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Betty Boop




Name:

Boop-Oop-a-Doop Girl / Betty "Boop" Fleischer[1] / Nancy Lee / Dolly Prance / Nan McGrew / Nellie / Kitty / La Boop


Character's Official Age:

109 (2024)


Betty Boop is currently a centurion, she's canonically a teenager age 13 to 16.


Birthdate:

April 1, 1915


Age Calculated by Debut:

Friday, August 8, 1930

94 (2024)


Gender:

Female


Birthplace:

1600 Broadway, New York City, New York


Nationality:

Polish-American / African-American


Sexual Orientation:

Heterosexual


Race:

White / Black


Religion:

Judaism


Hair Color:

Black / Red-Orange


Eye Color:

Blue / Green / Black


Occupation:

Jazz Singer / Flapper Girl / Dancer / Model / Movie Star / Impersonator / Centenarian / Zombie / Undead / Nurse / Biker / Office Worker / Pet Store Owner / Waitress / Chef / Judge / Teacher / Babysitter / Racecar Driver / Circus Performer / Bandit / Mermaid / Cowgirl / Shoe Saleswoman / Broadway Star / Princess / Queen


Betty Boop Evolution

Betty Boop is the main character of the series. She is a fictional Jewish female cartoon character best known for her "Boop-Oop-a-Doop"[2] and the more famous "Boop-Boop-Be-Doop" catchphrases. The "Doop" is usually followed by a "Bop", something she frequently incorporates into her routine, which is a high-pitched squeak.


Betty was elevated to stardom as the result of public demand.


Betty is notable for her spit curls, baby-talk and scat singing. Betty is also known as Baby Boop or Bitsy Boop and on the day of the celebration of Halloween, Betty goes by the name Betty Boo and Betty "Boo" Boop. In online fandom, fan art and fiction there is also alternatively a Black Betty Boop. Black Betty Boop became official as of 2023.

Betty Boop is a light-hearted flapper reminding the audience of the carefree times of the Jazz Age. She was the first character on the animation screen to represent a sexual woman. All other cartoon girls of that time did not differ much from animated male characters, with only eyelashes, voice and outfit alterations to show their femininity.

In Betty's earlier cartoons, male characters liked to put moves on Betty, and generally she provoked that. Besides, there was a certain girlishness in her personality, which was emphasized by her style of singing, sentimentality, and overall flapper-like behavior.

The flappers of the 1920s, most notably Clara Bow, were the inspiration for Betty Boop's appearance. Clara and Betty were frequently contrasted, most notably in Hollywood on Parade No. A-8.


Other vintage film stars that the Fleischers used to develop Betty's allure included Louise Brooks, Mae West, Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich.


Mae3

After the series rolled on, Betty Boop's mannerisms and traits were later based on Mae Questel, who often did the voice on a regular basis, starting from 1931. One of Betty Boop's traits taken from Questel was impersonation which was Questel's speciality.[3]

Betty's original persona was created by Questel, she later became the most famous, and official of the character. She finalized jazz baby Betty's cadence, conscientiousness and peppy personality.

Questel also served as model for Betty Boop. Animators rotoscoped her as they drew Betty Boop's animated sequences for the animated cartoons. Another known model for Betty Boop was Little Ann Little. Like Questel, Little also posed as Betty Boop while animators drew Betty. Other women who voiced Betty also modeled as Betty Boop, and served as inspiration behind the character's persona using their vampy baby doll image.

Betty Boop first appeared in the 1930 Talkartoon titled Dizzy Dishes, which was released in 1930. Betty made her debut as a plump anthropomorphic French poodle, with Betty's voice having been created by Margie Hines. Hines created the voice using her "baby doll" vocalization.[4] The character was retired in 1939, but was later rediscovered during the 1970s.

The cult of Betty Boop fans started building in North America and Europe during the 70s. In 1975, Avon published a collection of Betty Boop comics. Betty didn't quite make an impact until the 1980s. Betty's revival gained momentum in 1985, in which she became an iconic figure of the 1930s.

Since the 1980s, King Features Syndicate has marketed Betty Boop using Marilyn Monroe's image, although they do not credit Monroe as the creator or inspiration behind the character. This is due to Betty being the first sex symbol, predating Monroe in that category, and having Clara Bow's allure. Betty Boop is still very popular today, and has millions of fans all around the world.


Because of her big eyes, and kewpie-doll appearance, she's very popular in Japan.[5]


Quotes

  • Betty Boop: "I made my first movie eight years ago when I was sixteen."
  • Betty Boop: "I am still sixteen and will always stay sixteen! Ain't that something!"
  • Betty Boop: "A Paramount and a Betty Boop cartoon mixed for a well perfect program."
  • Betty Boop: "I've made the acquaintance of '150 Million' people in my '8' years on the screen!"
  • Betty Boop: "It would take one man alone, three years to make a one reel cartoon of me!"
  • Betty Boop: "By the way Uncle Max! Did you set aside a trust fund for me?"
  • Betty Boop: "I'm the tops with the kids!"
  • Betty Boop: "I know the trick to get people to your box-office!"
  • Betty Boop: "I'm the sweetheart of your box-office!"
  • Betty Boop: "I'm every inch a star!"
  • Betty Boop: "I'm the spice of the program."
  • Betty Boop: "They say that I can fill Greta Garbo's shoes!"
  • Betty Boop: "I can balance your programme!"
  • Betty Boop: "If you have a sick box-office, let me put it on it's feet again!"
  • Betty Boop: "Don't worry! When your box-office is in my hands. It's safe!"
  • Betty Boop: "I can make your box-office grow!"
  • Betty Boop: "I may only be a little girl. But I can do a man-sized job supporting a box-office!"
  • Betty Boop: "Stick around boys! I'm always cooking up something!"
  • Betty Boop: "Let me know if your box-office needs jacking up!"
  • Betty Boop: "I've built up many a box-office!"
  • Betty Boop: "I'm there in any language!"
  • Betty Boop: "Don't worry about your box-office, once I step inside!"
  • Betty Boop: "With me, every week is Paramount week!"
  • Betty Boop: "I mean, first it was this lawsuit with the Kane girl. I'd never even seen her act. My 'Boop-Oop-a-Dooping' comes from here. Either you 'Boop' from inside or you ain't got it. It's not somethin' you pull on or off like a pair o' six-inch spike heels."[6]

Max Fleischer's Betty Boop

Betty_Boop_Cartoons_Cartoon_Classics_Vol._1_Public_Domain_Database

Betty Boop Cartoons Cartoon Classics Vol. 1 Public Domain Database


According to Max Fleischer, Betty Boop is made of pen and ink, and she lives inside the inkwell. When Betty is drawn, like her predecessor Koko the Clown, she is instantly brought to life. Most of the cartoons Betty Boop appears in are in the public domain.

Official Website

01 bettyboopcom

You can find out even more information and updates on Betty at Betty Boop's official website and the Fleischer Studios official website.

Competition

Max Fleischer Copyright Warning

When Betty reached stardom in motion pictures, it later came to the attention of Max Fleischer that other producers of animated cartoons were attempting to imitate his character. He herby served notice that the character was fully protected by copyright registration, and he intended to protect his interests to the fullest extent of the law against anyone attempting to use or imitate his character.


Betty Boop Copycat Characters Warner and Ub Iwerks

The Buddy series character Cookie (voiced by Shirley Reid, Dorothy Varden and Berneice Hansell / Bernice Hansen) by Warner Bros. and Flip the Frog's human girlfriend Fifi from the Ub Iwerks series were two animated figures of the 1930s that were known to emulate Betty Boop. The original designer of Betty Boop, Grim Natwick, also created Fifi, who resembled Betty in appearance.

Cookie Looney Tunes Betty Boop Copy Cat Character

Coincidentally, Cookie has red hair like Betty Boop, and spoke and sang like a baby-doll. Cookie was also inspired by Bosko's girlfriend Honey. Both Buddy and Cookie, are the Caucasian counterparts to African-American characters Bosko and Honey.

