Category: HISTORY - Betty Boop

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Betty Boop at Comic Comic Con San Diego!

7/19/2024

Join us at Comic Con San Diego for "Becoming Betty Boop: The Evolution of an Animated Icon," Saturday, July 27 at 10:30am in room 29CD.

In addition to cartoon clips, historical images and updates on Betty's current adventures, the Fleischer Studios team holds a discussion about Betty Boop: her history, popularity, and impact on pop culture. Moderated by Jerry Beck (author and animation historian) and featuring Mark Fleischer (chairman and CEO of Fleischer Studios, grandson of animation pioneer Max Fleischer), Susan Wilking Horan (VP of business operations, co-author of Betty Boop’s Guide to a Bold and Balanced Life), Kristi Ling Spencer (director of marketing, co-author of Betty Boop’s Guide to a Bold and Balanced Life), Frank Caruso (creative director, Betty Boop cartoonist), Jeni Mahoney (VP of digital media, historian, great granddaughter of Max Fleischer), and Bill McClinton (president of global icons).

Plus, Everyone attending will get an Comic Con exclusive Betty Boop giveaway item.

Comic Con Museum Launches "Becoming Betty Boop" Exhibit!

6/10/2024

Starting June 27, 2024, The Comic-Con Museum in San Diego is opening an original exhibit called Becoming Betty Boop!, in collaboration with Fleischer Studios.

The exhibit will feature never-before-seen artifacts of Betty Boop including toys, comic books and more, some dating all the way back to the ’30s, features on her friends Pudgy, Grampy and more, original animated Betty Boop films, highlights on the women who voiced Betty Boop over the years and limited brand collaborations. In addition to the exhibit, fans will be able to buy exclusive merchandise including an exclusive poster created by comic artist Frank Caruso.

“Betty’s influence on international animation and the popular arts continues to be monumental. She entertains and inspires audiences with her flair for independence, self-determination, and glamour,” said Comic-Con Museum Executive Director Rita Vandergaw. “Fleischer Studios has opened its vault doors to Comic-Con Museum to display some of the oldest artifacts we’ve ever exhibited at the Museum. We can’t wait for visitors to experience this exhibit and be dazzled by Betty in all forms — vintage items, costumes and even on the screen in our theater.”

“This wonderful exhibition weaves together Betty’s origins from the inkwell on my grandfather’s desk, with the explosive growth in her popularity from 1930 to present day, and the worldwide icon she has become in motion pictures, television, licensing and now musical theater. It’s lucky visitors will get to join Betty on the dazzling and amazing ride of becoming Betty Boop!” said Mark Fleischer, Max’s grandson and Chairman/CEO of Fleischer Studios.

Get tickets to the museum and exhibit here.

PBS corrects misinformation on its site that wrongly credited jazz performer Baby Esther as the inspiration for Betty Boop

9/14/2021

In a powerful mea culpa recently published on the PBS website, the editors of one of the nation's most trusted and well-respected journalistic outlets retracted and corrected a story it posted online six years ago stating that Betty Boop was based on the African American performer, Baby Esther. In the story, PBS explains how misinformation managed to remain on its website for so long, but even more importantly it took the opportunity to put the full weight of its journalistic expertise behind a concerted effort to set the record straight.

The people at PBS took this story seriously and we couldn't be more grateful. We know that this story touches on subjects that feel particularly thorny right now and we hope that this course correction will move us toward a fuller and more nuanced understanding of this pivotal period in our country's history; one that continues to resonate and influence us to this day.

You can read whole story, appropriately titled "Betty Oops," here: https://www.pbs.org/publiceditor/blogs/pbs-public-editor/betty-oops/

Happy Birthday Betty!

8/9/2021

Betty Boop made her big screen debut with a bit role in "Dizzy Dishes," on August 9, 1930. This year, we're celebrating Betty's big day with new story on the Fleischer Studios website: "Becoming Betty Boop."

Follow Betty's evolution from bit player to super star to international icon. Check it out HERE!

Happy Birthday, Betty!

A note from President and CEO of Fleischer Studios Mark Fleischer:

7/27/2021

In recent weeks we’ve seen a proliferation of rumors spreading online and across social media regarding the origin of our beloved Betty Boop. We are committed to addressing these rumors, as well as engaging in the very important conversations about race and social and cultural inequity and inequality that are happening right now. As part of this effort, we’ve posted an article on our website exploring and honoring the many talented artists and art forms that came together to inform and inspire the creation of Betty Boop, as well as the complex cultural landscape of New York City in the 1920s and 1930s.

We know that there is conflicting information out there right now, so we have made every effort to share documents and accurate information that will clarify and focus the discussion of Betty’s creation, history and legacy. Betty is and always has been a character whose commitment to love and kindness, independence, mutual respect and universal acceptance embodies the best in all of us. She’s a champion of empowerment and an ambassador of goodwill and joy. It’s in this spirit that we share this bit of her fascinating history. We hope you’ll read it, share it, and enjoy it. This article marks the beginning of an important discussion, and we welcome your thoughts, feedback and questions. Read the article on the Fleischer Studios Page HERE.

You’ve Come a Long Way, Betty Boop!

