Who was Jim Crow?

Jim Crow was actually a made up character. Thomas Rice was an unsuccessful white actor. He painted his face black and created skits to try to become more famous. These skits showed a comedic African American slave whose name was Jim Crow. This act made African Americans out to be uneducated, wild, inhuman animals. He got so many white fans out of Jim Crow. He continued doing this act until it lost popularity. The laws were named Jim Crow to spite the African Americans.