Honey (voiced by Rochelle Hudson) took traits from Disney's Minnie Mouse, making Cookie also take on some of those traits. After Max Fleischer complained, not too long after Cookie and Fifi's character designs were altered.


Countess Cat (voiced by Margie Hines) by Van Beuren Studios, Poodles (in reminiscence of Betty's earlier appearances as a French poodle) by Walter Lantz Productions, and Roxy the Fox (voiced by Desirée Goyette in 1992) by Warner Bros. were other characters that shared similarities with Betty. However compared to Betty, a majority of these characters were anthropomorphic animals.


LuluBettyBoopParodyMexican

Many years after Max Fleischer's passing, a proliferation of Betty Boop parodies have surfaced in the media. Characters like Louise the Girl Mouse (voiced by Mae Questel) by Famous Studios, Betty Boopie Doop (voiced by Gloria Wood) by Walt Disney Animation Studios, Googi Goop (voiced by Desirée Goyette) by Warner, Lulú by Pascual Boing, and Owlie Boop (voiced by Sandy Fox) by Cartoon Network are just a few examples.

In the 1980s, KP Snacks created The Hula Cutie, a parody of Betty Boop based on her roles in "Betty Boop's Bamboo Isle" and "Popeye the Sailor," in place of Betty Boop appearing together for a commercial with Cab Calloway. Joey Drew Studios used several ideas as inspiration to create Alice Angel, a character that was originally well-known in her fictitious series, including Betty Boop. The most famous parody of Betty Boop is Comedy Central's Toot Braunstein.


Ralph A

The Fleischer Studios successfully sued doll manufacturer Ralph Freundlich in 1932 over his "Kiki" dolls having a likeness to Betty Boop. However the truth is that Freundlich's dolls were launched in 1931, and were based on Mary Pickford.

The "Betty Boop" dolls were also launched as early as of 1931, it would seem that the Fleischers did not like the competition, as the "Kiki" dolls were quite popular. Betty had not long turned from a canine to a human girl, so her likeness could not fully be established, as she had not long just made her debut in human form.

The Kiki doll-line was released August 1931, and the "Betty Boop Cameo Doll" line did not arrive on the scene until November 1931. The Betty Boop cameo dolls were then sold at all major outlets in 1932, indicating that Ralph Freundlich's company was innocent.

He tried to argue that "Helen Kane" was the original "Betty Boop" but she had also lost her lawsuit, when she could not prove this to be true. In court the Judge didn't think that Freudlich was telling the truth so he ruled against him.

The Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the New York State Supreme Court's ruling that copyright for Betty Boop owned by the Fleischer Studios, Fleischer Art Service, and Joseph I. Kallus had been violated.

Freundlich was ordered to pay damages of $5,440 and costs of $15,000 in the suit. Ralph Freundlich was later found guilty of perjury in 1937. When it was later discovered that he had manufactured 1,108 dolls, he claimed that he had only made 676. He received a three-month prison term and a $4,000 fine in 1938.


Betty Boop Reimagined (2017)

Betty Boop Modern Design 2017-2019

On the 19th of October, 2017 Betty Boop was given a brand new design, in which also changed the shape of her head. The design first appeared in Elle magazine in early April, 2017. Since the new design made its debut, several manufacturers began rolling out products based on it.  

The new Betty Boop merchandise is titled Betty Boop Now, and had been in development for the past 18 months by King Features and the Fleischer Studios and the leading design partners. King Features creative team spent the past year and a half researching, refreshing and reimagining Betty. According to Carla Silva, King Features VP and GM, Global Head of Licensing; "As we continue to showcase Betty Boop Now, out licensees tell us they are excited to see that the new look resonates with today's young woman.  

With realistic proportions and apparel choice that show her sassy attitude and style, Betty Boop Now is more expressive. She has a wide range of facial expressions and a more animated mouth through which she can voice her opinion and make her thoughts heard. Young women can really respond to that portrayal of individuality."  

The franchise was first branded by a Boston-based company called Bare Tree Media who launched its Betty Boop Now iMessage sticker packs in July as a part of its promotional celebration for World Emoji Day. Tilibra created a set of collection of notebooks featuring Betty. This fall Zazzle began debuting the Betty Boop Now Collection of their website. And Acco/Mead have plans to use Betty Boop Now artwork for their 2019 calendar. 

Official Age

Betty Boop was officially 16 years old from 1932 to 1939 and still is

Betty debuted as a anthropomorphic dog woman in Dizzy Dishes and again as the fair maiden in Barnacle Bill. In The Bum Bandit she is shown raising a family of 17 children with Bimbo and in Mysterious Mose is shown living alone in a haunted house.

But in Minding The Baby, Betty is depicted as being younger. She is a French poodle in a majority of her earlier appearances.


Betty Boop's 100th Birthday 2022

The age range of Betty Boop varies. In several cartoons, she seems younger, while in others, older. Max Fleischer could not determine her age. Betty is officially 16, as opposed to this, she is 13 going on 14 in Betty Boop's Big Boss.


Bonnie Poe aka Clara Rothbart Betty Boop Wikia 2022

Betty is often portrayed and voiced by women. Actress and singer Bonnie Poe, who voiced Betty Boop on radio starting at age 17, is the youngest person to have ever done so. When Poe turned 18 on the 6th of March 1933, she portrayed Betty in person in Hollywood on Parade, released on the 10th of March.

Being a fictional character from 1930 makes Betty's age irrelevant. In fictional franchises, character concept design and character age range can be changed to suit the expectations of the demographic in which the said companies who own these fictional characters are trying to reach out to. For reboots and or remakes for example Betty Boop Now, Betty is a teenager, because as a cartoon character that is the demographic she would appeal to.


Betty's age calculated by her birthdate in 1915, indicates that she is 100+ years old. But if her "1930" debut is used as a source for her age, then Betty is several years younger.


Betty Boop Zombie 0

The Betty Boop Zombie Love franchise that debuted in 2013 makes fun of Betty's age, only with that franchise Betty is undead.

Films featuring zombies have been a part of cinema since the 1930s, with White Zombie directed by Victor Halperin in 1932, being one of the earliest examples. According to an early Fleischer Studios promo featuring Betty, she is 16 and will always stay 16.

Betty Boop actually "officially" died in 1938, and since Betty Boop was born in the early 1910s, like most people born in 1915 she would actually be deceased today.

Official Birthday

1933 Betty Boop's Birthday by Max Fleischer

Betty Boop's official birthday set by Max Fleischer in 1933 was the 1st of April.[7] No year was given, but it is presumed that Betty would have been born somewhere during the 1910s.

A quick age calculation by the "Betty Boop Wikia Fandom" calculates Betty's date of birth as April 1, 1915. The date calculates that she would have officially turned "16-years-old" on the 1st of April in 1932.

1932 is the same year that Betty made her debut in the "Betty Boop" series timeline in which Betty made her first appearance in Stopping the Show. The episode Stopping the Show did not debut until the 12th of August, indicating that Betty had already turned 16.

Max Fleischer also stated in a 1932 interview that Betty was officially 16 and alternatively younger or older in other episodes and adaptions. Betty is said to be Max's daughter at times and sometimes is referred to as his niece.

Betty's birthday today is usually celebrated on August 9, 1930. August is actually her debut in Dizzy Dishes. Betty usually refers to her birthday, as her Boopday.

Grim Natwick's Betty Boop

Betty Boop by Grim Natwick 1931

Here is a 1930-1931 depiction of an early "Betty Boop" artwork by Grim Natwick. Betty has vivid red hair, blue eyes and wears a pink dress. She's known merely as Bimbo's girlfriend.

This artwork that was drawn and painted by Grim was made prior to Betty's development. In this artwork Betty still has her hairstyle from Barnacle Bill but without the spit curls and she is more slender in size to how she appeared in the cartoon, as Betty was more plump in the actual Fleischer Studios animated cartoons Barnacle Bill and Dizzy Dishes.

Though Natwick created the initial base for Betty Boop; Max Fleischer, Dave Fleischer, Shamus Culhane, Seymour Kneitel, Myron Waldman, Doc Crandall, Ted Sears, Willard Bowsky, and Al Eugster all contributed to the character development.

