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Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll papers

 Collection
Identifier: 2200

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Scope and Contents

This collection contains papers of Freeman Gosden (1899-1982) and Charles Correll (1890-1972), the creators of radio, television, and film blackface sitcom characters Amos 'n' Andy. The collection includes 50 volumes of scripts for the half-hour Amos 'n' Andy radio program (1943-1955); 3 volumes of scripts for the Sam 'n' Henry radio program (1926-1927); and approximately 15 scrapbooks containing clippings, photographs, publicity, and cartoons related to the Amos 'n' Andy radio show. Also includes synopses of scripts, lists of story titles, correspondence and miscellaneous scripts for other radio shows on which Gosden and Correll appeared, including Bob Hope’s Pepsodent Show (1947) and The Jack Benny Program (1949). In addition, there are plaques, awards, and reviews of the Amos 'n' Andy television show (1951).

Dates

  • Creation: 1926 - 1955

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Advance notice required for access.

Rights Statement for Archival Description

Finding aid description and metadata are licensed under an Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license.

Conditions Governing Use

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Cinematic Arts Library at ctlibarc@usc.edu. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Cinematic Arts Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Biographical / Historical

Freeman Gosden (1899-1982), and Charles Correll (1890-1972) were American radio comedians and actors. They began their career with the 1925 program Life of the Party where they told jokes, sang, and played music. The duo then created the radio program Sam ‘n’ Henry, which is considered by some historians to have been the first situation comedy. In 1928, Gosden and Correll broadcast their radio program

  • Amos 'n' Andy
    • , and followed with a feature film, Check and Double Check, in 1930. The radio program expanded into a television show. Gosden and Correll faced criticism throughout the TV show’s run for their portrayals of black characters through racial stereotypes, which led to its cancellation in 1953, while the radio program continued until 1960.

    Extent

    26.6 Linear Feet (21 boxes)

    Language of Materials

    English

    Additional Description

    Abstract

    This collection contains the papers of Freeman Gosden (1899-1982) and Charles Correll (1890-1972), the creators of radio, television, and film blackface sitcom characters Amos 'n' Andy.

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Gift, November 29, 1962.

    Processing Information

    Collection is unprocessed.

    Related Names

    Subjects

    Finding Aid & Administrative Information

    Title
    Finding Aid for the Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll papers
    Status
    Minimally Processed
    Author
    Sarah Jardini for History Associates Incorporated
    Date
    March 2022
    Description rules
    Describing Archives: A Content Standard
    Language of description
    English
    Script of description
    Latin

    Repository Details

    Repository Details

    Part of the USC Libraries Cinematic Arts Library Repository

    http://libraries.usc.edu/locations/cinematic-arts-library
    Contact:
    Doheny Memorial Library G4
    3550 Trousdale Parkway
    Los Angeles California 90089-0185 United States

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    Finding aid description and metadata are licensed under an Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license.