When The Flip Wilson Show debuted on NBC in 1970, the major legislative victories of the civil rights movement had been won, but the broadcast airwaves were far from integrated. A handful of shows featured black leading characters, but none had quite reached the top spot of the Nielsen ratings. By 1971, however, Wilson's "old-fashioned" comedy-variety hour was a bonafide hit, and in January 1972 Time magazine declared Wilson "TV's First Black Superstar." In this volume, Meghan Sutherland examines how The Flip Wilson Show succeeded in the volatile racial and economic milieu of the early...
When The Flip Wilson Show debuted on NBC in 1970, the major legislative victories of the civil rights movement had been won, but the broadcast airw...
