Miss Representin': A Historical Analysis of the Images of African American Women in Situation Comedies

Throughout history, the media has played an important role in the lives of the American public. Many people form ideas and opinions based on the messages they receive from the American media. Throughout history, there have been concerns regarding the media and its representations of the "real world." Over the past 50 years, African American characters have gone from nonexistent, to walk-ons, to the co-starring and starring roles we see today. Since television became popular in the middle of the 20th century, African Americans have been plagued by recurring stereotypes and problematic characterizations. African American women can be seen in every genre of the media. However, in the media and especially on television, African American women are often misrepresented. The largest numbers of African American women on television are featured on situation comedies. Throughout television history, African American female characters in situation comedies have reflected biased, stereotypical images and controversial characters.

Stereotypes have always been prevalent in film and television. A stereotype is defined as an idea or character that is standardized in a conventional form without individuality. Throughout the history of television, there have been many stereotypes perpetuated in the media about African American women. One of the oldest and most common stereotypical images is that of the Matriarch, also referred to as Mammy. This stereotype is the evolution of the female slave chosen to live in the "big house" with the master and his family. Mammy was assigned the task of performing the domestic duties such as cleaning, cooking and caring for the children. Through the years, Mammy became an accepted symbol of the African American woman in America. By donning a wide grin and being content with her duties as a servant, Mammy exhibited a benevolent master/slave relationship that was often used as justification for the evils of slavery. If "Mammy" was always happy and smiling, then slavery could not be as bad as everyone thought, right?
Mammy is usually depicted as a large woman with exaggerated breasts and buttocks and dark skin. The following characteristics that have become synonymous with "Mammy":
…submissive towards her owner (before slavery) or her employer (following emancipation)…aggressiveness in her relations with other African Americans, particularly males….physical features that in Western culture are associated with masculinity….and satisfaction and contentment with her station on life wherein she is consigned to perform domestic duties.

Mammy is the antithesis of the American standard of beauty. She is not supposed to evoke any type of sexual desire or assert any sexual advances. The less attractive she is, the less of a threat she is to the mistress of the house.
When introduced to the American public through the media, Mammy was usually a nurturer, comforter or caregiver. She usually worked for a family as a maid or nanny. Later mammy characters were portrayed as single mothers struggling to maintain their household. Her single status was usually attributed to her abandonment by the male figure in her life. This abandonment is usually caused by death, desertion, or the failure to commit.

The Sapphire image combined the independence of mammy with an argumentative spirit of rebellion. Sapphire is characterized by her sassiness and opinionated nature. Although mammy and Sapphire were alike in some aspects, they differ in one major way. Sapphire's existence is contingent upon her association with an African American man, usually her husband or boyfriend. Through a barrage of insults and verbal abuse, Sapphire attacks her male counterpart in and exaggerated and expressive manner i.e. finger waving with hand on hip. The attack, although comedic, is meant to break the man down, and leave him emasculated. However, the man is not usually entirely innocent in the encounter. The tongue-lashing is usually prompted by the male character's act of trickery or cunning gone wrong. In light of Sapphire, the man appears stupid and unworthy. Sapphire is primarily a comedic figure that is not to be taken seriously.

Whereas Mammy and Sapphire represented "less than picturesque images of black femininity," the last stereotype symbolized black sexuality. Known as the, jezebel or loose woman, this character is usually characterized as promiscuous, a bad girl or a vamp. She is usually a fair-skinned woman with European characteristics and features. Unlike mammy, she is acceptable under the American standards of beauty. The jezebel is generally a shapely seductress who uses her sexuality to get her way. The stereotype reinforces the myth of the hyper-sexuality of African American women. The "tragic mulatto" also fits into this characterization. Typically featured in film, the "tragic mulatto" is a woman who has the ability to pass for white and chooses to do so. She falls in love with a white man and becomes entangled in a lie about her ethnicity. She is unable to marry the man because she fears that her children will exhibit ethnic features and her secret will be revealed.

Before television, African American women appeared in film as mammies, harlots and tragic mulattos. Actresses such as Hattie McDaniels, Louise Beavers, Thelma "Butterfly" Mc Queen and Fredi Washington rose to fame playing limited, supportive roles in feature films. Perhaps the most notable mammy was featured in Gone with the Wind, a film for which McDaniel won an Academy Award. When Imitation of Life was released in 1934, Beavers was given equal billing; however, she still played the part of a servant. Despite mammy's big screen popularity, she, nor any other African American female, made it to the small screen until 1950 with premiere of "The Beulah Show."

