Amos 'n' Andy - Check and Double Check (DVD)

Amos and Andy operate a bare-bones taxi service in Harlem, struggling to keep their vehicle running and their tires inflated. When their lodge-master, Kingfish, offers them a lucrative job ferrying Duke Ellington and his Cotton Club Orchestra to a gig in the Upper West Side, they jump at the chance. At the party, the two men run into an old friend, Ralph Crawford, who needs help finding the lost deed to his deceased father's house in order to prove his worth to his prospective in-laws. Amos and Andy spend a spooky night in the dead man's mansion, hoping to locate the papers that will set things right.

Check and Double Check is a rare cultural artifact from the dawn of sound film-making. Freeman F. Gosden and Charles J. Correll had already achieved radio stardom on the "Amos 'N' Andy" show, and their voices had become extremely familiar to American audiences. The two white actors had to don minstrel black-face in order to portray the duo in their first "all-talking" motion picture in 1930. While it may seem politically incorrect by today's standards, this curious film highlights the sure comic timing and vocal talent of the two radio stars and features performances by young Duke Ellington in the bargain.

• comedy