Is it just me, or were there an inordinate amount of movies in the early 80′s where an introverted white guy gains his manhood by becoming a pimp?
And by inordinate, I mean three.
Night Shift (1982)
The Fonz gets his groove back by running an escort service out of a morgue. The film that broke Michael Keaton and Ron Howard (as a major studio director). Featuring the Rod Stewart version of “That’s What Friends Are For” over the closing credits. Also, Shelly Long as a whore.
Risky Business (1983)
The granddaddy of all white-guy-becomes-a-pimp movies. Introduced a fresh faced, Scientology-free Tom Cruise, broadened Bob Seger’s base and gave Curtis ‘Booger’ Hanson the immortal line, “I don’t believe this! I’ve got a trig midterm tomorrow, and I’m being chased by Guido the killer pimp.” Oh, and Guido was played by the legendary Joey Pants.
Doctor Detroit (1983)
The forgotten stepcousin of all white-guy-becomes-a-pimp movies. Nerdy Dan Akroyd grows some balls as his alter ego, the flamboyantly dressed pimp daddy Doctor Detroit who, for some reason has, like, a metal arm or something.
I don’t think this sub-sub-genre would work with a black guy becoming a pimp, if for no other reason than the racist stereotype that there’s nothing unusual (and, therefore, funny) about a black guy becoming a pimp. Hard to say if any other race could pull it off. I think the underlying concept, however, is that you have a downtrodden guy who, for some reason, is only able to assert himself once he gains control of a bevy of prostitutes.
In each case, the prostitutes are eager to have Mr. Bland take over, usually because of dissatisfaction with current management. So you get a nice little savior fantasy that’s equal parts racist and chauvinist. It’s also an interesting variation on the whole white man finding his soul through a minority surrogate subgenre (see The Legend of Bagger Vance for a typically cheesy/offensive/unbelievably dull variation on this).
I think out of an awareness of the racial pitfalls inherent in their premise the films tend to avoid making the “evil” pimp a black guy. The closest you get is the sidekick pimp in Night Shift, played by the late Badja Djola. The Primary Evil Pimp in that one is none other than Richard Belzer.
So was there an epidemic of disenfranchised white guys in the early 80′s whose only recourse was to acquire ho’s? Without a fight club to join, was this the only way to find their manhood? And how did pimpdom become the new symbol of manhood? For a shallow interpretation of what manhood means, it has all the ingredients. Subjugation of women? Check. Wealth at the expense of others? Check. Conspicuous displays of said wealth? Check. Perceived sexual prowess/domination? Check.
And why pimping and not that other enterprise labeled as black in the 80′s, drug-dealing? Because pimping is funnier. When a white guy starts dealing drugs, it’s a crime drama. When he becomes a pimp, it’s a comedy. I’m sure there’s a whole thesis to be written on why.
Dave Chappelle once said that the only book you ever have to read to understand capitalism is Pimp by Iceberg Slim. Given the capitalist-crazy 80′s, I guess I should be surprised there weren’t more movies like this.
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