In the 1950's television was still a relatively new genre. Radio and film were still major sources of entertainment for the American public. With the advent of television, it was not long before the situation comedy became a mainstay on the airways. Early television ignored social issues and focused on happy people and their trite problems. As a genre, the situation comedy "provides a simple and reassuring problem/solution formula." One of the most basic genres of television, the situation comedy is the most distant from reality. Historically, African American women have held few lead roles in television comedy. A male-dominated genre, the African American woman was a double minority with few opportunities to reach mainstream America. However, she got her first opportunity to reach the masses when "The Beulah Show" made its television debut.

The character of Beulah originated in 1939 on the NBC radio program "Homeward Unincorporated." In 1945, the character was given her own show on CBS radio. "Beulah" was one of the first lead black female characters on radio. However, in the beginning, Beulah was neither black nor female. The character was portrayed by a white actor whose over dramaticized dialect made Beulah a throwback to the minstrel characters in early cinema. It was not until 1947 that an African American woman stepped into the role of Beulah. Big screen legend, Hattie McDaniel took over the role and revived the life of the black servant. In 1950, "The Beulah Show" made the transition from radio to television and Ethel Waters became the first of three actresses to play the title role. The television version began airing while McDaniels continued to do the radio version.

"The Beulah Show" focused on an African American woman who worked as a maid for a middle class white family. Mr. and Mrs. Henderson depended on Beulah to maintain the domestic issues in the home and to provide tender loving care to their young son, Donnie. In the media, the black maid came to symbolize a "restored balance and normalcy to the household." Beulah has been described as "a warm and 'winning,' hefty, full figured, and good hearted 'colored' gal with a deep hearty laugh'" Much of Beulah's time was spent in the kitchen. Each show began with some catchy phrase from Beulah, followed by her trademark laugh. The duration of the show usually consisted of some problem or misunderstanding, usually initiated by Beulah, that only she could fix or resolve. Beulah was devoted to the Hendersons and they loved her too. Beulah epitomized the role of mammy in American culture. She was a large woman, who was kind, caring and nurturing to her white family. Beulah was the modern day mammy and she enjoyed her limited existence.

Despite her over-zealous attachment to the Henderson family, Beulah did have ties to her own community. Her best friend Oriole, originally played by Butterfly McQueen, worked for another family in the neighborhood. A comedic sidekick, Oriole was portrayed as a "simple," as referred to by Beulah. She usually visited Beulah in the kitchen and looked to her for guidance and advice. In addition to her best friend, Beulah also had a boyfriend that tied her to the black community. Bill ran his own fix-it shop in town. Despite his portrayal as lazy and trifling, unlike Beulah, Bill had his own business and was seemingly more established than Beulah.

The relationship between Beulah and Bill was completely nonsexual and usually the source of comedy rather than romance. Bill usually visited while Beulah was cooking or working in the kitchen. Although not as dimwitted as Oriole, Bill is portrayed as being less intelligent that Beulah. In one episode when Mr. Henderson informs Beulah that he wants Bill to fix some things around the house for him, she replies "Telling Bill one thing at a time is the best method. Too much stuff confuses him." Although not as severe as Sapphire, Beulah's playful banter with Bill was a common occurrence on the series.

After the first season of Beulah, Waters grew tired of the role and decided to leave the show. The show was revamped and Hattie McDaniel was recast in the role she made famous on the radio. However, poor health forced her to bow out after only six episodes. Louise Beavers then became the third actress to play the role. Ernest Whitman and Ruby Dandridge also recast the roles of Bill and Oriole. Beavers also grew tired of the role and in 1953 "The Beulah Show" went off the air.

During the second season of "The Beulah Show," another radio hit made its way to the television screen. "Amos 'n' Andy" chronicled two African American men who migrated from the south to the north. Although the show focused primarily on the antics of Amos, Andy and their friend Kingfish, Kingfishes girlfriend, Sapphire also played a major role on the sitcom. Actress Ernestine Wade brought Sapphire to the attention of mainstream America. She set the standard for stereotype that would classify the African American woman in television. On "Amos 'N' Andy," Sapphire was a talkative and sassy woman known for her harsh criticism of her husband Kingfish. She condemned everything from his hair-brained schemes to his friends, especially Andy. Sapphire was "unable to breathe without raising her voice" With the help of her mother, Sapphire succeeds at rendering Kingfish ineffective as a man.