Paramount Pictures urged the Fleischer Studios to work on the evolution of the character, as they had a feeling that the character was going to be a hit with the general public.

Character Design

BettyBoopModelSheetDesign1930s

Betty has an affinity for the colors black and red, she wears a short dress, and a garter on her left leg.

Her breasts are highlighted with a low, contoured neckline that shows off her cleavage. In color Betty wears a red dress and red high heels with gold hoop earrings and gold bangles on each arm.

Betty's underwear is not visible unless there is a gag sequence, but like Minnie Mouse, Betty wears bloomers.

Betty Boop Original High Heel Early 1930s

The original Betty Boop, her high heels were accessorized with bows. The bows on her high heels vanished because the animators would have found it hard to continuously animate them.

Though the bows were removed from the later cartoons, they are still supposed to be there. They can be seen in the earliest cartoons Mask-A-Raid and Kitty from Kansas City and Paramount Pictures posters from 1932 featuring Koko the Clown, Billy Boop and Bimbo.

These type of shoes would later become an iconic part of Walt Disney's design for Snow White, a character also animated by Natwick.

Clara Bow Betty Boop Louise Brooks

Betty's fluttery outfit, which first debuted in the 1931 cartoon Silly Scandals, was reportedly inspired by or modeled in the 1929 ensembles of Louise Brooks and Clara Bow.

Clara Bow Betty Boop Red Hair

Bow, the top star of Paramount Pictures, served as a major source of inspiration for the Fleischers when developing Betty Boop, since they had drawn inspiration from a number of women.

Betty received red hair as a tribute to Bow. The original "It-Girl" Clara Bow was the 1920s and early 1930s equivalent of Marilyn Monroe. Monroe even gave Bow a tribute since Bow was so iconic. Clara Bow was dubbed "La Bow" by Paramount, Betty was given a similar title to Bow, "La Boop" a few years later.

Betty Boop Red Jessica Rabbit Betty Boop Wikia Fandom by Boop Boop Be Doop

Long before Tex Avery's Red Hot Riding Hood and Disney's Jessica Rabbit, Betty was the original redhead. Both Red and Jessica were based on Boop's success. See "Betty Boop The Original Redhead"[8] for more details. To date, sales of Betty Boop merchandise have exceeded $1,000,000,000.

Paramount Pictures Corporation -annual releases- 1937-1938

Betty's dress is red, her high heels are colored black and her bangles and earrings are colored gold. Her eyes are colored a dark blue. Blue is Betty's original eye color palette in the original series.

Love Interests

Betty has an infatuation with men and males, she's mostly attracted masculine men. In her comic series, she's dated a handful of men, and she often likes to flirt with them. In Betty Boop's Birthday Party, while powdering her nose she can be seen and heard quoting: "Oh my dear, I hope it's a man," when her doorbell rings. Betty also explains her love life in more detail in the 1933 article The Love Life of Betty Boop.


Bimbo:

Bimbo was Betty's original boyfriend. Dave Fleischer told Grim Natwick that he had saw that Disney's famous Mickey Mouse had a girlfriend called Minnie Mouse. So Natwick worked on creating a girlfriend for Bimbo, and Bimbo and Betty were born. Betty and Bimbo's names are akin to Mickey and Minnie and other male and female cartoon counterparts, a more modern example being Buster and Babs.

Betty was originally a dog lady, and female counterpart to Bimbo in her earlier appearances. Bimbo dated Betty from 1930 to 1933, during his peak in the Fleischer cartoons as mascot, he also dated and married numerous other "female flapper girl characters" similar to Betty. In The Bum Bandit, he was married to Betty Boop when she portrayed Dangerous Dan McGrew's sister Dangerous Nan McGrew.

In an "In-Person" comic strip promotion for "Little Ann Little" live in-person appearance, Bimbo tells Betty that she needs to give up her tour, and marry someone, he is indirectly implying that Betty marry him. Betty responds to Bimbo by telling him that he is "redic" which means half-witted, and tells him that she is busy focusing on her tour. She tells Bimbo that she doesn't want to make a million men unhappy, just to make one man happy.

Bimbo was later removed from the series because Betty had transformed from a canine into a human girl. In new adaptions, Bimbo is Betty's best friend, rather than her girlfriend. Bimbo seems to no longer have a girlfriend, but he once fell in love with Miss Green (known as the mousy one, who looks similar to Disney's Minnie Mouse from the side), who at one point was dressed up in a femme fatale disguise, indicating that he still has a thing for human women.

In some alternate adaptions, for example Pandemonium Cartoon Circus musical, books and animations, Bimbo sometimes is back to being Betty Boop's boyfriend. The reason as to why Bimbo was removed from being Betty's boyfriend, was because Bimbo is a dog and Betty is a human and "in the real world" it is considered immoral for a human to date an animal. However it should be known that Betty and Bimbo are cartoon characters not real people, and were dating back when Betty was a dog woman.

In Who Framed Roger Rabbit, one of the main characters Jessica Rabbit, has a similar relationship with Roger Rabbit, and they are married. Betty (who seems to be single and alone), seems to be fine with their relationship, even going to the length by saying that Mrs. Rabbit is a lucky girl.


Ko-Ko the Clown:

Koko the Clown had crush on Betty Boop and in earlier Betty Boop cartoons such as Betty Boop's Penthouse and The Dancing Fool, would usually fight Bimbo over her affections, however he mostly lost out to Bimbo.

In his original series Out of the inkwell, Koko had many girlfriends that he created. For example the Mechanical Doll, and Jane, a mechanical clock lady. Most of his love interests died. In later adaptions Koko is more of a friend to Betty, and was more naive in personality more than comic relief. Koko once fell in love with a bad role model such as Lola DaVille. DaVille is considered to be rude and obnoxious.

In a scrapped 1994 film, he was deceived into a relationship by Betty's crazy antagonist Chastity Boop, a girl who attempted to steal Betty's life, however this is non-canon as the film was not released. His actual girlfriend and counterpart is Kokette the Clown.

Kokette was created when the Out of the Inkwell series was rebooted during the 1960s. The creators originally had a concept to reunite KO-KO with Betty and Bimbo but could not obtain the rights to the Betty Boop franchise. So they created their own original characters. Koko and his girlfriend Kokette are said to have a great relationship. However Kokette has not been seen since the 1960s.


Fearless Fred:

Fearless Fred was Betty's human boyfriend, and replacement for Bimbo. Betty was madly in love with Fred and she usually called him "Freddie" for short. In There's Something About a Soldier, she even dreamed of marrying him.

In "Fleischer's Animated News", in one strip, Betty can be seen marrying him. Fred's design was based on Paramount heart-throb Arthur Jarrett Jr., but this did not last as by the late 1930s, Fred was later removed from the series.

In The Romance of Betty Boop, Fred returns and tries to form a relationship with Betty. But by the end of the film Betty decides to choose Hollywood, as it is a chance of a lifetime, over a relationship with him.


Van Twinkle:

Van Twinkle was Betty Boop's celebrity boyfriend that was best known for his attractiveness, he appeared infrequently during the Betty Boop comic strip by Max Fleischer.

Twinkle dated Betty on and off, though he is known to lack personality and is very bland. There are also signs that he is a pansy, as he also at times ignores Betty's advances.

Van Twinkle being boring and bland does not seem to bother Betty, who frequently co-stars in films with him. Van Twinkle served as a substitute, to abandon such discrepancy regarding Betty's "love interest" Fearless Fred from the cartoons.

Fred however did appear in the same comic series, but in comparison to the cartoons, in the comic strip Fearless Fred was slender, blond, elegantly-dressed in comparison to Twinkle.

It would seem that Twinkle now has jet-black hair. Both Twinkle and Fearless are said to be similar-looking, and to Betty are considered to be hunks, which are handsome men.


Waldo Van Lavish:

Waldo Van Lavish is a rich man who Betty fell in love with. However Waldo lived more of a "Playboy" lifestyle with his two "Debutante Tramps" (groupies), Tracy (inspired by stars Tallulah Bankhead and Bette Davis) and Mimsey inspired by actress Katharine Hepburn.

