a missed opportunit... more “Killers of the Flower Moon” is both an interesting case study and ultimately a missed opportunity. The movie has tried to incorporate some Osage input, but it still is telling this story primarily through the lens of the white main character, Leonardo DiCaprio. But no Native American is credited as being involved in the movie’s screenwriting, production or directing creative processes.
'Tragedies of the Osage Hills,' which dramatized the same horrifying killings at the heart of Mar... more 'Tragedies of the Osage Hills,' which dramatized the same horrifying killings at the heart of Martin Scorsese's new film, premiered in 1926. Its elusive and scandal-plagued director-Hollywood's first Native American filmmaker-spent much of his life concealing his identity.
Explores how the heritage and behind-the-scenes activities of Native American actors and filmmake... more Explores how the heritage and behind-the-scenes activities of Native American actors and filmmakers helped shape their own movie images. Highlights Native actors in lead or supporting roles and how a "pan-Indian heritage" that applies to all tribes in terms of spirituality, historical trauma, and a version of ceremony and storytelling have shaped these performers' movie identities.
A comprehensive 100-year history of Native Americans in Hollywood movies looking behind the scene... more A comprehensive 100-year history of Native Americans in Hollywood movies looking behind the scenes at production correspondence, script treatments, and filmmakers' interviews.
Western movies with prominent Native American characters filmed on national forests and grassland... more Western movies with prominent Native American characters filmed on national forests and grasslands. With rare location photos.
An article published in Indian Country Today Media Network on October 12, 2016 about photos that ... more An article published in Indian Country Today Media Network on October 12, 2016 about photos that have been incorrectly identified as Cochise (and his son Taza). From Dee Brown's 1970 best seller Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee to the most recent novel The Peacemaker (2016), authors have used what they believe to be an image of Cochise which is in fact an image of Juan Rey Abeita of the Isleta Pueblo.
An article on the 25th anniversary of Dances With Wolves that appeared in Indian Country Today Me... more An article on the 25th anniversary of Dances With Wolves that appeared in Indian Country Today Media Network on November 30, 2015.
Appeared in Indian Country Today Media Network, February 19, 2015.
Discusses the contradictio... more Appeared in Indian Country Today Media Network, February 19, 2015.
Discusses the contradictions over the alleged tintype photo of Crazy Horse. Includes visual comparisons to Buffalo Bill's Wild West Indian performers.
Three-part series celebrating the appearance of Lillian St. Cyr for the centenary of "The Squaw M... more Three-part series celebrating the appearance of Lillian St. Cyr for the centenary of "The Squaw Man" (1914). St. Cyr was the first Native actress (Winnebago) to appear in a feature film.
Few in Hollywood knew that James Young Deer, general manager of Pathé Frères West Coast Studio fr... more Few in Hollywood knew that James Young Deer, general manager of Pathé Frères West Coast Studio from 1911 to 1914, was really an imposter. After all, Young Deer had earned a reputation as the first Native American producer and had worked alongside D. W. Griffith, Fred J. Balshofer, and Mack Sennett. For decades, he eluded film historians. But after ten months of poking through dusty archives and faded vital records, the identity of this mysterious filmmaker finally came to light.
Once Upon a Time . . . The Western: A New Frontier in Art and Film, 2019
This book accompanies the exhibitions at the Denver Museum of Art and Montreal Museum of Fine Art... more This book accompanies the exhibitions at the Denver Museum of Art and Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and examines the Western genre and its evolution from the mid-1800s in fine art, film, and popular culture while exploring gender roles and race relations.
Testimony focusses on a few relevant topics that influence today's Native American images in moti... more Testimony focusses on a few relevant topics that influence today's Native American images in motion pictures. For further information on the hearing and other wittnesses' testimonies, go to: http://indian.senate.gov/hearings/hearing.cfm?hearingID=5172
A close study of John Ford's Indian images in his Western movies, from Iron Horse to Cheyenne Aut... more A close study of John Ford's Indian images in his Western movies, from Iron Horse to Cheyenne Autumn. While many believe that Ford's Native American portrayals began as negative (Stagecoach) and developed into more sympathetic treatments (Cheyenne Autumn), I argue that his Indian images have always been diverse (although not necessarily accurate). What never changed was Ford's depiction of Native Americans as a separate culture and identity outside of white society. In this way, Ford differs from Delmer Daves (Broken Arrow, 1950) and other filmmakers of his era whose Westerns advocated an assimilationist point of view. In other words, no "melting pot" for John Ford.
Lily Gladstone could reset the record if she earns an
Oscar nom for Killers of the Flower Moon —... more Lily Gladstone could reset the record if she earns an Oscar nom for Killers of the Flower Moon — and can raise awareness of Indigenous actresses who came before her.
An interview in The Telegraph by Tom Fordy, 24 October 2023
Native Americans have long been ridi... more An interview in The Telegraph by Tom Fordy, 24 October 2023
Native Americans have long been ridiculed on screen, badly treated on set and played by white actors. Is Scorsese's Osage epic any better?
“Killers of the Flower Moon” is both an interesting case study and ultimately a missed opportunit... more “Killers of the Flower Moon” is both an interesting case study and ultimately a missed opportunity. The movie has tried to incorporate some Osage input, but it still is telling this story primarily through the lens of the white main character, Leonardo DiCaprio. But no Native American is credited as being involved in the movie’s screenwriting, production or directing creative processes.
