On January 12, 1926, the two-man comedy series “Sam ‘n’
Henry” debuted on Chicago  radio station WGN. Two years
later, after changing its name to “Amos ‘n’ Andy,” the show
became one of the most popular radio programs in American
history.

Though the creators and the stars of the new radio program,
Freeman Gosden and Charles Carrell, were both white, the
characters they played were two Black men from the Deep
South who moved to Chicago to seek their fortunes.

By that time, white actors performing in dark stage makeup—
or “blackface”—had been a significant tradition in American
theater for over 100 years.

Gosden and Carrell, both vaudeville performers, were doing
a Chicago comedy act in blackface when an employee at the
Chicago Tribune suggested they create a radio show.