About 1828, Rice developed a burnt-cork blackface character called Jim Crow.
This character was a witty, raggedy black man, and was based on a real-life black stableman Rice saw singing and dancing to a tune called "Jump Jim Crow".
By 1830, Rice was performing in theaters as Jim Crow.
His act was widely popular in America and England.

In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, "Jim Crow" became a term used to describe racial segregation laws in the United States.
Whites referred to all black males as "Jim Crows".
Rice wrote and appeared in Ginger Blue, Jim Crow in London, and a comic rendition of Othello.
He also appeared on Broadway as the title character in an adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin.
About 1828, Rice developed a burnt-cork blackface character called Jim Crow. This character was a witty, raggedy black man, and was based on a real-life black stableman Rice saw singing and dancing to a tune called "Jump Jim Crow". By 1830, Rice was performing in theaters as Jim Crow. His act was widely popular in America and England. 
In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, "Jim Crow" became a term used to describe racial segregation laws in the United States. Whites referred to all black males as "Jim Crows". Rice wrote and appeared in Ginger Blue, Jim Crow in London, and a comic rendition of Othello. He also appeared on Broadway as the title character in an adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin.
Thomas D. Rice