More Of An Early and Primitive Betty Boop
She'd Be Cuter Without The Dog Ears: Barnacle Bill (1930)
In her second cartoon appearance, Betty Boop is
ID'ed as "Nancy Lee," an entry in sailor Bimbo's little black book.
He's predatory and she's compliant, Barnacle Bill possibly fruit of hangovers
Fleischer artists experienced following off-hours spent burlesque housing or in brothels. There are
song lyrics about whisky being "the life of man," and still in
development Betty is well along for breathtaking cleavage displayed. Mobile
chairs in her apartment make way for a sofa that enters on cue to accommodate
the lovers. I'll kiss your cheeks and black your eye, Bill declares to Boop's
delight; you couldn't say Fleischer copied Disney with content like this. Betty
still has the dog ears, so is a little grotesque, and sex appeal that would
secure her stardom is crudely exploited here. Was it Paramount's later edict that she become the
put-upon innocent in starring cartoons?
I love when these characters are being created on the fly as Betty and Bugs Bunny were.
ReplyDeleteThey have a looseness and vibrancy that is the stuff of life.
Later when the characters are set in amber they lose that wonderful element of unpredictability.
I believe it was a man named Jack Diamond who was head of shorts at Paramount who sent word down to the Fleischers to develop the character. He was the first to see her potential. Had he not she probably would have been dropped.