Amos 'n' Andy: Anatomy of a Controversy

For 1983, this documentary reminds its modern audience about the dawn of television and how the "black" community was showcased to the world. Now, over 30 years later, the opinion on Amos n Andy is still divided. "Amos 'n' Andy" originally aired on CBS from June 1951 to June 1953 and was a huge hit, but was yanked off the air under tremendous pressure from the NAACP who felt it was racist. At the time, and to its credit, Amos n Andy was the first and only depiction of a "black community" on national television. The series cast a all black cast to depict its characters. While the Three Stooges and I Love Lucy only depicted "black" actors as servants, Amos n Andy showed black actors portraying black judges, lawyers, police officers, business owners, home owners, and yet, also moronic individuals who had trouble pronouncing and using proper English. Compared to Archie Bunkers depiction of the English language, many would defend Amos n Andy to the ignorance of Ralph from the Honeymooners or the majority of the cast members of Gilligan's Island.

Amos is among the cast but is also the Narrator to many of the episodes. Having Amos be the storyteller, it is almost a depiction of a Black man's story about his black friends. However, many would still argue that the depiction of 1950's African / Afro / Negro / Black American is still racist.

The controversy still continues. Then again, looking back at the quality of comedy from the early 50's, Amos n Andy still stands strong among today's audience. From the story line, quality of acting and production value, Amos n Andy still gathers laughs from its audience. Still, is the audience laughing for the right reasons.

This documentary posts a worthy question to its audience. The answer is left for you to give.

I enjoyed the manner in which Mr. George Kirby set the whole thing up with some historical information. I further enjoyed the old footage from various shows. It further told a little bit about each actor i.e. Alvin Childress(Amos), Spencer Williams Jr. (Andy), Tim Moore (Kingfish), Ernestine Wade (Sapphire), Amanda Randolph (Mama), Johnny Lee (Calhoun), Nick O'Demus (Lghtnin), Lillian Randolph (Madame Queen).

The important thing that I learned was that these actors were extremly popular & they were the "pioneers" that made it possible for Black actors/actresses to gain future roles of great significance. It's clear in my mind that had it not been for this show & the opportunities it gave to African-American Actors for steady employment really makes me feel good.

Two White Men had a vision & they took it & ran with it. It worked & Gosden and Correll became millionaires. There's no reason why some Black people can't accomplish the same feat for themselves.

Amos 'n' Andy: Anatomy of a Controversy (1986)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Interesting if brief documentary about the history of Amos 'n Andy from their radio show to the controversial 1951 CBS show, which was eventually canceled two years into its run due to the NAACP protest. Redd Foxx, Jesse Jackson and various others are interviewed about the show and we see clips from several episodes and I must say that I found the show pretty innocent and at times downright funny. As the host says, Amos and Andy weren't calling each other the "N" word nor was this show meant to be some sort of documentary. The show was made for laughs and as a comedy it worked. Having gone through some of the race films from this period I've gotten a better understand of why some would be offended but I personally can't see the issue with this show. I think it's a damn shame that the NAACP had this show canceled considering there were no other shows to feature a black cast. This was the first and I guess it paid the price as being the first black show. As it states in the documentary, this show put black people to work in front of and behind the camera so to take these jobs away is just downright stupid IMO. Especially when you consider the highest paid black actor was Al Jolson who was white! This documentary runs just under an hour so they never go into great details but there's an interesting story to be told here and hopefully something better will come along. It's funny to note that this show hasn't been seen since 1966 and remains so untouchable today. In fact, CBS has totally washed their hands of the show that they actually gave bootleggers permission to sell the show without any legal issues.

The fact that Amos 'n' Andy lasted a few years is a testament within itself because most white series only last one season. Also, the fact that George Kirby came out of Terminal Island Federal Penitentiary, with no one knowing why he went to prison, and took on such a controversial subject matter like "Amos n Andy," when he came out of the penitentiary, is a testament to his courage. None of George Kirby's friends went to visit him at Terminal Island Federal Penitentiary because Redd Foxx said he had a good wife and couldn't understand how George Kirby could go to the penitentiary and not even make any money. It was the same penitentiary that Mickey Cohen went to but Mickey Cohen had made money off of heroin. Carol Speed ran into George Kirby on Hollywood and Vine, in Hollywood, right after he came home and she had dinner with him and his wife and he talked about how he wanted to make people truly understand how important the Amos 'n' Andy Series was to comedy and how he expected Redd Foxx to contribute with his views. Then George Kirby got busy with making Amos 'n' Andy: An Anatomy of A Controversy come into fruition. George Kirby's wife had saved his jewelry and suits so he pulled on his diamonds and became the George Kirby from Chicago that we all loved. The question now is why isn't Amos 'n' Andy: An Anatomy of A Controversy not on DVD. It looks like the same racist reasons why a lot of black films and documentaries are not on DVD.

I'm surprised there has not been any other documentary about a television show that I see today as being years ahead of its time. This program tells you only the basics of the history of the legendary television show, but it is enough to make you think.

The show was produced in 1986, involving some of the then-surviving cast. Seeing this show today as I did in a recent rerun on the TRIO network, those voices still speak to us. There are enough clips from the original show to remind you of a time when life was so innocent, when all we can do is just watch a show and laugh without looking at the negative issues that surround this show even to this very day.

This program contains a condensed version of a selected series episode where Kingfish buys what turns out to be a movie lot. Even in its condensed form, this episode is just a little reminder of classic television at its best...this, of course, was before "I Love Lucy" went on the air and became a success of its own.

The narrator, George Kirby, is right...we should see "Amos N' Andy" for what it is...a show that paved the way for the African-American television shows that have followed since the show's original cancellation. Controversy may still keep reruns of the "Amos N' Andy" show off the air, but if everyone in the world followed Mr. Kirby's example, perhaps CBS will change their minds and release it officially on video.

So, to sum it all up, 'guys, what's the problem? Why make a mountain out of a little molehill?' That mountain has grown for almost four decades...let's appreciate "Amos N' Andy" in a positive light.

I highly recommend you see this show the next time it's telecast and judge for yourself.