A few weeks ago, one of the greatest film directors ever, Elia Kazan, died of old age.

Little was said or done on television.

Meanwhile, "Entertainment Tonight" devoted an hour special to the "Diff'rent Strokes" cast - giving the true stories of Gary Coleman, Todd Bridges and Dana Plato.

The three actors who starred in what is arguably one of the worst sitcoms ever and even could be considered racist dogma, were given 60 minutes to talk about their addictions, their attempts to find a life after the show and the eventual suicide of Plato. The show even had an interview with Plato's son, who was probably a little too young to remember much about his mother.

Needless to say, this makes me angry.

I know Kazan was the first to name people in Hollywood to the House UnAmerican Activities Committee in 1952 - a communist witch hunt that ruined many people's lives.

But is that why a director who brought us such classic films as "East of Eden" and "A Streetcar Named Desire" barely deserved a mention in newspapers and television news programs upon death? And if so, is that right? I don't think so.

What Kazan did was cowardly and I know when he received an honorary Oscar much of the film community was angered. But hey, when Roman Polanski won the Oscar last year, people acted as if he had never been convicted of statutory rape with a 13-year-old. I guess acts of cowardice in the 1950s should be remembered, but recent acts of pure brutality should just be swept under the rug.

Or maybe that whole Cold War thing never ended and people such as Chris Rock, who called Kazan a coward while introducing him for the honorary Oscar, are secret leaders of some surviving John Birch Society.

But it was probably a little more likely Rock was too busy trying to come up with another comparison to J-Lo's fat ass to even realize what he did was in poor taste (which is the reason he became famous in the first place).

Let's take a look at Rock's previous films. There was "Doctor Dolittle," "Lethal Weapon 4" and "Beverly Hills Ninja." All of them not worth the $5.99 you'll pay to rent them on DVD.

Hollywood has a selective memory, forgetting the transgressions which don't attack their own and remembering those which do. For example, Johnny Cash died not long ago. I love his music, but the man did burn down an entire national forest. And yes, he paid the price for what he did and when he died the media covered his death with the zeal of a beloved American treasure (which Cash was).

While Cash and Kazan worked in separate genres of fame - one being a singer, the other a film director - both have been regarded as influential artists. Another example of Hollywood picking who to remember and who they deem necessary to forget.

The American Film Institute has two of Kazan's films on their list of 100 greatest films of all time. The movies "On the Waterfront" and "A Streetcar Named Desire" are films which broke ground and produced magnificent performances. But even the AFI didn't seem to acknowledge his death.

Kazan even helped found The Actors' Studio. This school is famous for producing actors such as Marlon Brando and Paul Newman, along with several modern-day greats. But then again, Conrad Bain was never in a Kazan movie.

Maybe I'm just tired of turning on the television and seeing one big trailer park of entertainment - feeding on the basic emotions of people with reality TV shows, game shows where contestants must eat everything but their own excrement and late night dramas which all seem to have the same premise and a different name.

I've been accused of being an elitist before and try not to think of myself as one. I just want to see an artist get his rightful send-off after leaving us those great films that he made.

Shaun Byron is The State News film reporter, reach him at byronsha@msu.edu.