Investigations

Amos n' Andy Record

The Case:

A man in Lakeland, Florida has an aluminum record he purchased at a flea market with the words "Amos & Andy" hand-written on its label.

At the peak of Amos 'n' Andy's success, 40 million listeners - a third of America - tuned in six nights a week, making it the longest-running and most popular radio program in broadcast history. Its creators, Correll and Gosden, were white men who made a career of impersonating blacks to comic effect.

Is this record an early recording of the old-time radio series?

History Detectives uncovers a complex portrait of 1930's race relations and the emerging power of the mass media in American popular culture.

 


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Aired:
Season 5, Episode 1

Detective:
Tukufu Zuberi Location:
New York City

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