Whiteface is a type of performance in which a dark person uses makeup in order to appear white-skinned, usually to portray a stereotype.
Whiteface performances originated in the 19th century, and today still occasionally appear in films.
The earliest use of the term, noted by the Oxford English Dictionary, is from the New York Clipper in 1870, informing readers that William "Joe" Murphy has given up minstrelsy to "appear on the legitimate boards in white face.
"[2][3] By 1908, actor Dooley Wilson had earned his nickname for his whiteface impersonation of an Irishman singing a song called "Mr.
[4] The OED also lists a 1947 reference to the black actor Canada Lee performing the role of Bosola in The Duchess of Malfi in whiteface.