West African Nation Lays Claim to Whoopi

Whoopi Goldberg, the new face and voice of the Universal Studios tour, talks with reporters after taking a guest turn as guide aboard one of the studio's trams at Universal City, Calif., in this Tuesday, July 18, 2006 file photo. Last year, the government of Guinea-Bissau learned that Whoopi Goldberg had taken a DNA test showing that her genetic makeup is 90 percent Papel, a tribe indigenous to that country on Africa's western seaboard. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon) (Reed Saxon - AP)

"Regardless," he wrote, "due to the fact that she hosts a live daily radio show from New York and does not fly, it would not be possible for her to travel to West Africa in the foreseeable future."

In Guinea-Bissau, however, the politicians who conceived the letter think the 51-year-old Goldberg is simply taking her time to reply.

"We're waiting for her with much anticipation," said Prime Minister Aristides Gomes, sitting in his leather-clad office, an oasis of comfort in the crumbling capital.

Gomes said he's a fan of "The Color Purple," the critically acclaimed film that secured Goldberg's spot in Hollywood. But he admits few of his countrymen have seen the movie _ or any others featuring the actress.

There are only two television channels in Guinea-Bissau and both broadcast in Portuguese. After the government learned of Goldberg's ancestry, national TV began showing her movies with Portuguese subtitles. "Sister Act" and "Sister Act II" were instant hits in the capital, but in much of the country's brush-covered interior, access to TV is rare.

Her movies never reached the grass-covered huts of Ome, a village 30 miles from Bissau in the country's Papel region, whose people share her DNA.

"I have no idea who that is," said Tiro Ca, 50, carrying a baby on her back as she studied a headshot of the actress.

But as villagers gathered to look at the photograph, a consensus emerged. "This woman must be Papel," said Iye Faustino, 28, pointing to the actress' distinctive cheekbones, not unlike that of the women crowding around the grainy image. The shape of her mouth and her nose, he added, is similar to theirs.

In the PBS special, the actress said upon learning of her exact origins: "Who would I see when I went back, if I was able to go back to the village? Would I recognize anybody? Would they look like my mom?"

Likely she would find people who look not unlike her.

"She's pretty," said Faustino, before handing the picture back. "If she comes here, we will be very happy to see her."