Immigrant Parents: Difference between revisions

Sometimes, a typical (Insert Main Nationality Here) character turns out to have parents who aren't originally from here; they immigrated from some other country, very often [[The Old Country]], and usually still have enough Tropistanian mannerisms to stick out like sore thumbs. They may [[Just a Stupid Accent|talk]] [[Poirot Speak|funny]] (assuming they speak English), dress funny, and perhaps even reveal that their "hip everydude" offspring has a [[Embarrassing First Name|hilariously]] [[Embarrassing Middle Name|foreign]] name. Expect them to be a source of embarrassment when they show up, and there may even be some drama about the conflict between one's cultural heritage and the norms of the society in which he lives.

This is [[Older Than Television]], and has [[Truth in Television|some basis in reality]].

{{examples|Examples }}

* ''[[Maus]]'' is a retelling of the author's immigrant father's experiences.

* In Christina Dodd's ''Darkness Chosen'' series, Konstantine and Zorona Wilder--theWilder—the patriarch and matriarch of the Wilder family--arefamily—are originally from Russia; he the head of a powerful family of shape-shifting warriors, she a Gypsy. They immigrated to Washington state and grew grapes. All of their sons have traditional Russian names (Jasha, Rurik, and Adrik), they eat traditional food, and are very connected to their heritage.

* In ''The Adventures of Shirley Holmes'', Bo's parents are Ukranian immigrants. They speak with a heavy accent and own a fish shop in Redington. They named their son "Francis Boris" after St. Francis—a name he doesn't like all that much, he prefers going by "Bo". His father was also part of a typical Ukranian dance troupe, and he has a cousin that is part of one as well.

* Referenced in episode 1.01 of ''[[Boardwalk Empire]]''

* ''[[A Pup Named Scooby -Doo]]'' had Scooby's parents show up in one episode. Cue accents, hats and the fact that his full name is Scoobert.

* ''[[Rugrats]]'': Deedee has Russian Jewish parents. They even make borscht and talk about the old country.

** During production, voice actress Melanie Chartoff asked which "old country" they were supposed to be from. Answer: "The Jewish one!"

* ''[[The Weekenders]]'' has Pteratishkovna "Tish" Katsufrakis, whose parents have heavy accents, wear unusual clothes, and immigrated from some country with an unpronounceable name .