arts & entertainment
Cuba
continued from page 9
your deal here?” Truthfully, I think
it’s playing real-life people that I’m
attracted to. And the majority of
them have been military men. But
there’s also James Robert “Radio”
Kennedy and some other guys I’ve
played who are real-life people. I
think there’s something about the
heightened responsibility to tell the
truth that attracts me to these roles,
especially when you can have them
on the set to help you do your job.
And now that I have two sons who
are 15 and 17 who love watching
movies, you can count me in when-
ever I have an opportunity to do a movie that gives a histo-
ry lesson about our contributions, especially to the military.
I’m in! I’m involved!
kW: Editor/legist Patricia Turnier asks: How would you
describe your character, Major Emanuelle Stance?
CG: Major Emanuelle Stance is the patriarch on the base.
He’s like the football coach. He’s the person that gives the
men their encouragement before they go back out onto the
field.
kW: Teresa Emerson asks: What
was it like to meet the surviving
Tuskegee Airmen? Did they help
you prepare for your role as Major
Stance?
CG: Every day, literally! They
helped me to prepare to be a man.
And not only were they on the set
every day, but one or two have
attended each of the screenings on
the junket from Dallas to Miami.
And they’re in their 90s! It’s been a
magical and emotional experience
for me every, single time. So, it’s
been great! [Chuckles]
kW: Attorney Bernadette Beekman says: You’ve played
a lot of heroes. Who is your own personal hero?
CG: My mom, to do what she’s done to hold the family
together. She raised me, my brother, Omar, and my sister,
with all of us being homeless and having to live in the back
of a car for a period of time. So, yeah, my mom’s my hero.
If I had to pick one from the screen, it might be U.S. Navy
Master Chief Carl Brashear.
kW: Film student Jamaal Green asks: Cuba, is there any
material or genre out there that you have not yet covered in
your career that you would like to try?
CG: Absolutely! I just heard about this magician named
Black Herman who was a contemporary of Houdini back in
the early 20th Century. Also, I’m an avid hockey fan and
I’ve been playing for about 17 years, and somebody recent-
ly told me that the first organized hockey teams in Canada
were all black. Telling those stories would be cool.
kW: Harriet Pakula Teweles asks: How do you expect
the picture to contribute to the public’s rethinking of the his-
toric role of the Tuskegee airmen?
CG: I hope the picture makes an impact, and I know
George Lucas is doing everything he can to make sure that
happens. And then there’s the documentary Double Victory
I mentioned which is serving as a tangent to the movie. That
will be more of a history lesson than Red Tails which is an
action adventure tale on the scale of Avatar, with 16,000
special effects. It’s something that I think people are going
to be really impressed with, visually.
kW: Harriet also asks: What did you learn about yourself
doing your role in Red Tails?
CG: I learned that not only am I a descendant of slaves,
but that I am also a descendant of royalty, that there are
politicians from the 1800s as well as Tuskegee Airmen in
my lineage.
kW: Rudy Lewis asks: How inspirational can Red Tails
be to those who who are not being educated in the skills
necessary to compete nationally and globally with young
men of their generation? Will Red Tails be relevant to those
50 percent of young black men who drop out of high school
yearly?
CG: I hope so. If some youngsters are inspired to go back
and complete their education based on the achievements of
these warriors, that would be God’s gift.
kW: Patricia Turnier also says: One of my favorite roles
you played in your career is Dr. Ben Carson. What did it
mean to you to represent this great physician who became
the first African-American medical doctor in history to
receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom?
CG: [Shouts] You see! I forgot about that one while we
were just focusing on military men. It’s my passion to play
all these types of characters that help educate how great it is
to be not just African-American, but American.
kW: The Columbus Short question: Are you happy?
CG: Yes, sir. Every day.
kW: The Tasha Smith question: Are you ever afraid?
CG: Yes, from time to time, but God has blessed me with
the ability to be more happy than fearful.
kW: When you look in the mirror, what do you see?
CG: Accomplishment. I’m 44. I made it. [Laughs]
kW: The Ling-Ju Yen question: What is your earliest
childhood memory?
CG: Watching it snow in the Bronx.
kW: If you could have one wish instantly granted, what
would that be for?
CG: Longevity.
kW: What is your favorite dish to cook?
CG: Top Ramen. [Laughs]
kW: The Sanaa Lathan question: What excites you?
CG: Adrenaline.
kW: Thanks again for the time, Cuba, and best of luck
with both Red Tails and Double Victory.
CG: Nice talking with you, Kam.
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Page 8 The Portland Skanner January 18, 2012