At the Club Bubbles, Betty sings "I Wanna Be Loved By You" to get his attention. Betty briefly dated Waldo, unbeknownst that he had no interest in her.

Betty later finds out that all he wanted was her to be an "upstairs" maid for his father, so angrily she beats Waldo up with her handbag and tells him that she won't stoop for gold.


Grampy:

Grampy is considered to be Betty Boop's grandfather. However everyone calls him Grampy, and there have been occasions where he can be seen holding Betty and kissing her on the lips.

It is indirectly implied in the original series, that rather than her grandfather, he is actually her "sugar daddy" as Betty can be seen flirting with him on multiple occasions throughout the series. According to the official Betty Boop "Q&A" he is her legit grandfather.

It is never specified in the original cartoons or made clear. For the Broadway reboot, he was given a brand new girlfriend à la his doppelgänger Valentina.


Johnny Davenport:

Johnny Davenport was a scrapped love interest for Betty, that was going to appear in a 1994 "Betty Boop" film. The relationship between the two is magical, and at the end of the story Betty marries him and becomes Betty Davenport. This relationship is classed as non-canon, as the film never saw the light of day.


Swavo:

Swavo is one of the worst boyfriends that Betty has ever had. He appeared in Felix & Friends, there he's shown to be lazy and stingy, and is known to be a miser. He never had Betty's best interest and he mainly mooched off of her. He once borrowed $500 from Betty and spent it foolishly. He was also known to steal money from her.


Popeye the Sailor Man:

Popeye and Betty perform a sensuous hula dance together in Popeye the Sailor. Betty Boop has had a brief fling with Popeye in Welcome to Miami.

The Fleischers have hinted in gags that Betty frequently flirts with Popeye or that the two are in some form of relationship. Popeye's relationship with Betty suggests that he is cheating on Olive.

In many of Myron Waldman's artworks, he has depicted Betty and Popeye in romantic situations. The gag is that Betty Boop is very similar to Popeye's girlfriend Olive Oyl. Popeye and Betty date in a Betty Boop spoof featuring Rose McGowan as Betty Boop in Boop with Rose McGowan, because they are both "deformed" persons.

In Spinach & Stockings: The Adventures of Betty Boop & Popeye, Betty and Popeye go on adventure. When Betty flirts with the sailors, this upsets Popeye, who forgets that he already has a girlfriend.

Olive Oyl, who is normally the jealous kind, is either unaware or unconcerned about Popeye and Betty. Another gag is that Olive is possibly Betty's doppelgänger, as the women who voice Olive usually also voice Betty. In Project Runway All Stars, Popeye says that Betty is a sexy girl.


Mr. Robbins:

In another universe, more or less the multiverse. Betty is married to Mr. Robbins. The comic is a very popular "unofficial" spin-off.


Dwayne:

Dwayne is Betty's new current Lebanese-Italian love interest portrayed by Ainsley Melham, he appears in The Betty Boop Musical. Originally Dwayne was Latino and was portrayed by James Olivas at the workshop session. He is a professional trumpet player, and jazz musician.

Feminism?

Betty Boop Feminist

Betty Boop was one of the first and most well-known sex symbols on the animated screen. Betty Boop is now regarded as a feminist icon, a re-write of her backstory today is kind of complicated. However, the original Betty Boop of the 1930s was not a feminist and did not advocate for radical feminism, as is now alleged.

As of 2020, rewrites of Betty Boop's feminism origins in media is historical revisionism. Though Betty Boop's image helped shape feminism, she was essentially America's first sex icon. As her initial creator Grim Natwick stated on numerous occasions, Betty was created by men for the benefit of men. He also stated that, though Betty was never vulgar or obscene, Betty was a suggestion you could spell in three letters: S-E-X. Betty is used by feminists today as an example of how sexism objectifies women.

Today there are contemporary photographs showing Betty saying, "we can do it" and or "you can do it" used to promote Betty today as a feminist. These new images depict Betty in comparison to a 1940s American World War II poster that was often used during the 1980s and 1990s and today by feminists to promote feminism. Betty however was long retired in 1939, and lost most of her appeal by the 1940s and was later forgotten in history up until the 1970s.

In her cartoons, the original Betty Boop was sexualized. Betty did, however, speak up for her rights in certain cartoons, such as the 1932 cartoon Boop-Oop-a-Doop and the 1933 cartoon Betty Boop's Big Boss. However, by the end of Betty Boop's Big Boss, Betty had succumbed to her boss's sexual advances. The majority of the Betty cartoons included a mix of sexulization and objectification at Betty's expense. Betty did not stop the male characters who would frequently do unpleasant things to her in most of the early cartoons.

Ted Hannah, the King Features Syndicate director who oversaw the public relations effort that reintroduced Betty Boop to the globe, declared in 1985 that Betty Boop was not a feminist. "Although Betty Boop is not a feminist, she could be useful to the movement because she is non-threatening and demonstrates good qualities."

Betty's look in the initial cartoons was eventually cleaned up and modified to be more modest in comparison to her former iteration by the late 1930s. In the majority of the early cartoons, Betty was an independent girl who was often harassed by fictional male characters. However many decades later in Hurray For Betty Boop, which debuted in 1980, some of the original cartoons were rewritten with Betty embracing feminism. In the original 1932 cartoon, Betty's father Mr. Boop forces Betty to eat her meal, this however makes Betty sad and she starts to cry and compliment suicide in song by stating that she will eat some worms and die, Betty runs away from home only to later return scared by the ghost of Minnie the Moocher. Whereas in this 1980 re-write, Betty still gets upset, but this time she calls her father a "chauvinist pig" and leaves home for good.

Betty's feminist status was mostly emphasised for the documentary Betty Boop Forever, which contends that Betty is a feminist. Betty did not struggle for women's rights in the original cartoons. Dr. Martens x Betty Boop also promoted Betty's new image.

Betty Boop was reimagined by King Features and Fleischer Studios because it was discovered that she was "too out of touch" with modern audiences.

The question was how a nostalgic character like Betty might appeal to a broad audience today without prejudice. Producers remarked that they are torn between updating Betty Boop and embracing her feminism or by keeping her archaic qualities. A few of Betty's old outdated characteristics featured in earlier Fleischer Studios cartoons include discrimination against homosexuals, racism against people of color, sexism against women and also the sexualization of women. Each of which are not acceptable in society today.

Skills

Betty Boop Piano

Betty Boop is a singer, but does not consider herself to be very good. In her official theme song, she says that people can say her voice is awful, but is more concerned about someone taking her "Boop-Boop-Be-Doop" away. At times, she is also able to dance, and even once opened up "Betty Boop's Dancing School" in The Dancing Fool.

The original Betty Boop in the cartoons was a skilled impersonator, who could impersonate anyone. Celebrities she often impersonated included Fanny Brice and Maurice Chevalier. She also had the ability to morph into caricatures of Herbert Hoover and Al Smith.

Kane Silhouette

In Stopping the Show, a caricature of Helen Kane originally appeared, and she asked Betty to sing "That's My Weakness Now" and imitate her. Making Kane one of the many original impersonations in Betty's act. However due to a lawsuit, the Fleischer Studios deleted the scene from all prints, so instead Betty comes on as herself singing the song.

Aside from her talent for imitation, which she inherited from Mae Questel, Betty Boop is a talented pianist who also plays the organ. Betty Boop frequently plays the piano in the original Betty Boop cartoons. Modern day Betty Boop, dubbed new-age Betty, has lost these unique traits. However as the series rolled on, in the original series Betty stopped doing impersonations of other celebrities. However in Pudgy Takes a Bow-Wow, Betty does two stereotypical impersonations, one of a Chinese man who works at a laundry shop and the other an Italian man who works as a grinder.

Cosmetic Nose Surgery?

