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{{trope}}
{{quote|
Rarely seen today and on the way to being a [[Discredited Trope]] (at least in First World countries) is the Shoe Shine Boy and the Shoe Shine Stand.
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In detective stories, the detective usually [[Baker Street Regular|has a conversation with the shoeshiner]] while he gets his shoes shined. This [[Knowledge Broker|lets him know what is happening "on the street"]]. The detective usually adds an extra tip to pay for the information.
Shoe shining is often used as the first step in a character's [[Rags to Riches|working his way out of poverty]]
Shoe shine stands do still exist, but this site is about tropes. You don't see them much in media anymore.
{{examples|Examples:}}▼
== Comic Books ==
* [[Disney Ducks Comic Universe|Scrooge McDuck]] famously
* ''Torpedo'', or ''Torpedo 1936'', is a Spanish comics series which depicts the adventures of the antagonistic character Luca Torelli, a heartless hit man, and his sidekick Rascal, in context of the violent organized crime culture of New York during the Great Depression era. Luca Torelli was a shoe shiner before becoming a hitman.
* In an early ''[[Batman]]'' comic, Robin goes undercover as a shoeshine boy, and when the villain of the week stops to get a shine Robin secretly applies a tracking device to his shoe.
== Film ==
* In ''[[Silver Streak]]'', the police are looking for George, so Grover buys some shoe polish from a shoeshiner at a stand at the train station to use to disguise him as a black man.
* ''[[Goodfellas]]'' features a scene in which Tommy DeVito ([[Joe Pesci]]), brutally beats and knifes Billy Batts to death for insulting him about being a shoeshine boy in Tommy's younger days. This would eventually get Tommy killed, as Batts was a made man.
:The film is based on the real-life experiences of Henry Hill and the people he met through the Vario brothers, who owned a shoeshine stand and other businesses. In real life, William "Billy Batts" Devino taunted Thomas "Two Gun Tommy" DeSimone, calling him "spit-shine Tommy." DeSimone retorted by yelling, "Shine these fuckin' shoes," and then executing Batts.
* A hotel shoe shiner played a major role in ''Nick of Time'' with [[Johnny Depp]].
* In the movie ''[[
* ''[[Young Frankenstein]]''. When Frederick's train pulls in, he asks a shoeshine boy, "Pardon me boy, is this the Transylvania Station?" The boy replies "Ja, ja. Track 29... Oh, can I give you a shine?" This is a [[Shout
* ''[[Live and Let Die (
* In ''[[The Band Wagon]]'', Fred Astaire sings and dances [
* [[Prince of Space]] is a shoeshine boy.
* Miguel, the protagonist of ''[[Coco]]'', is a part-time shoeshiner
== Literature ==
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== Live Action TV ==
* Andy from ''[[Parks and Recreation]]'' gets the job of shoeshine boy at Pawnee City Hall after a season and a half of being essentially homeless and unemployed.
* ''[[Police Squad!]]'' had Johnny the Shoe-Shine Boy, who knew '''everything''', so much that he's listed on this site as an [[Almighty Janitor]].
* For a little while on ''[[Night Court]]'' there was a shoeshine stand that was an important place in the courthouse, with the shiner as a recurring character.
* El Chavo in ''[[El Chavo
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* "Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy", a song performed by [[Bing Crosby]] and [[Frank Sinatra]], amongst others.
* "Shoeshine Boy" by Eddie Kendricks.
* As mentioned above in the film entry for ''[[Young Frankenstein]]'', the song "[
{{quote|
Is that the Chattanooga choo choo?
Track twenty-nine
Boy, you can gimme a shine }}
== [[Real Life]] ==▼
* [http://www.springerlink.com/content/2580172652228867/ This article written in 1968] explains the job of being a shoeshine boy.▼
* Some famous [[Real Life]] shoeshiners:▼
** [[James Brown]] – "The Godfather of Soul". He used to shine shoes and sing and dance on Ninth Street in Augusta, Georgia; in 1993 the road was renamed "James Brown Boulevard" in his honour.▼
** [[Rush Limbaugh]]– conservative radio talk show host and pundit, shined shoes as a young boy to make spending money.▼
** [[Malcolm X]] – worked as a shoeshine boy at a Lindy Hop nightclub in New York City.▼
** Rod Blagojevich – later governor of Illinois.▼
== Video Games ==
* There's one of these in ''[[
== Western Animation ==
* [[Underdog (
* ''[[The Simpsons]]'':
** A flashback reveals that Grandpa Simpson was one of these as a kid. He once shined [[Clark Gable]]'s shoes, but he got stiffed.
** Bart once expressed his desire to quit school and become a shoeshine boy.
{{quote|
Homer: No son of mine is gonna be a 19th-century cockney bootblack! }}
* In one episode of ''[[Sushi Pack]]'', the Titanium Chef's evil plan involves shoeshine, even though his own minions point out that no one shines his shoes in this day and age. However, his plan also involves the power of [[Peer Pressure Makes You Evil|peer pressure]], and sure enough, everyone wants to get his shoes shined to be "cool". One boy even volunteers to help them shine shoes.
▲== [[Real Life]] ==
▲* [http://www.springerlink.com/content/2580172652228867/ This article written in 1968] explains the job of being a shoeshine boy.
▲* Some famous [[Real Life]] shoeshiners:
▲** [[James Brown]] – "The Godfather of Soul". He used to shine shoes and sing and dance on Ninth Street in Augusta, Georgia; in 1993 the road was renamed "James Brown Boulevard" in his honour.
▲** [[Rush Limbaugh]]– conservative radio talk show host and pundit, shined shoes as a young boy to make spending money.
▲** [[Malcolm X]] – worked as a shoeshine boy at a Lindy Hop nightclub in New York City.
▲** Rod Blagojevich – later governor of Illinois.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Always Male]]
[[Category:Shoe Shine, Mister?]]
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