Coonskin

After directing the successful adult animated films Fritz The Cat and Heavy Traffic, Ralph Bakshi decided to push the envelope further with the controversial classic Coonskin. Bakshi opens and closes Coonskin with a live-action tale starring Scatman Crothers, “Miami Vice’s ” Philip Michael Thomas, soul legend Barry White, and actor Charles Gordone. In between is an animated urban film featuring Brother Bear (voiced by Thomas), Brother Fox (voiced by Gordone), and Brother Rabbit (voiced by White). The three characters enter a white-dominated ghetto environment where one becomes a crime overlord, the second sells the first out to the mafia and the third establishes himself as a media-exploited sports icon. Laced with profane ghetto dialogue and street slang, Coonskin is often praised for its groundbreaking approach to important social issues.