The All-Negro Hour

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The All-Negro Hour was an American broadcast show that was the first radio program to feature an exclusively African American cast of performers. [1] This sixty-minute variety show was created and hosted by Jack L. Cooper who was known as the first African American radio broadcaster. [2] The All-Negro Hour first premiered on November 3, 1929, on World Stage Battery Company (WSBC), a white-owned radio station in Chicago, and ran until 1935. [1] The program aired on WSBC’s “ethnic appeal” station every Sunday night at 5 p.m. The “ethnic appeal” station was owned by Joseph Silverman, a battery manufacturer, who sold time on WSBC to individuals who were looking to appeal to a specific ethnic group. [3] With the success starting from the program, The All-Negro Hour, Cooper is considered to be the creator of "black appeal", otherwise known as black radio. [3]

Contents

Origin

Early American radio broadcasting consisted of white-run and owned stations catering to audiences that were predominately white. Black representation existed minimally throughout programming and ceased to exist within spaces of ownership and management in radio broadcasting. [1] This was due to the institutionalized racism that continually discouraged any black individuals from being able to invest in radio or purchase air time. [4] In the 1920s, networks began to incorporate sponsored programming on the air for black audiences, but comedy radio shows consisted almost entirely of minstrelsy – the act of white performers stereotyping black culture through a variety of different racist acts. [5]

Jack L. Cooper started his career in a well-loved African American vaudeville before becoming a journalist for black newspapers across the country. [2] Eventually he became an assistant theater editor at the Chicago Defender where he wrote his own weekly column titled “Coop’s Chatter." [2] This position allowed him an opportunity with WCAP in Washington D.C. where he was hired on a radio show as a black writer and performer. [2] The show was produced for white audiences and required Cooper to participate in scriptwriting and acting that specifically stereotyped African American culture through minstrel-style performances as this was considered to be of public interest at the time. [2] It was because of this show that Cooper made the move back to Chicago where he connected with Joseph Silverstein who was the owner of WSBC, an “ethnic appeal” radio. [6] The idea was to create The All-Negro Hour, a radio program specifically for black audiences by black creators and performers. [2] Silverstein was the only station owner that took interest in his show and agreed to air it on November 3, 1929. [2] The show featured exclusively black guests, performers, actors, musicians, and comedians. [6] With the creation of The All-Negro Hour, Cooper set the stage for black radio, referring to himself as one of the "first four Negroes in radio." [7]

Content evolution

Cooper created The All-Negro Hour with the black community in mind as American broadcast radio programming in the 1920s looked to entertain a predominantly white audience. [8] The show consisted of comedy skits, musical numbers, and serial dramas. [1] Featuring many popular guests who participated in live performances of skits or music, The All-Negro Hour gained much success. [9] Although much of the content was comedic, there were segments of religion that Cooper featured such as live broadcasts of Sunday black church services in the Chicago area. [6] In doing this, The All-Negro Hour audience expanded with support from the black clergy and their congregations. [6]

The format of The All-Negro Hour continued to change as other radio shows such as Amos 'n' Andy and Beulah began gaining popularity across the country. [6] Similar to the comedic strips in Amos ‘n’ Andy, Cooper created The All-Negro Hour: Luke and Timber and two other serial comedies in which he wrote, produced, and played a part in. [6] The comedic skits within the serials followed the same characters each week. [2] The content of the show was focused on communicating authentic black comedy through the writing of a black entertainer and through an exclusively black cast which was something that had yet to be seen on American broadcast radio. [6]

In 1932, Cooper expanded The All-Negro Hour to the disc-jockey format by playing prerecorded music on the air in place of live music. [10] Eventually, all live music and skits were replaced by pre-recorded tracks and Cooper became one of the first broadcasters to talk in between them, leaning into that of American DJing by adding his personality and voice into the content. [9]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "The first Black Radio Show (in America) debuts". African American Registry. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Brenc, Willie (20 October 2013). "Jack Leroy Cooper (1888–1970)". BlackPast. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  3. 1 2 george, Nelson. "The Birth of Black Radio". The Washington Post. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  4. ↑ Hilmes, Michele (3 February 1989). Radio Voices: American Broadcasting, 1922-1952 (PDF). University of Minnesota Press. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  5. ↑ Burnium, Dr. Mellonee V. "Golden Age of Black Radio – Part 1: The Early Years". Google Arts & Culture. Indiana University Archives of African American Music and Culture. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Barlow, William (1999). Voice Over: The Making of Black Radio (PDF). Temple University Press. pp. 50–58. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  7. ↑ Koenig, Allen. Broadcasting and Bargaining: Labor Relations in Radio & Television (PDF). The University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 207–220. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  8. ↑ Cantor, Louis (1992). Wheelin' on Beale: How Wdia-Memphis became the nation's first all-black radio station and created the sound that changed America (PDF). Wo: Pharos Books. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  9. 1 2 Bailey, Marilyn (25 February 2001). "Portrait of an artist: Jack L. Cooper". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  10. ↑ Hilmes, Michele; Loviglio, Jason (2002). Radio Reader: Essays in the Cultural History of Radio (PDF). Routledge. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
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