because one of the founding thoughts for this post started once I saw this film: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_River_(film)

its a lost film about a creole dude who falls in love with a black woman. there were a lot of white cowboy hats in the beginning of the film which then made me remember the old family pictures which then made me remember the photos of famous folks which all made me ask "wait, was this a thing?"