Betty Boop's Nose Job Betty Boop Wikia

The original Betty Boop in the original Fleischer Studios cartoons had a bigger oval button shaped nose. Betty's original nose matches more with her Jewish origin. However when Betty Boop was given a new design by King Features Syndicate, they changed a lot of her features including her nose.[9] Betty as it were in the "Toon World" as she is fictional has had rhinoplasty, which is cosmetic plastic surgery for the nose.

Eye Color

Boopy Loops

Betty is known to have blue eyes but can sometimes be seen with green eyes in official artworks. Whereas classic Betty Boop has black eyes with no color. Art featuring Betty Boop is printed in black & white the dotted lines indicating her eye irises do not appear. Betty's eyes are made up of only a black pupil and white eyeball.

When printed in color Betty's irises print PMS 351 leaving the triangular highlights in the white pupils. The black dotted lines indicating Betty's irises never print. In special instances, the iris may be defined by a solid black line but only with permission of the Licensing Art Director. Betty Boop's eyes were altered in the Lancome Paris Star Eyes commercial, and she can also be seen sporting eye shadow.

Betty Boop FAQ Official Betty Boop Website bettyboop.com faq

The official Betty Boop FAQ once claimed before deleting the entry, that Betty's current official eye color is a light green. Thanks to an archive, the FAQ in question has been restored.

Earlier Fleischer Studios cartoons indicate that Betty's original official eye color was blue. The official Betty Boop today is completely different to her 1930s counterpart. King Features have full control over Betty Boop, and they have changed a lot of Betty's image, backstory and origins to market the character to the new generation. So most information put out on the official Betty Boop or Fleischer Studios websites, may not be 100% accurate, and may not reflect Betty Boop's original backstory.

Eye Colors


Classic Betty Boop has a black eye color when in black and white. She has blue eyes when she's in color. She has the option of bright or dark blue eyes. Betty's eyes are a dark green tint as well. Modern Betty by King Features Syndicate has light green eyes. Betty also has bright blue eyes, as shown in her Lancôme Paris Star Eyes commercial.

Hair Color


2023 Betty Boop Redhead

A majority of fans claim that Betty's black hair complements her look. But when colorized during the 1930s, Betty's original hair color was red.[10] Individuals who lack access to the original Fleischer or Paramount transcripts, or are not fans of the original Betty, lack knowledge of the character's origin. And those individuals who know very little of Betty Boop are usually unaware of Betty's red hair origin.

This is not false information. It is ignorant to ignore this, so it has been brought to light. It has been confirmed by cartoon historian and artist Leslie Cabarga who was told this by ex-Fleischer animators and staff. Grim Natwick and Little Ann Little also confirmed this to be true. However Little claimed in her story that Betty had red hair because she herself had red hair.

The Fleischer Studios family lineage have not confirmed this as they may have used falsified material to debunk Natwick's statements. So they more or less focus more on the process of how Poor Cinderella was colorized, rather than the true origin of Betty "already" having being created with vivid red hair by Natwick.

Also the family may be unaware that Betty even had red hair to begin with as they do not acknowledge Betty as a redhead, and neither do King Features. Since her reappearance in the 1930s, Betty's only known hair color has been jet-black, akin to that of Helen Kane.

Black hair and hazel green eyes were two of Kane's best-known features. Betty's new hue, with her pale green eyes and black hair, makes her look even more like Kane. Betty would have been considerably different from Kane if she hadn't been a redhead with blue eyes.

Redhead Clara Bow, whom Paramount acknowledged in Hollywood on Parade that Betty resembled, served as the model for Betty's red hair. As stated, most of Bow's persona was molded into Betty Boop's character.

The Fleischers later stopped making Betty have red hair and it was lastly used in Poor Cindrella in 1934 and Fleischer's Animated News. Red later became her second alternative hair color.

Since Betty lives in the inkwell, in a majority of her cartoons, most of the time her hair is black like ink. There have been a lot of antique items from the 1930s, such as promos, clocks, masks, coloring books, porcelain, toys, dolls, all featuring Betty with red hair. In 2023, Betty was given a new modernized orange-red hairstyle for some official brand-new Betty Boop goods.


Betty has 16 spit curls in total. Her curls are angled to one side. Her head is covered with four curls on the left side and four on the right. There are four additional curls on the left side of the head and four more on the right.

Betty Boop's Hairstyle Evolution

Betty Boop Hairstyle Evolution 1930 to 1939

Throughout the series, Betty Boop's hairstyle has evolved. In 1930, Betty made her debut with a curly "kiss-curl" styled hairstyle, which was based on flapper girls of the 1920s. For some of the cartoons in 1930, the Fleischers completely removed all of Betty's curls, giving off more of a "Louise Brooks" or "Josephine Baker" style. In Accordion Joe, Betty has no curls, and long hair tied in ponytails.

In some cartoons Betty has long hair. For example as a mermaid, and in a parody of Alice in Wonderland her hair grows to match Alice's.


By 1936, the "part" in the middle of Betty's forehead was completely removed, this was either to change Betty's hairstyle a little to make her look different, or to make it easier to draw and or animate Betty.


The Fleischers were actually at one point advised to "modernize" Betty's hairstyle with the times as the iconic flapper hairstyle that Betty had, was out of touch with the times by the late 1930s. However the Fleischers only ended up changing Betty's hairstyle once in the 1938 cartoon Honest Love and True, and then reverted it back to the flapper hairstyle.

Betty was re-designed in 1938 to look taller and her head size and body portions were made smaller, this came about when the Fleischers saw the success of Disney's film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. With this new change, Betty's hair was drawn a little longer than usual. By 1938, women began to embrace new trends and styles. High hair, stylish short-snipped hair, pin-curls and longer hair were becoming more fashionable and trendy.

Race & Religion

02 Betty Boop's Parents

Betty Boop is Caucasian and is Jewish but unlike her parents Mr. Boop and Mrs. Boop, Betty does not follow strict Jewish sects. Betty's mother in the original cartoon is unable to speak English and only speaks Yiddish. Betty's parents are Jewish Polish immigrants.

Baby Brother

Betty Boop Baby Brother Billy Boop 3

Billy Boop is Betty's baby brother.

Betty Boop's Family

BettyBoopFamily1930sStrip

Betty's family are Jewish-Polish, Betty and her brothers are Polish-Americans. Grampy her grandfather, Mr. Boop her father, Mrs. Boop her mother, Bubby Boop her other brother. Aunt Tillie her aunt, Uncle Mischa her uncle, her cousins Irving and Buzzy Boop.

Junior her nephew, Quintet Kiddies her adopted children, 17 Kids which were Bimbo and Betty's kids in The Bum Bandit. Wicked Queen who is Betty's wicked-stepmother in Snow White. Grandma who is Betty's grandmother in Dizzy Red Riding Hood.

Some of Betty's family members can fall into the category of non-canon. In the 1930s Betty Boop comic series, in one strip Betty's whole family gather at her home. But in the comic it doesn't mention their relation to Betty. Tillie, Bubby and Billy later stopped appearing in the series. The series then followed Betty alone on her career.

It is assumed that the boy who makes a cameo appearance in the "family mob scene" is either Bubby or Billy, most likely being Bubby due to the hairstyle. Betty's other family members include Aunt Minnie, Little Bucky and Uncle Biff.

Betty's family were excluded out of the Broadway reboot. This is probably due to their inconsistency, and how badly Betty's parents treat her. However in some cartoons and spin-off comic strips, Betty says that she has a great relationship with both her strict Jewish parents.

Native-American

Accordion Joe 1930 Betty Boop 13

In the 1930 cartoon Accordion Joe, Betty is Native-American. Native-American Indian progenitors were Indigenous people who were the "First Americans" to settle in America.

Samoan


In Betty Boop's Bamboo IslePopeye the Sailor and Betty Boop's Rise to Fame, Betty has dark skin and is Samoan. The Samoan people are a Polynesian ethnic group of the Samoan Islands.

Misconception and misinformation spread is that Betty Boop is often mistaken for African-American. Betty has dark skin in that cartoon, but is Samoan not African-American. Betty is not in blackface in the cartoon (excluding Betty Boop's Rise to Fame), she is depicted to be a native Pacific Islander.

