And I've always felt there should be a way of appreciating the artistry of black movie actors who had to play subservient characters or buffoons.

Yes. And what's been great about this film for me, personally, is that I have a greater understanding of those giants, people I might have just totally dismissed as Uncle Toms. This film made me realize -- I hope not too late -- that they were great talents and they were doing the best of what was being offered to them at the time.

On one hand, we should have a greater understanding for those people in the past. On the other hand, it made me focus with much more scrutiny on my generation and the stuff we're doing. Because we have choices --a lot more than they had.

In that vein, I was thinking about your credits and wondering what happened to Wesley Snipes, who worked for you twice [in "Mo' Better Blues" and "Jungle Fever"] and was consistently pretty wonderful 10 years ago; now he's become this action figure.

That's what he wanted to be. Even when we were doing "Jungle Fever" and "Mo' Better Blues," Wesley told me himself, he wanted to be the black Schwarzenegger. It's not like someone pressured him to do that. He's doing what he set out to do -- to be a black action hero. But I love Wesley. I want to work with him again.

Because "Bamboozled" is so stylized, some viewers might think every character stands in for a whole social group. Dunwitty, for example, who's so obnoxious, feels he can say whatever he wants about race because he's in a mixed-race marriage.

Yeah, well, I really can't do nothing about that. If someone's gonna think that Spike Lee is saying all white males who are married to black women feel they can use the word "nigger" freely, that's just idiotic to me.

Are you more ambivalent toward characters like those kamikaze rappers, the Mau Mau's? They do react with proper outrage to the minstrel show, even though they're clueless.

They're definitely confused, but they think they're profound. That's the scene where they're having a discussion about "how we're gonna spell the word 'black'" and it's like a discussion of the theory of relativity or something. "B-L-A-K. Yes, let's just drop the C." You know, it's crazy. And then they definitely do the wrong thing when they decide that they can play God and take a life.

In the movie, as Delacroix gets further and further into his minstrel show, he accumulates more and more of these "black collectibles." I've read that you collect them, too.

A lot of that stuff in the film was from my own collection. It's a reminder to me. It's a reminder. In fact, when I was writing the script to "Bamboozled," on my desk in my office I had my Aunt Jemima cookie jar to my left and my Jolly Nigger bank to the right. Every time I see that stuff I think about the depths of the sickness and the hatred behind it.

What's up next?

Got to hit the frontier of television; got to try to get something done in television.

Any definite ideas?

No sitcoms!

But is that what networks still want?

The same with cinema: What do you got? You got another "Scary Movie"? I mean, what was this summer about: "The Klumps," "Big Momma's House" and, in a different way, "The Original Kings of Comedy." Let's keep it funny and light. What I want to do is a dramatic series.

Well, when black groups protested how few African-Americans appeared in last year's new shows, you suddenly saw black characters in series like "The West Wing." Is this something you can build on?

Wait and see. I've got that wait and see attitude.

Do you have any expectations for tonight's third debate you'd like to share? Will you be watching?

What sane, red-blooded American would miss Game Six between the Yankees and Mariners to determine if there's gonna be a subway series?! Miss that for the debate? Sheee ... hell, no! I know who I'm gonna vote for. I'm watchin' the game. If I was in New York, I'd be there.

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