# List of entertainers who performed in blackface

This is a list of entertainers known to have performed in blackface makeup, whether in a minstrel show, as satire or historical depiction of such roles, or in a portrayal of a character using makeup as a racial disguise, for whatever reason.

## A–C

* Roy Acuff, country music singer, performed in blackface in 1930s-40s traveling medicine shows
* Scarlet Adams
* Anne of Denmark, Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland, in The Masque of Blackness
* Ant and Dec, in old Saturday Night Takeaway sketches
* Fred Armisen, impersonating U.S. President Barack Obama on Saturday Night Live in 2008 and 2009
* Clarence Ashley, 1910s-1940s singer and blackface comedian in traveling medicine shows
* Fred Astaire, in Swing Time (1936) and in Easter Parade (1948)
* Gene Autry
* Dan Aykroyd, in Trading Places (1983)
* David Baddiel, while portraying Jason Lee on a 1995 episode of Fantasy Football League
* Rita Baga
* Marcus "Buff" Bagwell, while performing for World Championship Wrestling
* Fay Bainter, as Topsy in a 1933 production of Uncle Tom's Cabin
* Milt G. Barlow, 19th-century American minstrel
* Ethel Barrymore, in the 1930 play Scarlet Sister Mary
* Billy Barty, in Roman Scandals (1933) and Rabbit Test (1978)
* Jack Black, in Be Kind Rewind (2008)
* Sergei Bondarchuk, in Othello (1956)
* John Boulter, lead singer of the long-running Black and White Minstrel Show on the BBC$^{:248}$
* Zach Braff, in the Scrubs episodes "My Friend the Doctor" and "My Chopped Liver"
* Frank Brower, 1840s-1860s minstrel performer
* David Byrne, in a promotional video for Stop Making Sense (1984)
* George Burns
* Butterbeans and Susie
* John Byner, in season 3, episode 1 of Soap
* Eddie Cantor, 1912-1927 performances in vaudeville and Ziegfeld Follies
* Luke Carroll, an Aboriginal Australian actor, wore blackface in a dream sequence featured in the movie Stone Bros.
* Judy Carne, in a 1969 episode of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
* CatboyKami, Online alias of Tor Gustafsson Brookes. Far-right troll who performs in blackface and an afro wig while brandishing a gun
* Graham Chapman
* Dave Chappelle, in a 2006 episode of Chappelle's Show
* George Christy, born George Harrington but became a star with Christy's Minstrels in the 1840s$^{:8}$
* Charles Correll
* Bing Crosby, in Dream House (1932), Mississippi (1935), Road to Singapore (1940), Holiday Inn (1942), Dixie (1943), and Here Come the Waves (1944)
* Billy Crystal, in the "Negro Leagues" skit on Saturday Night Live in 1984 and whenever impersonating Sammy Davis Jr., including at the 84th Academy Awards.

## D–G

* Roger Daltrey in the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode "Living Legend".
* Ted Danson, at a 1993 Friars Club roast of his then-girlfriend Whoopi Goldberg
* Tommy Davidson in the 2000 film Bamboozled
* Marion Davies in Going Hollywood (1933)
* Sammy Davis, Jr. in Ocean's Eleven (1960)
* Shane Dawson, YouTuber, actor, and comedian
* Neil Diamond in The Jazz Singer
* Thomas Dilward, 1850s-1870s dwarf minstrel performer
* George Washington Dixon, 1820s-1830s stage performer
* Lew Dockstader, 1870s-1900s minstrel performer
* Roma Downey in an episode of the television series Touched By An Angel entitled “Black Like Monica”, the character is turned black to better empathize with a community dealing with racial tensions.
* Robert Downey Jr. in the 2008 film Tropic Thunder
* Drake, on the cover of Pusha-T's single "The Story of Adidon"
* Jimmy Durante
* Issi Dye, singer and Al Jolson impersonator
* Harry Enfield, impersonating Nelson Mandela in the television show Harry & Paul.
* The Ethiopian Serenaders were a Boston troupe which performed at the White House in 1844 and then toured Britain.
* Jimmy Fallon, impersonating Chris Rock on Saturday Night Live
* Edwin Forrest
* Dai Francis, lead singer of the long-running Black and White Minstrel Show on the BBC
* Leigh Francis
* The Frogs in the artwork for their album Racially Yours and in their stage attire for the accompanying tour.
* Judy Garland in Babes in Arms
* George Givot, in the play The Constant Sinner (1931)
* Freeman Gosden
* Billy Gould (1869-1950)
* Savion Glover in the 2000 film Bamboozled

## H–L

* Bill Hader, while impresonating Al Pacino acting as Dr. Conrad Murray in a biopic on a skit for Saturday Night Live
* Sam Hague
* Masatoshi Hamada, dressed in blackface as Eddie Murphy from the film Beverly Hills Cop for the 2017 New Year's Eve special of Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai ya Arahende!!
* Jon Hamm on an episode of 30 Rock
* Goldie Hawn, in a 1969 episode of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
* Bob Height
* Al Herman
* Charles Hicks
* Ernest Hogan
* C. Thomas Howell in the 1986 movie Soul Man
* William A. Huntley Starting 1860. Moved to whiteface in mid-1880s.
* Dick Powell performed in blackface while singing Al Jolson's "Sonny Boy" in Hard to Get (1938)
* George Jessel
* Al Jolson
* Louis Jordan
* Buster Keaton, in vaudeville in the short film Neighbors (1920), possibly with satiric intent: he alternates in and out of blackface, receiving a very different reaction from a policeman; also in The Playhouse (1921) and College (1927)
* Billy Kersands, 1880s-1900s minstrel performer
* Jimmy Kimmel, impersonating Karl Malone and Oprah Winfrey on The Man Show
* Jane Krakowski twice on 30 Rock
* Wallace King, 1880s minstrel performer
* Joey Lawrence, in season 4, episode 11 of Gimme a Break!, an episode criticizing blackface
* Jennie Lee, in the 1915 film The Birth of a Nation
* Francis Leon, 1870s-80s minstrel performer
* Eddie Leonard, 1890s-1930s minstrel performer, "last of the great minstrels"
* Paul Levesque
* Chris Lilley as Jonah Takalua and S.mouse
* Walter Long, in the 1915 film The Birth of a Nation
* Sophia Loren in Aida (1953)
* Peter Lorre, in the play Weisse Fracht
* Matt Lucas, multiple characters in Little Britain, Precious Little in Come Fly with Me
* Sam Lucas, 1870s minstrel performer

