Comedy on the edge

All in good/bad taste

Believe it or not, there was a time when the sight of a white actor in blackface practically guaranteed laughs. But "Tropic Thunder," which features Robert Downey Jr. [pictured] as an Australian actor who undergoes a pigment-altering surgery to plausibly portray an African-American soldier, proves that what was socially acceptable years ago can spark controversy today.

Comedy thrives on risk, and Downey is just the latest in a long line of actors who have walked the fine line between just plain wrong and so-wrong-it’s-right. Here’s a look at ten of Downey’s politically incorrect predecessors who pushed the boundaries of good taste and good sense in their pursuit of good, naughty laughs. —Brett Buckalew, Special to Metromix