Yeah, "Snowflake" is racially insensitive, about on a par with calling Willie Best "Sleep'n'Eat" Best. It was a different age but at least racial slurs were less violent in those days.
There's a Snowflake reference in, what is it, SOME MORE OF SAMOA? Or is it THREE MISSING LINKS? When Moe calls the native chieftain "Snowflake" and gets the reply "Me no Snowflake!"
Doesn't he say "Me Kingfisher!" after that? Isnt that something to do with Amos 'n Andy?
BTW, being a Porter was looked upon as a very dignified and important position for a Black person back then. The Porters also helped circulate the Pittsburgh Courier, a premire Black newspaper that is still in publication today.
The Kingfish was the pompous Lodge President on the Amos & Andy Show. After the native says, "Me Kingfisher," Moe and Larry go into a little Amos & Andy routine, doing the voices, which were famous from the late 20's all the way through the early 50's. I can't remember the exact wording, but it's something like:
Native: "Me no Snowflake, me Kingfisher!"
Moe and Larry: "Well, howdy, Kingfish! I'm Amos, and I'm Andy."
Below: Amos & Andy with the Kingfish (lower left). These are the TV show stars— the radio cast was
white, a fact that never ceases to amaze me... how this culture has changed! I'm not going to be a "PC" twerp and sit in judgment of the taste of my grandparents' generation; no, allegations of racism aside, the show happened to be
funny, and it had some excellent scriptwriters as well as actors. It was popular because people wanted a good laugh, not because they liked to sneer at blacks (although I'm sure some did).
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