## M–R

* Robert Mandan, in season 3, episode 1 of Soap
* Jenna Marbles, impersonating Nicki Minaj in a later removed 2011 Youtube video
* Pigmeat Markham, performer in 1920s-1950s traveling shows, as well as The Ed Sullivan Show and Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
* Rob McElhenney on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, portraying the character of Mac, a white man portraying the character Roger Murtaugh from the Lethal Weapon franchise in a fanmade home movie
* Joni Mitchell appeared as black dandy "Art Nouveau" at a party, then on the cover of Don Juan's Reckless Daughter in 1977 and on numerous occasions throughout the 1980s (see Joni Mitchell blackface controversy)
* Emmett Miller, an important influence on early country stars like Jimmie Rodgers, Bob Wills
* Flournoy E. Miller
* Irvin C. Miller
* David Mitchell, in season 1, episode 1 of That Mitchell and Webb Look
* Clayton McMichen
* Bill Monroe
* Moran and Mack
* Herbert Wassell Nadal (1873-1957)
* Cornelius J. O'Brien (1869-1954)
* Laurence Olivier in Othello (1965)
* Kaitlin Olson on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, portraying the character of Deandra Reynolds, a white woman portraying a black character in a fanmade home movie based on the Lethal Weapon franchise
* Richard Pelham
* Arthur Petersen, in season 3, episode 1 of Soap
* Larry Parks, in the 1946 film The Jolson Story
* Thomas D. Rice
* Jimmie Rodgers
* Mickey Rooney in Babes in Arms (1939)
* Benny Rubin

## S–Z

* Harry Scott of the comedy duo Scott and Whaley, an African American act working in Britain.
* Ramblin' Tommy Scott
* George Siegmann in character as Silas Lynch in The Birth of a Nation (1915)
* Sarah Silverman, in episode "Face Wars" (2007) of The Sarah Silverman Program
* Frank Sinatra, in the Major Bowes short The Big Minstrel (1935) and Ocean's Eleven (1960)
* Grace Slick, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (1968) and Teen Set magazine (1969)
* Bessie Smith
* Hobart Smith
* Mel Smith in season 2, episode 4, of Not the Nine O'Clock News (sketch "Gone With The Wind", April 1980)
* Howard Stern in a series of 1991 skits as Clarence Thomas and in a 1993 New Year's Eve special
* Bert Swor (1878-1943)\
* Magda Szubanski, in various sketches for the Australian TV series, Fast Forward, most notably as the housemaid in a parody of Gone With the Wind.
* Shirley Temple in The Littlest Rebel
* Frank Tinney, in vaudeville and Broadway musical comedies
* The Three Stooges
* Sophie Tucker
* Tracey Ullman, in a 1989 episode of The Tracey Ullman Show
* Ben Vereen, as a part of the 1981 inaugural celebrations for US President Ronald Reagan
* Glen Vernon Actor who performed in blackface in Hollywood Varieties (1950) with fellow actor Edward Ryan
* Vladimir Vysotsky, as Abram Gannibal in How Czar Peter the Great Married Off His Moor
* Ted Waldman, comedy harmonica player
* David Walliams, as a minstrel, and as character Desiree Devere in Little Britain
* George Walker
* Sean Waltman
* Robert Webb
* Betty White, in The Golden Girls
* Billy Whitlock
* Gene Wilder in Silver Streak
* Barney Williams
* Bert Williams
* Hank Williams
* Slim Williams
* Bob Wills
* Tom Wilson
* Jane Withers in Can This Be Dixie?
* Jo Anne Worley, in a 1969 episode of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In

## Fictional characters who were depicted in blackface

* Bugs Bunny, in the 1942 cartoon Fresh Hare
* Mickey Mouse, in the 1933 cartoon Mickey's Mellerdrammer
* Tom and Jerry (Van Beuren), Not to be confused with the cat and mouse duo. appeared in blackface in 'Plane Dumb' (1932)
* Smith Family Stan, Steve, Hayley and Francine Smith appeared in blackface in 2007 American Dad! episode 'An Apocalypse to Remember'
* Eric Cartman, Depicted in blackface in 1999 movie South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut and in episodes of South Park
* Tom and Jerry, appeared in blackface in 'The Yankee Doodle Mouse' (1943) 'The Milky Waif' (1946) 'Mouse Cleaning' (1948) and 'Casanova Cat' (1951)
* Dirty Dick, Used blackface in a recreation of The Black and White Minstrel Show in the 1972 Dandy Annual
* Sylvester the Cat, appeared in blackface in 'I Taw a Putty Tat' (1948)
* Lyons Tea Minstrels mascots of Lyons Tea. Discontinued sometime in the 1990s
* Ling-Ling, In Foxxy Vs. The Board Of Education (2005)