Although a fan favorite, "Amos 'N' Andy" met major controversy the minute it hit the airwaves. Led by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the show was criticized for its portrayal of African Americans. At the time, "The Beulah Show" and "Amos 'N' Andy" were the only two shows on television that featured African American characters. The NAACP thought that the American public might take these images and accept them as truth. At the NAACP National Convention in 1951, the organization denounced the series stating, in addition to other grievances "Negro women are shown as cackling, screaming shrews, in big-mouth close-ups, using street slang, just short of vulgarity." The controversy continued for two years until finally in 1953 CBS pulled the show from its schedule. Despite the success of "The Beulah Show" and "Amos 'N' Andy, it would be fifteen years before another African American female was featured in a starring role on network sitcom.

In the 1960s and 70s Hollywood discovered the marketability of the "Black Power" movement and capitalized on the opportunity to join the rest of America. More and more films were released targeting African American audiences. African American women were not excluded from "blaxploitation" that dominated the late 60s and early 70s. Cleopatra Jones, Coffy, and Foxy Brown all depicted angry black women that epitomized the Black nationalists and women's movement. Despite Hollywood's depictions of a political black world, television depicted African Americans as assimilated, functioning members of American society.

In 1968, Diahann Carroll became the star of her own 30-minute comedy on NBC. "Julia" was the first series, since "The Beulah Show", to center on an African American woman. On the show, Carroll played Julia Baker, a single mother whose husband has been killed in the Vietnam War. When the show began, Julia and her young son Corey have moved to California to start a new life. The character of Julia was unlike any other that had been featured on network television. She was the first black, non-domestic female character on television. She was the polar opposite of the African American women previously depicted on television. She rejected everything that Beulah and Sapphire represented before her. For the first time in history, an African American was shown as a self-sufficient and independent woman. Julia was a middle class, working, woman who lived in an integrated society. In addiction to her social status, Julia was intelligent and beautiful, two characteristics that escaped the previous African American women on television.

Despite the success of "Julia", it was also met with controversy. One of the biggest critics of the show was Robert
Shayon, a reviewer for Saturday Review. On at least three separate occasions during the first season, Shayon expressed his concerns about the show in his column. His first review appeared on April 20, 1968, months before the show actually aired. He stated that Julia was "a far cry from the bitter realities of Negro life in the urban ghetto." Many critics believed that the character and the show did not accurately portray the life of an African American woman living in the 1960's America. The show was also criticized for not reflecting the social issues that plagued America at the time. The America of the 1960's was plagued with racial hostilities and civil unrest. At the height of the civil rights movement, African Americans were embracing their African roots and celebrating "Black Power" while responding to James Brown's declaration "Say it loud, I'm Black and I'm proud." However, in Julia's world, these issues did not exist. She never alluded to the civil unrest in America

Julia did encounter racism, however, it was not a significant part of her life and. When things did arise, Julia never got angry or overly emotional. She usually took the high road and never confronted the issues head on. Some critics dubbed her as a "white Negro" because she was completely assimilated into the mainstream culture. In the pilot episode, Julia is interviewing for a job at Aerospace Industries. The interviewer, Mr. Colton seems shocked that Julia is black. He asks her a few questions then leaves the room. Julia eventually speaks with the head of the company over the telephone and has better success. When she tells him that she is black he asks, "Have you always been Negro or are you just trying to be fashionable?" This is how the series dealt with race and racism. It was acknowledged, but never confronted head on.

Shayon's other major concern was that Julia's son Corey had no male role model to look up to. He believed that the presence of a male figure would "adjust his self-image upward." The fact that Julia was a single mother perpetuated the myth in black television that Black families did not exist. Julia did not have any ties to the African American community. She simply lives her life with Corey and is oblivious to the outside world. Eventually, Diana Sands was cast in several episodes as Julia's cousin. Julia was also given a mother, an old friend and several boyfriends throughout the series. The battle between Shayon and the show continued during the three seasons that Julia was on the air. Carroll eventually grew tired of the role and the show and opted not to renew her contract for a fourth season and Julia went off the air in May of 1971. Despite the controversy associated with Beulah, Sapphire and Julia, the images of African American women on television did not change; they were only modified.

