Spike was born in Atlanta, Georgia on March 20, 1957, and moved to Cobble Hill, Brooklyn for 8 years-from the age of 4 to 12 (1961-1969). As a child Spike Lee had four other siblings- three brothers and a sister- and they lived with their mother and father in the Cobble Hill section of Brooklyn after moving from a pre-civil rights Georgia. Upon their arrival in Cobble Hill, it was a predominantly Italian neighborhood, and due to the fact that Spike Lee and his family were African-Americans, they weren't given a very warm welcome. In fact, they were called "niggers," and were told that they didn't belong there. Regardless of the welcome that they received, once the family settled in to the neighborhood, they weren't seen as a "threat" to anyone and had a decent childhood. They then moved to Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Spike Lee's life in Fort Greene was really what inspired his sister Joie Lee and brother Cinque Lee to give him the idea to make a movie about the time. His siblings wrote the script for Crooklyn with memories of their late childhood in mind. The starring role of Troy, the youngest child, and only girl of Spike's siblings, was based on Joie, and the fights and arguments that they had were included , as well as the street games they played with each other on those hot summer days. Spike Lee's late childhood as well as his siblings really inspired him to film and direct Crooklyn.
|
|
|