8/9/2017

Happy Birthday, Betty! You’ve been one busy lady and this video says it all. Just look at all you’ve been up to this year!

For those of you who may not know, today is a very big day for Miss Boop. She’s celebrating her first appearance in “Dizzy Dishes,” one of her “Uncle” Max Fleischer’s “Talkartoons” — the first “talkies” in the animated cartoon world — which Max’s company, Fleischer Studios, created for Paramount. After her debut, Betty Boop quickly evolved into a curvaceous Jazz-Age flapper who captured the popular imagination and of course, fame followed. Dressed in a figure-hugging frock and thigh-high garter, Betty Boop went on to star in her own “Betty Boop” cartoon series, tapping into the edgy spirit of the times. Through the decades, her popularity has spanned film and television, fashion and music.

Today, the feisty, wide-eyed and vivacious icon remains in the limelight as The Original Sass Symbol – as popular as ever the world over in this new Digital Age.

In celebration of this momentous occasion, we’re kicking off Betty’s Birthday Bash with a month-long sale in the Official Betty Boop Online Store powered by ZAZZLE. Fans get 25% OFF all Betty Boop merchandise when they use the promo code “ZBETTYBOOP25” (valid through the end of August 2017). And be sure to be on the lookout for more fun promotions and sweepstakes coming down the pike this month.

Happy birthday Betty! Don’t forget to wish Ms. Boop a very Happy Birthday on her social media channels using the hashtag #HappyBoopDayBetty — you could end up with a very special surprise! ??

Betty Boop: The Classic Comic Strip Collection

9/15/2015

Since making her debut in the Fleischer Studios 1930 animated cartoon Dizzy Dishes, Betty Boop has gone on to become one of the most instantly recognizable global icons of the 21st century.

“The Definitive Betty Boop: The Classic Comic Strip Collection” is the most complete ever assembled, collects together, for the first time ever, more than 125 full-color Sunday newspaper strips and over 160 black and white daily comic strips, some of which have not been reprinted since the 1930s. This collection is a loving tribute to the one, the only, Betty Boop.

According to Titan Books editor, David Leach, this is the most complete collection of Betty Boop newspaper comic strips, illustrations and promotional imagery that’s never been collected before. Wherever possible the original newspaper strips were scanned and when that wasn’t possible, the best existing material was scanned and then lovingly restored.

The end result is the largest collection of Betty Boop comic strips ever collected in one album. It’s enough to make you go, ‘Boop-Boop-A-Doop!’

Fans may purchase a copy of “The Definitive Betty Boop: The Classic Comic Strip Collection” at Amazon.com.

Happy Birthday, Uncle Max!

7/17/2015

Hi, Everyone,

I’m sure all the animation buffs out there know my Uncle Max Fleischer as a pioneer, inventor and innovator in the film industry. He was responsible for many “firsts” during the Golden Age of Animation.

Did you know…

In 1921, Uncle Max and his brother Dave established their own company which became Fleischer Studios. They eventually employed more than 700 people.
In 1926, Fleischer Studios produced the very first cartoon with synchronized sound, “My Old Kentucky Home.”
Max was a life-long inventor, holding over 15 patents in the film industry alone, including:
The Rotoscope – an animation technique, still in use to this day, in which animators trace live action footage, frame by frame, to create realistic movement.
The Bouncing Ball – a device used to visually indicate the rhythm of a song, helping audiences to sing along in time with the music.
Max drew me Out of the Inkwell, as well as my friends, Koko the Clown and Bimbo. Plus he brought already established characters Popeye and Superman to the Silver Screen for the first time. Isn’t that cool?

To celebrate his birthday on July 19. my family over at Fleischer Studios has put together a wonderful exhibit about Uncle Max – the man. He was really quite wonderful, you know. You can see it here: http://www.fleischerstudios.com/birthday.html.

Happy Birthday, Uncle Max!
Love,
xoxox
Betty

Love Me, Love My Dogs

4/15/2015

Hi, everybody,

There’s an old saying: “A dog is a man’s best friend.” Well, it’s true. Dogs are loving and caring and oh-so loyal. They know if you’re sad and, because they love to play, they can always make you happy. Dogs are everything a good friend should be. I think a dog is a girl’s best friend, too – certainly mine. I simply adore Pudgy. AND did you ever notice that my boyfriend Bimbo is always putting on the dog when he steps out with moi? And so he should. I always say, Every dog will have its day. So when you have great style, flaunt it! It will get you noticed – and who knows how far you can go to realize your dreams?!? Hot diggety dog

Tee hee. Bet you wonder why all this talk about dogs!?! Well, my family has just mounted a wonderful exhibit on their website about all the wonderful dogs that have been part of our history at Fleischer Studios.

From the nameless dog who spoke the first-ever synchronized words in animation history to my Uncle Max’s dog, “Bimbo,” to the heartwarming story I told you about the real-life puppy in Chicago named “Betty Boop,” this exciting new exhibit features one of the earliest extant examples of Max Fleischer’s animation, never-seen-before home movie footage, and just a wealth of cool information about the dogs who had roles in many of my cartoons and throughout my family’s storied history.

Check out the exhibition at http://www.fleischerstudios.com/dogs.html. Boop-Oop-a-Doop!

Love,

Betty
xoxox