HOW DO YOU ACT BLACK?

became the first syndicated radio program in the US. Adapted to TV in 1951, the series used black actors who were instructed to keep their speech patterns close to those of Gosden and Correll.

Historian James N. Gregory writes that the show “became the subject of heated conflict” and the debate over media stereotypes remains an ongoing issue.

The shows included three characters: “Jim Crow” (carefree slave), “Mr. Tambo” (happy musician), and “Zip Coon” (free black man trying to ‘put on airs’ to rise above his position).

Talking Black

Amos ‘n’ Andy began on March 19, 1928 as an American radio sitcom about “a couple of colored characters” and