'Tragedies of the Osage Hills,' which dramatized the same horrifying killings at the heart of Mar... more 'Tragedies of the Osage Hills,' which dramatized the same horrifying killings at the heart of Martin Scorsese's new film, premiered in 1926. Its elusive and scandal-plagued director-Hollywood's first Native American filmmaker-spent much of his life concealing his identity.
Explores how the heritage and behind-the-scenes activities of Native American actors and filmmake... more Explores how the heritage and behind-the-scenes activities of Native American actors and filmmakers helped shape their own movie images. Highlights Native actors in lead or supporting roles and how a "pan-Indian heritage" that applies to all tribes in terms of spirituality, historical trauma, and a version of ceremony and storytelling have shaped these performers' movie identities.
A comprehensive 100-year history of Native Americans in Hollywood movies looking behind the scene... more A comprehensive 100-year history of Native Americans in Hollywood movies looking behind the scenes at production correspondence, script treatments, and filmmakers' interviews.
Western movies with prominent Native American characters filmed on national forests and grassland... more Western movies with prominent Native American characters filmed on national forests and grasslands. With rare location photos.
An article published in Indian Country Today Media Network on October 12, 2016 about photos that ... more An article published in Indian Country Today Media Network on October 12, 2016 about photos that have been incorrectly identified as Cochise (and his son Taza). From Dee Brown's 1970 best seller Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee to the most recent novel The Peacemaker (2016), authors have used what they believe to be an image of Cochise which is in fact an image of Juan Rey Abeita of the Isleta Pueblo.
An article on the 25th anniversary of Dances With Wolves that appeared in Indian Country Today Me... more An article on the 25th anniversary of Dances With Wolves that appeared in Indian Country Today Media Network on November 30, 2015.
Appeared in Indian Country Today Media Network, February 19, 2015.
Discusses the contradictio... more Appeared in Indian Country Today Media Network, February 19, 2015.
Discusses the contradictions over the alleged tintype photo of Crazy Horse. Includes visual comparisons to Buffalo Bill's Wild West Indian performers.
Three-part series celebrating the appearance of Lillian St. Cyr for the centenary of "The Squaw M... more Three-part series celebrating the appearance of Lillian St. Cyr for the centenary of "The Squaw Man" (1914). St. Cyr was the first Native actress (Winnebago) to appear in a feature film.
Few in Hollywood knew that James Young Deer, general manager of Pathé Frères West Coast Studio fr... more Few in Hollywood knew that James Young Deer, general manager of Pathé Frères West Coast Studio from 1911 to 1914, was really an imposter. After all, Young Deer had earned a reputation as the first Native American producer and had worked alongside D. W. Griffith, Fred J. Balshofer, and Mack Sennett. For decades, he eluded film historians. But after ten months of poking through dusty archives and faded vital records, the identity of this mysterious filmmaker finally came to light.
Once Upon a Time . . . The Western: A New Frontier in Art and Film, 2019
This book accompanies the exhibitions at the Denver Museum of Art and Montreal Museum of Fine Art... more This book accompanies the exhibitions at the Denver Museum of Art and Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and examines the Western genre and its evolution from the mid-1800s in fine art, film, and popular culture while exploring gender roles and race relations.
Testimony focusses on a few relevant topics that influence today's Native American images in moti... more Testimony focusses on a few relevant topics that influence today's Native American images in motion pictures. For further information on the hearing and other wittnesses' testimonies, go to: http://indian.senate.gov/hearings/hearing.cfm?hearingID=5172
A close study of John Ford's Indian images in his Western movies, from Iron Horse to Cheyenne Aut... more A close study of John Ford's Indian images in his Western movies, from Iron Horse to Cheyenne Autumn. While many believe that Ford's Native American portrayals began as negative (Stagecoach) and developed into more sympathetic treatments (Cheyenne Autumn), I argue that his Indian images have always been diverse (although not necessarily accurate). What never changed was Ford's depiction of Native Americans as a separate culture and identity outside of white society. In this way, Ford differs from Delmer Daves (Broken Arrow, 1950) and other filmmakers of his era whose Westerns advocated an assimilationist point of view. In other words, no "melting pot" for John Ford.
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Papers by Angela Aleiss
Oscar nom for Killers of the Flower Moon — and can raise
awareness of Indigenous actresses who came before her.
Native Americans have long been ridiculed on screen, badly treated on set and played by white actors. Is Scorsese's Osage epic any better?
Available March 2022 ISBN 978-1440871566
See also https://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/30/dances-wolves-25-years-later-has-hollywood-improved-its-portrayal-indians-162610
Discusses the contradictions over the alleged tintype photo of Crazy Horse. Includes visual comparisons to Buffalo Bill's Wild West Indian performers.
Oscar nom for Killers of the Flower Moon — and can raise
awareness of Indigenous actresses who came before her.
Native Americans have long been ridiculed on screen, badly treated on set and played by white actors. Is Scorsese's Osage epic any better?
Available March 2022 ISBN 978-1440871566
See also https://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/30/dances-wolves-25-years-later-has-hollywood-improved-its-portrayal-indians-162610
Discusses the contradictions over the alleged tintype photo of Crazy Horse. Includes visual comparisons to Buffalo Bill's Wild West Indian performers.