With the end of "Julia," America saw the end of the assimilated black woman. The 1970s ushered on a wave of shows that featured outspoken African American female characters, fully aware their blackness and the world going on around them. Working families were shifting to the forefront of many series; however, the shows limited the African American women primarily to the roles of mammy and Sapphire. Under the production of television mogul Norman Lear, African Americans were a staple on the television schedule. Television executives tried to show various aspects of African American life. However, as more and more shows featuring African Americans appeared, more and more stereotypical characters were introduced to the American public. Lear tried to justify the use of these images by involving social issues into the plots of some of their shows, namely "Good Times"

"Good Times" was a spin-off of the highly rated, "Maude" series, which was a spin-off of "All in the Family". On "Maude", Ester Rolle played the role of "Florida Evans", a maid for the Findlay
family. In 1974, Florida was given her own show and "Good Times" hit the airwaves in the fall. Unlike other mammies, Florida had a family of her own, which included a husband and three children. Originally, the shows creators wanted to make Florida a single mother struggling to make ends meet. However, Rolle refused to do the show unless a father was added to the series and the family unit remained intact. Her demands were met and Amos was written in to the series as Florida's husband James. This was the first time in history that a prime time sitcom centered on an African American family.
Despite Rolle's best efforts to make "Good Times" an accurate portrayal of black Life, it too fell victim to the stereotypical images that constantly plagued situation comedies. In the tradition of all the mammies that preceded her, Florida made a living by providing care for a white family. Although not to the extent of those that came before her, Florida fell into the trap of the ultimate nurturer. She was a self-sacrificing, pacifist who stood by her husband. She often suppressed her own hopes and dreams to stand by her man. In the pilot episode, her husband is out of work and she tries to reassure him: "James, there is dignity in all work! It's not the kind of work you do that gives you dignity; it's how good you do it. When I was a maid, I was the best damn maid there was!" Florida is proud of her work as a maid and is not ashamed to speak her mind about it.

The two other female characters on the show were Florida's daughter Thelma, played by BerNadette Stanis and her next-door neighbor and best friend Willona, played by Ja'net DuBois. Both Thelma and Willona were not as developed as Florida's character. Thelma's was most often seen engaged in some type of altercation, one usually fraught with degrading insults and ridicule, with her brother JJ. Thelma was used only to react to JJ and never really initiated any action. Willona was usually entering the Evans home with a quick one-liner geared towards JJ or the landlord. She was portrayed as sexy, yet nurturing. In the last season, her character was given a family when she adopted an orphan named Penny, played by a young Janet Jackson. Her single parent adoption was an example of the cutting edge issues addressed by the series. Neither character ever developed past being a supporting character in the world of JJ.

After the first season, it was evident that Florida's son "JJ" was the star of the show. With his infectious catch phrase and comedic one-liners, the shows focus shifted from the family to the son. This prompted the departure of both Amos and Rolle. Despite the few criticisms of the show, most directed towards the JJ character, the show was applauded for its depiction of real life situations and relationships. The show reflected a part of African American life that had not previously been shown. Throughout the five seasons of the show, it dealt with many social issues including child abuse and poverty.

"The Jeffersons" was another "All in the Family" spin-off that featured an African American family. Unlike the Evans family, the Jeffersons were a wealthy couple who moved from a predominately black neighborhood to the east, more affluent side of New York City. The move was prompted by the overwhelming success of George Jefferson, a black man who owned a chain of dry cleaning business. The cast featured George, his wife Louise, his maid Florence and his neighbors Tom and Helen Willis, an interracial couple. The cast also featured and English neighbor and a nosey doorman. In the beginning, the show established itself a pure entertainment. The show did not seek to address and social issues, its focus was pure escapism.

The women on the show played significant, however, supporting roles to the character of George. It was established early on that Louise was George's lifeline. She portrayed a major variant of the mammy stereotype, known as the caregiver. The caregiver feels the need to protect those around her and although she is not necessarily a mother, she takes on the role of one. She supported and nurtured him as he dealt with the ups and downs of adjusting to his new life. She was a foil to George's irrational and often times politically incorrect behavior.

