An image from a cover of a collection of sheet music from the Guy Brothers Minstrels, who were scheduled to perform at the Lykens Opera House, December 12, 1914.
Minstrel shows were much in demand in the Lykens Valley area. In addition to “local talent” performing in black-face, there were many nationally-known visiting troupes. This one was led by George R. Guy, pictured on the cover above in and out of black-face. His act was described in the newspaper ad from the Lykens Standard, December 11, 1914:
LYKENS OPERA HOUSE
Saturday, December 12 [1914]
GUY BROTHERS FAMOUS MINSTRELS
The show you all have been waiting for — One night only.
JUST FINISHED A 4 Month’s TRIUMPHIAL TOUR OF CANADA
See the new musical comedy “A DAY ON THE CONGO“
New Departure in Minstrelsy — 35 PEOPLE —
Best singers, finest dancers
Special scenery for every act
Concert orchestra
GRAND STREET PARADE AT 3 P. M.
Prices 35c, 50c and 75c
Locals who aspired to performing in black-face flocked to these performances to learn new routines, and the general public attended because they could not get enough of this racist “entertainment.”
White men and women, who blackened their faces, and performed emphasizing negative stereotypical behavior that they attributed to African Americans, for the purpose of getting laughs, were often the most prominent people in the community.
This post is part of a series in which news articles, photographs and other “memorabilia” are presented to show how “black-face” was infused into the culture of the Lykens Valley area. Readers are invited to submit photos and recollections on how long this offensive “entertainment” lasted and what locals thought of it as part of the culture of the area.
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News articles from Newspapers.com. Image of music cover cropped from an unlicensed web image.
Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.