Search - Betty Boop & Girls & Best of Betty & Gabby & His on DVD

Mostly Fleischer Studios animations

Annie Van Auken | Planet Earth | 03/28/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Max and Dave Fleischer started their cartoon studios on Broadway, in NYC, in 1921. In their 21 year run, the Fleischers created Koko the Clown, Popeye the Sailor and Betty Boop. They were also the first to animate the Superman comic book character. These Superman shorts are widely considered the brothers' most intricate work.

The innovative Max Fleischer invented rotoscope, which was a method of animating live action figures. Fleischer Studios issued cartoons with synchronized sound in 1924, a full three years before Warner Bros. and Vitaphone released the first "talking picture," "The Jazz Singer."

The Fleischers' long-standing distribution deal with Paramount turned out to be costly. Following financial difficulties after their relocation to Miami, the brothers were eventually forced to turn over studio operations to Paramount. At that time, the cartoon division was renamed Famous Studios.

BETTY BOOP, originally a supporting player in the Bimbo cartoons, proved so popular she was given her own series. Mae Questal's vocal characterization of Betty was based on Helen Kane, a singer known as "The Boop-oop-a-doop Girl."

GABBY first appeared in Fleischer's full-length feature, "Gulliver's Travels," as the nosy, noisy, know-it-all town crier. This character's voice was supplied by Pinto Colvig, who also portrayed Goofy in Disney 'toons. Eight Gabby cartoons were made in 1940 and '41. In these, he continued his interfering ways, which often led to disastrous results.


SUPERMAN VS. THE MONSTERS & VILLAINS/WHEN POPEYE RULED THE SEAS/THE TOP TEN FORGOTTEN CARTOONS is another GOOD TIMES VIDEO animation triple-play.


PROGRAM LIST (with synopses):

Betty Boop and the Girls of Mischief --
**(post-Fleischer work)
POOR CINDERELLA (1934) - Booperella. Retelling of the fairy tale, starring Betty B.
THE SCARED CROWS (1939) - Betty Boop's garden is under attack, so she makes a scarecrow.
THE SEAPREME COURT (1954)** - Little Audrey dreams of being put in the eel-ectric chair by the fish she's trying to hook.
A SCOUT WITH THE GOUT (1947)** - Aspiring Girl Scout Little Lulu goes on a camping trip with her dad.
BETTY IN BLUNDERLAND (1934) - Betty dreams of being in an alter-universe Wonderland with all the famous Lewis Carroll characters.
TARTS AND FLOWERS (1950)** - A gingerbread man Little Audrey is baking comes to life in her dreams and takes her to Cakeland.
TOONERVILLE TROLLEY (1936) - Skipper's wife (Katrinka) helps his trolley meet the train on time. (Van Beuren Studios)
BARGAIN COUNTER ATTACK (1946)** - Lulu drives a toy department manager to distraction when she can't decide what to exchange her doll for.
HOUSE CLEANING BLUES (1937) - Grampy's inventions help Boop get her chores done.
GRAMPY'S INDOOR OUTING (1936) - A rainy day ruins Betty Boop's plans to go to the fair, until Grampy transforms their apartment house into an indoor amusement park.

Gabby and his Gullible Friends--
IT'S A HAP-HAP-HAPPY DAY (1941) - Uninvited Gabby ruins the Mayor of Lilliput's camping trip.
TWO FOR THE ZOO (1941) - Gabby interferes in a kangaroo delivery to the Lilliput Zoo.
KING FOR A DAY (1940) - Gabby hand-delivers to the Little King what appears to be a death threat letter.
SWING CLEANING (1941) - Gabby's efforts to spruce up the King's castle wrecks the place.
GABBY GOES FISHING (1941) - The know-it-all Lilliputan town crier tries to teach a boy how to fish.
HAWAIIAN BIRDS (1936) - Young female bird leaves Hawaii and travels to NYC with a jazz band, only to be thrown out of a club and into the cold winter night.
THE SONG OF THE BIRDS (1935) - A boy's antics with an air rifle knocks a baby bird out of its nest.
SMALL FRY (1939) - Tommy Cod tries growing up a bit too fast. Features Hoagy Carmichael's song of the same name.
ANTS IN THE PLANTS (1940) - The queen exhorts her ant community to defeat the aardvark.
HUNKY AND SPUNKY (1937) - Mother burro is nearly abducted by a miner.

The Best of Betty Boop--
BETTY BOOP'S RISE TO FAME (1933) - During an interview, Max Fleischer interacts with Miss Boop. Highlights of three earlier shorts are included.
BETTY BOOP'S CRAZY INVENTIONS (1933) - Sexy Betty visits an invention show and carnival, where she plays the calliope.
BE HUMAN (1936) - Betty Boop and Grampy teach a farmer to be kinder to his animals.
BETTY BOOP'S KER-CHOO (1933) - Betty sings "I've Got a Cold in My Nose," yet is still able to win an auto race.
MORE PEP (1936) - Betty Boop's gadget to give her dog energy makes everyone move too fast.
HA! HA! HA! (1934) - Betty and Koko the Clown come out of the inkwell and go crazy with laughing gas when Boop tries to pull Koko's bad tooth at a dentist office.
BETTY BOOP WITH HENRY, THE FUNNIEST LIVING AMERICAN (1935) - Comic strip character "Henry" looks for a dog at Betty's pet shop.
IS MY PALM READ? (1933) - Pre-code Boop shows lots of skin and has her fortune read by Bimbo."