Marla Gibbs played the role of "Florence," the Jefferson's maid. Florence, although a domestic, exhibited characteristics similar to those of Sapphire. She and George did not get along and took every opportunity to make this fact apparent. Florence was sarcastic and quick-witted, but above all she was practical. In the first episode that established the characters and situation of the show, Florence proclaimed: "How come we overcame and nobody told me?" Florence never took herself or her job too seriously. She was the slice of reality throughout the series. She kept the Jeffersons grounded and never allowed them to get swept away by their success and money. Florence, like the calculating domestics that preceded her, always seemed one step ahead of George.

Throughout the 1980's, a new crop of African American female images emerged, however, many were simply reconfigured examples of previous depictions. In addition to Florida and Louise, the 1980s saw mammy once again resurrected on "Gimme a Break" starring Nell Carter. In some ways a more modernized mammy, "Gimme a Break" depicted mammy's return to her white family. The series focused on Nell Harper, an African American woman who lives with a white, widowed police officer and his tree daughters. Like Beulah, Nell was content with her role as mammy. She put her life on the back burner and catered to the lives of the chief and his daughters. Also like Beulah, Nell fell short of the American standard of beauty.

The show focused primarily on issues of mainstream America. Nell's race was not a factor and her African American culture was rarely addressed. Her only connection to the black community came from her best friend, Addie. Nevertheless, in the tradition of African American female representation, Nell often insulted and criticized her one connection to her heritage. Like Beulah and Oriole of the 1950's, Nell and Addie's relationship was one where mammy had the control.
The loose woman made it to the small screen on the show "227." Starring "Jeffersons" alum Marla Gibbs, the show also featured the character Sandra, convincingly portrayed by actress Jackee' Harry. Sandra was almost always searching for a man. However, she possessed a lovable quality that endeared her to the other characters. She had an undeniable sex appeal and often used it to get what she wanted. Sandra's sex appeal was something that had not been seen since the days of "Julia." Although Sandra's character was sometimes overdramatic zed and somewhat of a parody, she laid the foundation for future African American comedic sex symbols.

A year before "The Jeffersons" went of the air; a cultural phenomenon was born when "The Cosby Show" premiered in September of 1984. "The Cosby Show" introduced the ideal American family that just happened to be black. For the first time on television, viewers saw an upper-middleclass family with two parents and children who were able to connect to their cultural roots. The Huxtable family consisted of father, Heathcliff, mother Claire, daughters, Sondra, Denise, Vanessa, Rudy and son Theo. Throughout the duration of the show, it focused on the family, never singling out one single member and emphasized family values such as honesty, integrity and hard work.

Claire Huxtable, played by Phylicia Rashad was the mother of the family. A successful lawyer, Claire was rarely seen actually working. However she was a career woman who also managed to attend to the needs of her family. Clair was not the typical matriarch previously seen in situation comedy. She was intelligent, witty independent. She spoke her mind to her husband, but was never emasculating or critical. The relationship between Cliff and Claire is also important to the evolution of the images portrayed. The characters displayed signs of affection and were portrayed as being a sexual couple. Claire was a virtual superwoman appearing to have it all: a career, a family and a loving husband.

The success of "The Cosby Show" led to a spin-off of the series. "A Different World" featured Denise, the second oldest child of the Huxtable clan. She show followed Denise to Hillman College and chronicled the lives of the young adult and her peers. After the second season, Lisa Bonet, who played Denise, left the show and actress Jasmine Guy assumed the lead role as Southern belle Whitley Gilbert. Whitley was completely unlike any character before her. A black aristocrat, Whitley took pride in her affluent lineage and socialite status. Other female characters included Kim, Whitley's roommate, a pre-med student and Fredi, a hippy-type who also stayed that stayed in the fictitious Gilbert Hall.

"A Different World" focused on varied cultural issues that separated African American women from the rest of the world. Episodes dealt with everything from sororities and stepping to the AIDS epidemic. One episode dealt with the stereotype of Mammy and the impact that the image had on Kim, a dark skinned African American woman.

Six years into the new millennium, new and innovative images of African American women are being portrayed. On situation comedies African American women are being given more freedom in the roles portrayed. Most notably, "Girlfriends" exhibits diversified, professional women who are attractive and sexual. The show has shown a new dimension to the relationships between African American women. They exhibit genuine friendship, complete with disagreements and misunderstandings. However, there are still a proportion of African American women represented in supporting, one-dimensional capacities. And with the decline of the sitcom genre in general, only time will tell if the situation comedy will fully evolve with the times and display images that truly represent the lives of African American women in America.

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