Betty for these sequences was actually rotoscoped directly from The Royal Samoans. The Samoan hula dancer known as "Mari," "Meri," and mainly Lotamuru, was the reference and or model for Betty Boop in this cartoon.

Origins

Betty Boop 1930 Debut in Dizzy Dishes

The character was originally created as an plump anthropomorphic French poodle, which was originally a take on Helen Kane, a popular "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" Paramount Pictures screen star and recording artist, who's career had ended with Paramount in 1931.

Grim Natwick who created Betty's initial concept stated that he used a photograph of Helen Kane, in his words, "a highly talented, very popular nightclub singer of that time," and used her photograph from a song sheet[11] by merging her head with a poodle.

Natwick also stated that the "spit curls" were popular to the teenage girls of that era, and that is also what inspired him to create Betty Boop. In Betty's debut she is a nameless character. Grim initially referred to Betty as the "Pretty Girl" and she was only given the name "Nancy Lee" in the second animated feature Barnacle Bill.

The nameless character in Dizzy Dishes who later became "Betty Boop" was only meant to have made a one-shot appearance, but the public loved the character so Paramount & the Fleischer Studios continued to develop the character.

After the release of the 1930 short Barnacle Bill, Betty had became slimmer and her design was tweaked. Betty's skin tone was also shaded darker in two 1930 shorts that followed Barnacle Bill, the cartoons were Mysterious Mose and The Bum Bandit. According to Grim Natwick, Betty is just shaded for artistic appeal. Shading art helps make the shadows more three dimensional as opposed to being flat.


Silly Scandals

In 1931, Betty's snout had became a button nose, her official design was similar to that of her human form only she was still an anthropomorphic French poodle. In 1932 (Betty can be seen without her ears in various Talkartoon releases in 1931 but it wasn't official until 1932), her floppy long poodle ears became hoop earrings and the character was later changed into a human.

In 1932, Betty started appearing in her own series as the main protagonist.

The original canine Betty Boop with the snout was classed as ugly by her creators, due to the fact that she pulled some really ugly faces in her first appearance, which is what prompted them to update her character design and make her appeal to the audience.


Bimbo Other Girlfriend

What actually led to the creation of Betty Boop, was not just Grim Natwick, but an idea by Max Fleischer's wife Essie Fleischer. Essie suggested that the Fleischers create a girlfriend for Bimbo. Which lead Bimbo to have prototype girlfriends.

04

This character here from the 1932 Talkartoon titled The Robot is not Betty Boop. The animators used Betty's body to animate her scenes, but she is actually one of Bimbo's many girlfriends.

Bimbos other flapper girlfriend 02

This is a nameless flapper girl from the 1932 Talkartoon titled Hide And Seek. Bimbo marries this girl at the end of the cartoon, and she becomes his wife. A list of Bimbo's girlfriends can be seen here.

​Betty Boop Cloned

Betty Boop Clones 3

In Bimbo's Initiation, the French poodle version of Betty Boop clones herself, indicating that she is the leader of a sex cult. Which makes Betty Boop a Freemason in that individual cartoon.


Betty_Boop_is_a_Freemason?

Betty Boop is a Freemason?


Betty is the leader of a secret society, the Mystic Order of the Boom Boom a Hotcha, in which she is worshipped by herself, the Betty Boop Clones, an early reference to human cloning. Betty and her clones ask Bimbo to join the Freemasons, Bimbo declines, so they use several tactics to get him to join. Bimbo refuses to join Betty's secret society, until she reveals her true form to him with a sexually suggestive dance. Only then Bimbo accepts her invitation.

​Betty Boop's Residence


In the Betty Boop cartoon series Betty is seen living in a different home in each and every episode. In Bimbo's Express Betty is shown moving home, which indicates that she might do that on a regular basis, Where as in Minnie the Moocher Betty is shown to live with her parents. Following the later series Betty lives alone and sometimes with Pudgy.

Helen Kane Look & Sound-alike Contests

RKO CONTEST BETTY BOOP HELEN KANE 1930

Paramount Publix & the Fleischer Studios held a contest to find local talent, some of the girls entered contests which were sponsored by Helen Kane. So the Fleischers held a "Betty Boop" contest to find women who sounded like Helen Kane for their cartoons. In one contest second place went to Jo Miller in one of the many contests that had been held by Paramount to find a voice for Betty Boop. As the Fleischers and Paramount were looking for "Helen Kane" soundalikes. 

Originally Helen Kane opened her own "Helen Kane Impersonation Contests" and they were held through the country to all local girls, in which was judged by Helen Kane, the judges and the audience. The girl who looked and sung like Helen and "Boop-Boop-a-Dooped" most successfully was the winner.

Mae Questel won first place in the final Helen Kane impersonation contest held at the Riverside Theatre in New York. Second place was a tie with Bonnie Poe and Margie Hines. Helen Kane, "I held amateur contests for amateurs that I thought it would be fun and would stimulate business in the theatre. We had Helen Kane's "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" contests and these girls came in and I heard them personally myself, and selected them, and then they appeared at the theatre one night during the week and they sang and they were awarded $25, or maybe a dress."

Margie Hines won three "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" contests and then went on to create the voice for Betty Boop. Helen Kane had even autographed a photo to Mae Questel that said, "To Another Me." All the girls who entered the contests were given cash prizes and jewelry.

Mae later heard there was an audition for Betty Boop, so she auditioned for the role and was given a contract by the Fleischers, and started voicing Betty Boop in 1931, sharing the role with Margie Hines, who was the first and original voice for the character who was sought by Billy Murray and Louis Diamond. Louis Diamond of Paramount would employ the girl and turn her over to the Fleischer Studios. Later Bonnie Poe and Little Ann Little auditioned and were hired. According to Little Ann Little who dubbed herself the original Betty Boop girl, she didn't enter an amateur Helen Kane contest and had been singing baby songs since 1925, and was just what the Fleischers were looking for in 1933. The Helen Kane contests are a vital part of "Boop" history, because most of the women who entered became the official voice of Betty Boop.


Margie Hines 1935 Betty Boop Wikia Fandom
The_Original_Voice_of_Betty_Boop

The Original Voice of Betty Boop


The first 1930 cartoons to feature the Betty Boop prototype character, Dizzy Dishes, Accordion Joe, Mysterious Mose and Barnacle Bill feature only the vocals of Margie Hines.



The other original voices[12] of Betty Boop were, Margie Hines, Little Ann Little, Mae Questel, Bonnie Poe, Brooklyn girl June Albrezzi (June White) and radio voice by Kate Wright, another "Betty Boop" radio voice that was featured on The Sun Shine Hour radio show was Shirley Reid, Reid also did her "Betty Boop" impersonation in-person at a restaurant in Los Angeles in 1934. Reid's "Betty Boop impersonation" kickstarted her a career in the voice-over world, she went on to work for Walter Lantz and Walt Disney. Cookie Bowers was the voice of Betty Boop on his European tour.



Miss Desiree Goyette as Betty Boop 1980s

Victoria D'Orazi voiced Betty Boop in the 1980 film short Hurray for Betty Boop, however the 1980s official voice of Betty Boop was Desirée Goyette.



Before voicing Betty Boop in The Romance of Betty Boop, Goyette appeared as Betty Boop in person at the 1984 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade courtesy of King Features. Goyette choreographed a dance sequence and sang "I Wanna Be Loved By You" to a live audience. Mae Questel, the original voice of Betty Boop told June Foray that Goyette was "not so bad" as the voice of Betty and gave Goyette her blessing as the new voice of Betty Boop, but after the 1980s Goyette no longer officially voiced Betty, but instead a one-shot parody Googi Goop in The Girl with the Googily Goop.


Cheryl Chase Hudock as Betty Boop

(Cheryl Chase as Betty Boop and or Helen Kane impersonator for the Crazy Rhythm Hot Society Orchestra.)


Cheryl Chase who is most famous for her voice role on the show Rugrats and is "like Betty Boop" is also one of the many "spiritual successors" of Mae Questel. Initially Mary Healey and Melissa Fahn as of 1989 were the voices of Betty Boop, with Fahn being the official voice, but during the late 2000s Fahn retired from the role. Laurette Willis did Betty's voice on The Betty Boop Show and radio, she also appeared on TV with Mae Questel. After Fahn retired Betty Boop's voice was officially provided by Cindy Robinson.


