Cinematic History: Television

CINEMATIC HISTORY:
TELEVISION

Like cinema, television emerged in the 20th century as a visual medium that explored Black identity and stories. While early television shows like Britain’s The Black and White Minstrel Show (1958–1978) are now denounced for their racist use of Blackface and offensive portrayal of Black stereotypes, a plethora of shows from sitcoms to dramas have since come to the small screen and have started to shift perspective towards better representation both in front of and behind the camera. Below you will find a small selection of these television series as well as a few notable stand-alone episodes.

SINGLE EPISODES

“Plato's Stepchildren”. Star Trek: The Original Series (1966-1969), Season 3, Episode 10. Dir. David Alexander. NBC, first aired: 22 November 1968.

Watch a clip of the kiss between Kirk and Uhura here.

“Shades of Guilt”. The Twilight Zone (2002-2003), Season 1, Episode 3. Dir. Perry Lang. UPN, first aired: 25 September 2002.

Watch a clip of the episode here.

“Crossroad Blues”. Supernatural (2005-2020), Season 2, Episode 8. Dir. Steve Boyum. The WB and The CW, first aired: 16 November 2006.

Watch a clip from the episode where Robert Johnson sells his soul.

“Black Museum”. Black Mirror (2011-present), Season 4, Episode 6. Dir. Colm McCarthy. Netflix, first aired: 29 December 2017.

Watch the episode trailer here.

“Guilt Trip”. Two Sentence Horror Stories (2017-2022), Digital Series, Episode 1. Dir. J.D. Dillard. The CW, first aired: 17 October 2017.

Watch a trailer for the episode here.

“We haven’t come a long way… when shows are just about shows and not about being Black or white or Asian… that’s when everything’s normal. So the fact that we’re still talking about representation and what it means still shows that we’ve got a lot of work to do. Some things should just be normal."

Tosin Cole

"The Secret of Spoons". American Gods (2017-2021), Season 1, Episode 2. Dir. David Slade. StarzTV, first aired: 7 May 2017.

Watch a clip from the episode where Mr Nancy tells a story.

“Rosa”. Doctor Who (2005-present) Series 11, Episode 3. Dir. Mark Tonderai. BBC, first aired: 21 October 2018.

Watch a clip from the episode featuring Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King.

"The Ways of the Dead". American Gods (2017-2021), Season 2, Episode 5. Dir. Salli Elise Richardson-Whitfield. StarzTV, 7 first aired: 7 April 2019.

Watch the episode trailer here.

“Replay”. The Twilight Zone (2019-2020), Season 1, Episode 3. Dir. Gerard McMurray. CBS, first aired: 11 April 2019.

Watch the episode trailer here.

“Demon 79”. Black Mirror (2011-present), Season 6, Episode 5. Dir. Toby Haynes. Netflix, first aired: 15 June 2023.

Watch a clip from the episode featuring the demon Gaap.

Coded Black gameplay screenshot showing a living room with a three glowing figures sat talking and playing.

TELEVISION SERIES

**The Cosby Show. Created by Bill Cosby, Michael J. Leeson, Ed. Weinberger. NBC, 1984-1992.

and

**A Different World. Created by Bill Cosby. NBC, 1987-1993.

**While the Cosby Show and its spin-off, A Different World, were points of debate amid African Americans due to their failure to acknowledge the ways intersectional oppression made Black success exponentially difficult in the US, they remained a highly influential series. However, when over 60 women came forth in 2014 charging Cosby with aggravated sexual assault and child abuse, the series' came under renewed investigation and criticism. As such, while we recognize the importance of these series, instead of providing trailers, we provide an overview of the Cosby Show sitcom, its impact, and Cosby's crimes.

Watch the Infamous Scene That Took the Cosby Show Off the Air.

Desmond’s. Created by Trix Worrell. Channel 4, 1989-1994.

Watch the full episode of season 1, episode 1 here.

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Created by Andy Borowitz and Susan Borowitz. NBC, 1990-1996.