albinism in popular culture albinism in popular culture albinism organisations and others have expressed criticism over the portrayal of individuals with albinism in popular culture, specifically in movies and fictional works, citing the overwhelmingly negative depiction. such depictions have caused apprehension that they could intensify, or even encourage, social bias and discrimination against individuals with albinism. this phenomenon is often referred to as the "evil albino" plot device. the "evil albino" stereotype or stock character is a villain in fiction who is depicted as being albinistic (or displaying physical traits usually associated with albinism, even if the term is not used), with the specific and obvious purpose of distinguishing the villain in question from the heroes by means of appearance. traits of albinism commonly associated with the evil albino stereotype include pale skin, platinum blonde hair, and blue or pink-to-red eyes. notably absent from most depictions is impaired vision, which is often experienced (depending on the type of albinism) by real people with th albinism. the stereotype has become sufficiently well-recognised to attract satire and to be considered a cliché. in response to the "albino gunmen" characters in the da vinci code and the matrix reloaded, albinistic actor dennis hurley wrote, produced, and starred in a short film parody, the albino code, playing up the stereotypes, illustrating a typical example of real-world prejudice, and pointing out that the vision problems associated with albinism would make a successful career as a hitman highly improbable. in the big over easy, author jasper fforde includes an "albino community" protest against albino bias among his fictional news clippings, most of which satirise stock characters and hackneyed plot devices. chicago tribune movie reviewer mark caro says of this character type that it is someone "who looks albino and thus, in movie shorthand, must be vicious". the national organisation for albinism and hypopigmentation (noah) has stated that there were a total of sixty-eight films from 1960 to 2006 featuring an "evil albino". types of albinism include: oculocutaneous albinism. affects the skin, hair, and eyes. around 1 in 70 people have a mutation in an oca gene. there are several subtypes of oca. ocular albinism. affects the eyes, causing blindness. hermansky–pudlak syndrome effects include a bleeding disorder, ibs, and fibrocystic lung conditions. chédiak–higashi syndrome similar to oca but doesn't effect the whole body. griscelli syndrome causes immune and neurological issues. griscelli syndrome usually results in death within the first decade of life. conversely, a number of real people with albinism have risen to fame (see § notable people with albinism, below) especially in popular music and fashion modeling (though, as in the case of the winter brothers, may themselves be the subject of "evil albino" parody). albino animals capture public imagination and wonder as zoo attractions, and even in the wild can attract popular, positive attention (see § notable albino animals, below). history of the "evil albino" stereotype the "evil albino" stereotype may also have its roots in neolithic eastern europe, where some cultures depicted death as a pallid woman with light hair. fear of vampires and other legendary undead with a deathly pallor, especially in european folklore, could also have contributed to albino bias. the phenomenon may also have been influenced by attitudes towards people with albinism in africa or jamaica, where those with that condition are sometimes regarded as cursed or magical (see § folklore, urban legends and myths, below). dermatologist dr. vail reese theorizes that albino bias may be part of a broader hollywood pattern of equating or at least linking skin disorders and appearance problems with villainy. another explanation may be sought in respective ideals of ugliness – most "evil albinos" appear in works of fiction from the west. in fiction from japan, where ideals call for as pale skin as possible, characters with albinism or associated traits are more frequently sympathetic than in american and british fiction. this is not to say that japanese popular culture has not depicted "evil albinos". however, such characters in japanese fiction are often bishōnen or bishōjo whose beautiful appearance gives contrast to their evil character. use of albinistic features to indicate villains in hollywood films appears to have begun in the 1960s, and may be related to the popularity of tanning (and thus a decrease in pale skin being seen as attractive) in this period. one of the oldest perceived literary examples of albino bias was h. g. wells's depiction of the main character in his 1897 science-fiction novel the invisible man, who was able to become invisible using his scientific discoveries only because he already lacked natural pigmentation; aberrant even before his experimentation, he subsequently became completely deranged. albino bias is also alleged in modern times. for example, the 2003 warner bros movie the matrix reloaded featured two sociopathic characters with pale skin and white hair frequently interpreted to be albinos despite studio declarations that they are not. positive depictions of albinos in mass culture are rarer, though one example is the 1995 film powder which depicts an exceptionally gifted albinistic youth and the cruelty he endures from "normal" people because of his differences. in recent years, the national organization for albinism and hypopigmentation (noah) has spoken out against albino bias in the united states. albinistic actor michael c. bowman, of me, myself and irene, has said, "kids all over this country are being affected in a very negative and harmful way because of the sloppiness and laziness of a writer in hollywood." albinism and fiction a number of movies, books and other works have been criticized for albino bias, as they associate the uncommon features of albinistic people (pale skin, white hair, and unpigmented eyes) with danger, terror, or criminality. less frequently they are depicted as the harmless butt of jokes and ridicule, as maladjusted and undersocialized, or as "freaks". they may also actually be portrayed positively, even heroically – a more recent counter-trend. negatively portrayed characters brothers edgar and johnny winter, rock musicians with albinism subject to parody as "evil albinos" in