Lauren Coco Cohn Betty Boop

In 2014, Heather Halley and Camilla Bard provided the voice for Betty in the official Betty Boop video game release Betty Boop Dance Card. Broadway star Lauren "Coco" Cohn, who playfully looks like Betty Boop, is also one of the many voices of Betty.


CINDY ROBINSON

Cindy Robinson claimed that her voice for Betty is sultry and sexy, and claimed that other modern day voices of Betty Boop are just "cute" in comparison. Robinson's imitation of the "Betty Boop voice" sounds a little deeper in comparison to the previous voices, and sounds more in comparison to DC Comics character Harley Quinn. Robinson provided the voice of Betty in a majority of the video games and commercials. One of the main company she voiced Betty for was Bally Gaming, however during the early 2000s, originally Lani Minella was the voice of Betty Boop for Bally. Robinson was noted as making a statement that King Features always hires "more than one voice-over" artist to voice Betty Boop, just in case the other talented voice-over talents are unavailable.

In-Person

Universal Studios Betty Boop Impersonators

In person Betty is often portrayed by a Betty Boop Impersonator. During the 1980s Victoria D'Orazi appeared as a Betty Boop impersonator for the 1980 Democratic National Convention, she also voiced Betty Boop.


Debbi Fuhrman Betty Boop

Debbi Fuhrman, originally was the official branded Betty Boop impersonator for King Features, Fuhrman was also part of The Betty Boopers girl group. Betty Boop Impersonators for theme parks throughout the years have been frequently advertised, theme parks are always actively seeking a new Betty Boop.



For the MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park, Angelia and Diana Rice who won the "Boop-A-Like Contest" originated the character role of Betty. Angelia went on to officially voice Betty on behalf of Bally Gaming, and Rice appeared as Betty in person for commercials and events.

New Yorker Peppy Greene used to take on the role of Betty in-person, and sell Betty Boop merchandise for Vandor Products. For Universal Studios, character impersonators such as Danielle Marie, better known by her stage name Sandy Fox, portrayed Betty in person during the early 1990s and on various TV shows.

Fox was hired in 1991, and she shared the role with Marilyn Monroe impersonator Dena Drotar and Suzanne LaRusch, LaRusch later found more success as a Lucille Ball impersonator. During the late 1990s Fox was later asked by Universal Studios to record a song for the Betty Boop store at Orlando, Florida.

Not long after that she went into the voice-over business and later became a fulltime voice-over artist and or voice double for "Betty Boop" initially mimicking Mae Questel and Helen Kane. Though Fox initially did not voice Betty up until Lancôme Paris Star Eyes, as she was an in-person Betty, she eventually won a contract to officially voice Betty fulltime alongside several other voice actresses.

Fox had not been used for any animated projects prior to the Lancôme commercial but had been actively impersonating Betty Boop in-person and mimicking Mae Questel. In one of Sandy Fox's deleted demo reels, she imitated the "original" Betty Boop girl Mae Questel's "iconic" Who Framed Roger Rabbit sequence. Since Fox's departure from the theme park, Betty has since been portrayed by a barrage of new talent. Since the 2000s, and as of 2023 new Betty Boop impersonators have voiced Betty on radio, appeared as Betty on TV and in TV commercials. Today Universal Studios has several notable "Betty Boop" impersonators taking on the role, however the role is often recast as Universal Studios has several theme parks such as Universal Orlando Resort, Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Singapore and Universal Beijing Resort.


Little-Ann-Little-as-Betty-Boop-betty-boop-17090342-541-480

Little Ann Little was the original "Betty Boop" impersonator, though Ann was "not" the original voice of the character, she was known as the "original model" of Betty because her contract officially stated that she was the "Original Betty Boop" for the Fleischer Studios, she also later went on to voice Betty in 1933. Little portrayed Betty from the mid-1930s up until the early-1940s. In history, Little was known to over-exaggerate her role. Mae Questel, Bonnie Poe, Margie Hines had also appeared as Betty Boop on stage and in person for Max Fleischer, Paramount and Fleischer Studios publicity events during the 1930s.

Live-Action

Betty Boop has appeared in person in two official live-action shorts by Paramount Pictures.

Musical Justice (1931)


Betty is portrayed by Mae Questel in Musical Justice. Mae Questel performs "Don't Take My Boop-Oop-A-Doop Away" in a live-action sequence.

Hollywood on Parade (1933)


Betty is portrayed by Bonnie Poe in Hollywood on Parade No. A-8, alongside Bela Lugosi. Bonnie Poe sings "My Silent Love" in a live-action sequence. Poe is often mistaken for Mae Questel and Helen Kane during her role as Betty Boop in Hollywood on Parade No. A-8. Helen Kane made a small cameo appearance a year before Betty's live-action appearance in Hollywood on Parade No. A-2, and two years prior Kane was featured in Paramount on Parade in her own skit performing a "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" number. A year after this was made, Poe made a cameo in Rambling 'Round Radio Row as a Betty Boop singer, there she sang "Puddin' Head Jones" to a mailman.

$250,000 Infringement Lawsuit

Betty Boop Baby Esther Jones Betty Boop

In May 1932, Helen Kane[13] filed a $250,000 infringement lawsuit against Max Fleischer and Paramount Publix Corporation for the "deliberate caricature" that produced "unfair competition", exploiting her personality and image. While Kane had risen to fame in the late 1920s as "The Boop-Oop-A-Doop Girl," a star of stage, recordings, and films for Paramount, her career was nearing its end by 1931. Paramount promoted the development of Betty Boop following Kane's decline. The case was brought in New York in 1934. Although Kane's claims seemed to be valid on the surface, it was proven that her appearance was not unique. Both Kane and the Betty Boop character bore resemblance to Paramount top-star Clara Bow.

The most significant evidence against Kane's case was her claim as to the uniqueness of her scat singing style in which she had adapted from an African-American child performer from Chicago who went by the name of Baby Esther, but was better known as Little Esther.

Testimony revealed that Kane had witnessed the seven-year-old "Florence Mills" impersonator Little Esther Lee Jones, using a similar scat singing style in her act at the Everglades Nite Club. An early test sound film was also discovered which featured Esther Jones performing in this style disproving Kane's claims that she was the first to "Boop-a-Doop" in song.


Betty Boop Didn't Steal Boops From Helen Kane 1934 Betty Boop Wikia

It later came out that Kane's style was not unique, and other performers had done it before her. Kane is said to have adapted the scat singing style she heard as performed by Esther and had made it famous. The origination of the style points to Baby Esther's predecessors Florence Mills and Gertrude Saunders, and general African-American night clubs where the scat singing technique is said to have originated.

The only claim Kane had that was valid in court was that her "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" routine had antecedent Betty Boop's, as her look was not unique and the baby singing style was quite common among a number of singers.

Grim Natwick who created Betty Boop, admitted that he had used a photograph of Helen Kane to create Betty Boop for the 1930 Talkartoon short Dizzy Dishes, but in court Helen couldn't prove this, with most of her claims being thrown out by the judge. 


Helen Kane Helen Sugar Kane Helen Schroeder Betty Boop

The verdict was basically that Helen Kane was not the "first" Boop-Oop-a-Doop singer in the business. And it was found that Kane's singing techniques of the "baby-talk" and "scat singing" were common to a number of "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" performers, even before Helen had claimed she invented the idea and mannerisms. Number as in multiple people, not just one. In other words an imitation of an imitation.


Fleischer Studios Tribute To Jazz Singers 1 2021

In 2021 the Fleischer Studios and official Betty Boop page gave tribute to Baby Esther Jones, Gertrude Saunders, Florence Mills, Little Ann Little, Mae Questel and Clara Bow in "The Battle Over Booping" article. They also explained how Helen did not own the scat genre, and that other performers (particularly African-American women) had used that technique years before Kane was known. Gertrude Saunders started the craze for women in 1921 and inspired many other women during the 20s to emulate what she started. Scatting was used prior, but Saunders pioneered it for women. Clarence Williams an African-American male singer and writer also claimed he had used "Boop" in his scat-singing routines in 1915. Williams was married to Eva Taylor who was also in the same musical Shuffle Along, which also once starred Gertrude Saunders and Florence Mills.

