Gene Wilder in Blackface 1976

, blackface, racism, minstrelshow Gene Wilder dons Blackface in Silver Streak (1976). Richard Prior and Nick Stewart also appear. Using black makeup as a disguise is as old as movies, but by the late 1970s it was very rare, even when it s being justified by black actors, as in this case. Wilder s blackface routine includes some ghetto stereotypes that would be right at home in a minstrel show. The audience for this movie loved it, well most of them anyway. Read about the history of blackface and minstrel shows at: This clip is posted as Fair use for Educational purposes