African American First in Television Quiz

Answer: Gail Fisher

Fisher was awarded an Emmy for "Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series" in 1969 for her portrayal of secretary Peggy Fair on the CBS television series "Mannix". Fisher also won Golden Globe Awards in 1971 and 1973 for "Best supporting Actress" and "Best Actress in a Drama Series", respectively, for her role on "Mannix".

In 1961, Fisher was also the first African American to have a speaking part in a nationally televised commercial.

Answer: Ethel Waters

In 1939, "The Ethel Waters Show" was broadcasted as an experimental one night event for the new medium of television. Waters returned to television eleven years later as the star of the television series, "Beulah".

Answer: Sugar Hill Times

In 1946, Timmie Rogers, an entertainer, comedian, dancer, singer, composer, and musician launched "Sugar Hill Times" on the CBS television network. Known for his trademark, "Oh Yeah!", he was sometimes called the "dean of black comedians" and inspired such black entertainers as Redd Foxx, Dick Gregory, Nipsy Russell, and Slappy White.

He also wrote hit songs for Nat King Cole and Sarah Vaughan.

Answer: Flip Wilson

Comedian Clerow "Flip" Wilson starred on "The Flip Wilson Show" in 1970. Wilson was best known for his impersonation of a black woman, Geraldine Jones, and became a regular at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York. Wilson left the show in 1974 and went into semi-retirement, appearing in television specials, television game shows, a situation comedy, and several movies.
Born in Jersey City, New Jersey on December 8, 1933, Wilson was one of 18 children. He was shifted from one foster home to another, and then spent some of his early years in a reformatory. He later served for four years in the U.S. Air Force. It was in the Air Force where his flippant sense of humor earned him his nickname. Wilson won a Grammy Award in 1970 for Best Comedy Recording with "The Devil Made Me Buy This Dress".
Wilson passed away on November 25, 1998.

Answer: Kathleen Bradley

Born on January 10, 1951 in Girard, Ohio, Bradley was primarily known as a "Barker's Beauty" on the "Price is Right" from 1990-2000.
Bradley won the Miss California title in 1971.
More than 17 million viewers tuned in the show daily.

Answer: Otis Young

Young played a former slave turned bounty hunter in "The Outcast".
Young was probably best remembered for his film role as a career sailor in the 1973 film "The Last Detail".
In the 1980's, Young made occasional television appearances, including an appearance in the miniseries "Palmtown, USA."
He was also an ordained minister and a college instructor.

Answer: Nat King Cole

"The Nat King Cole Show" was first aired on October 3, 1956, and ran for sixty-four weeks. In the 1956 season, the show had a 15-minute running time. The episodes were expanded to 30-minute segments in 1957. According to information from the Internet Movie Database, (www.imdb.com) the show originally aired without a sponsor. NBC agreed to pay for the initial production cost.

It was assumed that once the series aired and the advertisers were able to see the sophistication of the show, a national sponsor would emerge. No sponsor came forward.

Many national companies did not want to upset their customers in the South who did not want to see a black man on TV shown in anything other than a subservient position. Although NBC agreed to continue to pay the production cost until a sponsor could be found, it was the star, Nat King Cole who finally decided to end the series in the second season.

It was Cole himself who lamented of the doomed series, "Madison Avenue is afraid of the dark".

The show received low ratings from the start. When commercial sponsorship could not be secured, the show was canceled, and went off the air in December of 1957.

Answer: Bill Cosby

Cosby starred with Robert Culp in the 1965 series "I Spy". Cosby played the role of Alexander Scott, a Rhodes scholar who traveled as a trainer for Davis Cup tennis player Kelly Robinson (Robert Culp) when in fact, they were American agents involved in foiling industrial spies and Cold War agents.

The series aired 82 episodes during the three season run of the show between 1965 and 1968.

Answer: Ethel Waters

Waters starred in the title role in "Beulah", a 1950 situation comedy about an African American domestic who always came to the aid of her hapless employer, and his family, by solving weekly family issues and problems by using more common sense than the family members.

The show was noted for numerous cast changes during the three season run of the show from 1950 until 1953. Ironically, all three actresses listed as incorrect answers for this question at one time during the run of the series played the title character.

Answer: Oprah Winfrey

"The Oprah Winfrey Show" was a Chicago-based daytime talk show.
A selected guest panel was invited to discuss topics of the day (many of which were deemed controversial and sensational) in front of a studio audience. The show first aired in 1986.