a comic book the most common depiction of people with albinism in fiction is that of the inimical, violent villain, especially the hitman, assassin, sociopath or crime boss. "the family", a cult of plague survivors are the antagonist in the film the omega man (1971). silas, in the book the da vinci code (2003) by dan brown, (played by paul bettany in the 2006 film adaptation), is described as being albinistic. he is a religious fanatic and an assassin who murders several people, although he repents at the end of the book, praying to god for mercy and forgiveness. critics have called the portrayal "damning", "hateful", and "cruelly stereotypical". in defense, author brown has pointed out that "silas's skin color has nothing to do with his violent nature – he is driven to violence by others' cruelty... not by anything inherent in his physiology" and that he believes "the novel's portrayal of silas is a compassionate exploration of how difficult albinism can be – especially for young people – and how cruelly societies can ostracize those of us who look different", going on to say he considers silas to be the most sympathetic character in the story. "the twins" (played by adrian and neil rayment), in the matrix reloaded (2003) are considered by detractors to be the highest-profile case of "evil albino" bias to date, though said by producers to not be intended to be taken as actually albinistic. edgar and johnny autumn, in four 1995 issues of the jonah hex comic book, are mutant villain brothers for the main character to fight. they were thinly-disguised caricatures of real-life albinistic musician brothers, edgar and johnny winter (see images, right), who filed an unsuccessful lawsuit (edgar winter et al. v. dc comics et al.). a spokesperson for johnny winter characterized the depiction as "picking fun at them for being albinos", while a dc comics representative claimed that the characters were an homage. griffin, the main character of the invisible man (1897) by h. g. wells is of questionable sanity and a thief by nature, obsessed with colour and pigmentation due to his albinism. the text of wells's novel implies that griffin's invisibility formula works on him (and a white cat in an early experiment) only because of albinism. (see main article for sources.) francis davey, the vicar of altarnun in daphne du maurier's novel jamaica inn is an albino whose status as a 'freak of nature' is explicitly linked to his rejection of conventional morality and hence his villainous actions including murder. samuel aboah from the x-files episode "teliko". he was a burkinabé immigrant who, lacking a pituitary gland, harvested them from other african or african-american men to restore his skin tone. he is compared unfavourably to a vampire like creature from west african folklore (the eponymous teliko) by a burkinabé ambassador. he is depicted as a merciless killer with a seemingly inhuman ability to squeeze into small spaces (a la previous x-files villain eugene victor tooms) "snow" (played by billy drago), in vamp (1986) is the violently-inclined leader of a street gang composed of albinistic people and others with appearance problems. he meets a violent end. joseph (played by jake busey, son of gary busey; see next entry), in contact (1997) is a religious extremist turned suicide-bomber. mr. joshua (played by gary busey), in lethal weapon (1987) is a seemingly psychopathic hit man. he was specifically referred to as "albino" in the film. bosie (played by charlie hunnam), in cold mountain (2003) is a u.s. civil war-era "sneering albino killer ... seems to have wandered in from a lethal weapon movie" – ty burr, boston globe review. "bad bob" (played by stacy keach) in the life and times of judge roy bean (1972) "dragon" (played by thayer david) in the eiger sanction (1975) is an underworld kingpin also described as being unable to stand light and requiring frequent blood transfusions. "the albino" (played by mel smith), in the princess bride (1987) is an igor-like henchman and torturer, depicted as diseased, with visible sores. "albino" (played by the genuinely albinistic victor varnado), in end of days (1999) is a menacing "servant of satan" who meets a grisly death. "whitey" jackson a.k.a. "the albino" (played by william frankfather), in foul play (1978) is another heavily armed killer, this time in a comedy. "tombstone", in the spider-man comics is an african-american with albinism. he is a mob hitman. (see main article for sources.) "tobias whale" a dc comics african-american albinistic mobster whose villainy induces character jefferson pierce to become the superhero "black lightning". (see main article for sources.) moke (played by dar robinson), in stick (1985) is a ruthless criminal, who likes to shoot people in the back judge holden, in cormac mccarthy's blood meridian (published 1985; isbn 0-394-54482-x). in mccarthy's novel, holden is a wanton mass-murderer. there is no historical evidence to suggest that the non-fictional holden was albinistic. (see main article for further sources.) "albino" (played by warrick grier), in freefall (1994) is a menacing figure who drugs the film's heroine. mark purayah (mark ii) and mark parchezzi (mark iii) ("the albinos"), in hitman: blood money (released 2005) are clones of an unseen mark i, and all are assassins. (see main article for further sources.) otis b. driftwood (played by bill moseley), in house of 1000 corpses (2003). leads a clan of psychopathic backwoods serial killers. despite being played by the same actor, in the sequel the devil's rejects (2005) he has a normal skin tone. (see main article for further sources.) "the albino" in the albino's dancer, a "time hunter" novella; the character is a mobster. (see main article for sources.) "the albino" (played by bill bolender) from the star trek: deep space nine episode "blood oath", who is a dishonorable klingon warrior and murderer. (see main article for further sources.) dr. robert kirkland "kirk" langström, also known as the man-bat, is depicted as being albinistic in the television series the batman (which also depicts him as more villainous than other versions of the character). langström's "man-bat" form is also depicted as being albino.(see main article for further sources.) kobra, an albinistic biker in robert r. mccammon's 1981 novel they thirst who is depicted as sadistic and violent. he eventually becomes a commander of an army of vampires besieging