The practice of blackface continued in the U.S. for several more decades, steadily declining after the 1930s. 2. In some respects, "The Jazz Singer" is daringly forward-looking. "The Jazz Singer" (1927) "The Jazz Singer" follows Jakie Rabinowitz (Al Jolson), who rejects his Jewish heritage in order to pursue his dreams of being a popular jazz singer -- in blackface. prev next Showbiz vs. Yom Kippur: Bullen and Flagg Jacob J. Goldberg ‘She’s a … These problems, in … The Jazz Singer is famously noted in film history as the first "talkie" released, Jolson's songs were audible during the film while silent intertitles filled the other parts of the film. November 30, 2011. The Jazz Singer's use of blackface is undeniably racist and likely prevented a black actor from being cast in what is now considered an iconic role. Bettmann Getty Images. The blackface jazz singer is neither a jazz singer nor black. Blackface was such a surefire route to popularity that even black performers started wearing it. As the National Museum of African American History … …Fool (1928), the follow-up to Al Jolson’s The Jazz Singer (1927), which was the first feature-length movie with synchronized dialogue and marked the ascendancy of “talkies.” In Bacon’s production, Jolson again regaled audiences with his singing, and the film was enormously popular.… In 1927, he starred in “The Jazz Singer,” the first talking motion picture. Just as Birth offers a regeneration through violence, so the grinning,Jazz Singer, minstrelsy mask kills blacks with kindness. The 1927 film The Jazz Singer featured singer Al Jolson in blackface. Then came “The Jazz Singer,” which took blackface to a wider, national audience. The Jazz Singer also helped make Jolson the highest-paid entertainer of his day. The Civil Rights movement and changing attitudes on race helped relegate blackface to the dustbin of history. But in The Jazz Singer, Jolson uses blackface as nothing more than a theatrical device. The Jazz Singer: Jews, Blackface, America by Michael Feingold. The Jazz Singer does no favor to blacks. Of the more than seventy examples of blackface in early sound film 1927–53 that I have viewed (including the nine blackface appearances Jolson subsequently made), The Jazz Singer is unique in that it is the only film where blackface is central to the narrative development and thematic expression. This story, which matches Jolson's own biography in many respects, tells of a young singer, Jack Robin, forced to decide between applying his talents to the synagogue, where his family had served as cantors for many generations, or to the stage as a popular entertainer. Blackface marries ancient rivals in both movies; black and white marry in neither. But most likely remember it or have come to see it for its heavy use of blackface. 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