Victory Newsreel (1934)

A_Message_To_Helen_Kane

A Message To Helen Kane

Don't Take Our Boop-Oop-a-Doop Away!


In response to Helen Kane, Max Fleischer produced a "Fleischer Victory Newsreel" titled Betty Wins By A Boop that included five of the actresses who had voiced Betty Boop. Little Ann Little, Bonnie Poe, Mae Questel, Margie Hines, and Kate Wright. The women, according to Max Fleischer, all had a "certain something" in their voices.

With assistance from the other four Betty Boop voices, Mae Questel sang "Don't Take Our Boop-Oop-a-Doop Away" in the lead role. "You can say our voices are awful, or my songs are too risqué. But don't take our 'Boop-Oop-a-Doop' away," stated Questel. The song featured was a dig towards Helen Kane, as the song best known as Betty Boop's signature song was originally written for Helen.

Helen Kane later told the press that she was shocked and disappointed, adding that both she and her friends felt that Betty Boop was a deliberate caricature of her. Kane went on to tell the newspapers that it wasn't the money, it was the fact that they had stolen her idea.

Helen Kane: "I am MAD! MAD! MAD! I am so mad! I am going to spend a lot of money appealing this case. They have stolen my idea! I don't need money. I sued these Betty Boop people for $250,000, I don't want a cent of it. All I want is vindication. It has broken my heart."

Helen Kane Using Betty Boop's Image Without Permission

Helen Kane Do something

Helen Kane never provided the voice the animated character Betty Boop, but is often mistaken for the voice of Betty Boop. Helen later went on to use Betty Boop for her posters, two years later in 1935 for her Fox Brooklyn shows.

Helen Kane Betty Boop 1935 Brooklyn Fox

The show even featured a Betty Boop cartoon. Max Fleischer was told by one of the newspapers at the time to sue Kane, but he didn't and let her use Betty Boop without permission, even though Helen Kane initially had wanted Betty Boop stopped by an injunction.

Helen Kane was originally flattered by the character Betty Boop, until she got mixed up for being the voice of Betty Boop and also being dubbed a Betty Boop impersonator. Helen stated the following: "I have become a ghost... Recently in Hollywood when some children ran to open the door of my car they greeted me as Betty Boop. Betty is just one stroke removed from Mickey Mouse."

After Kane had attempted to sue the Fleischer Studios, from there on Max Fleischer had no nice words to describe the actress. A Brooklyn newspaper that Max Fleischer read regularly, stated that they were not supposed to mention Helen in favor of Mr. Fleischer. Max Fleischer had started his career as a newspaper cartoonist, and after the Fleischer Studios had became a famous studio, he was very well known in Brooklyn.

Betty Boop Comic Strip

In 1934 Betty Boop's comic strip was launched. The strip was re-released in 2015 by Titan Comics and it also featured The Original Boop-Boop-a-Doop Girl by Helen Kane. In 2015, Dynamite Comics announced a new deal with Fleischer Studios and King Features to publish a new Betty Boop comic. 

Fleischer's Animated News

Betty made appearances on the front cover of the Fleischer's Animated News, where she appeared in some of her own skits with Grampy, her nephew Junior, Popeye and Olive Oyl.

Betty Boop's Successor and Betty Boop's Death

Meet Sally Swing

It was announced in 1938 that after introducing a new Fleischer character "Sally Swing" that Betty would have passed away.[14] Twelve "Sally Swing Cartoons" were lined up, and she was going to take over Betty's place as a more "modern" and "stream-lined" character. Paramount Pictures and the Fleischer Studios announced that Betty Boop had since died. Lou Diamond told the press that Betty Boop is dead and that Sally Swing is the new successor.

"With a sense of deep regret, that they record the passing of Miss Betty Boop, the amiable, pulchritudinous, neckless young lady who had served Paramount so loyally for many years. Betty had passed on suddenly, but not before she was able to name her successor."

After introducing Sally in the episode Sally Swing, Betty was supposed to have passed away.

The Fleischers held a "Sally Swing Contest" to find Sally Swing. They found Rose Marie, a former child "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" girl. Marie was known by her stage name "Baby Rose Marie" and she took on the role of Sally Swing at the age of 15.

Much like Betty, Sally is 16 years of age, and at the time of her creation was thought to be the epitome of modern youth, and was full of life, pep, and that magic something that sustained the young people of the late 1930s.

Betty had the appearance of an out-of-date flapper girl, Sally at the time was more of a modern bobby-soxer. Sally is devoted to swing, is lithe and lissom, and, in parlance of Hollywood's scriptures, the ideal jitterbug.

The "Sally Swing" episode debut did badly at the box-office, so Paramount and the Fleischers decided to cancel the entire series. Because Sally made no impact, instead Betty Boop retired rather than died.

The bad PR stunt by Paramount and the Fleischers announcing Betty's death to make way for Sally was somewhat a blunder. Betty Boop was later revived during the 1980s, Sally Swing was not seen again until the mid-2010s. Since then Betty's short-lived death has been a secret.

The Romance of Betty Boop (1985)


Loved by her neighbors, Betty Boop is a diligent worker. She works throughout the day as a shoe salesperson at a store and performs at Club Bubbles at night. Desirée Goyette[15] was picked to voice Betty out of 55 actresses.

Goyette stated, "Betty Boop was modeled after Clara Bow, so if you want to know more about who Betty Boop was, you need to know a lot more about who Clara Bow was. And so as the voice of Betty Boop I did my best Clara Bow imitation."

Throughout the movie, Betty Boop dons different outfits many times and keeps a parrot named Polly as a pet instead of her usual dog, Pudgy. Even though the Hays Code laws had long since been abandoned and Betty's garter is one of her primary characteristics, she doesn't wear it for the whole of the movie.

Betty does, however, reappear in the sequel. Who Framed Roger Rabbit, a film that was produced three years after The Romance of Betty Boop, features Betty. The way that Grim Natwick drew Betty in the 1970s and 1980s is similar to how Betty is drawn in the movie.

This is the first time Betty has ever performed the hit song "I Wanna Be Loved By You" a song originally by Helen Kane. As per the provided details, the individuals working on the movie had Marilyn Monroe and her role in "Some Like It Hot" in mind when they incorporated the musical interlude into the movie.

The Betty Boop Movie Mystery (1989)


In a diner, Betty Boop serves customers as a waitress with her pals Bimbo and Koko the Clown. The voice of Betty Boop is provided by Melissa Fahn, who later took over the role after Mae Questel, Mary Healey and Desirée Goyette.

Along with her buddies Koko and Bimbo, Betty Boop works as a waitress in Los Angeles. This is Bimbo's first appearance since 1933, when he initially appears in blue instead of black.

The short was produced a year following Betty's appearance in the Disney animated picture Who Framed Roger Rabbit from 1988. Betty's garter has returned, and her customary red gown has been replaced with a purple one, and her jewelry has switched from gold to silver.

The Betty Boop Movie Mystery, in contrast to The Romance of Betty Boop, aims to maintain Max Fleischer's original surrealistic flair from the original Betty Boop cartoons.

The Betty Boop Movie (1993-1994)


In 1993, Richard Fleischer who was the son of Max Fleischer of the Fleischer Studios wanted to make a feature out of his father's star character "Betty Boop" but those plans were later scrapped.

Jazz was a major part of most of the old Betty Boop cartoon shorts. In the storyboard in the link above Betty Boop performs a song called "Where Are You?" with her estranged father Benny Boop. Sue Raney substitutes for Betty and Jimmy Rowles stands in for Betty's father Benny Boop.

According to Mary Kay Bergman she had auditioned for the role and had been given the part, until it was abandoned. Bergman stated that she perfected Betty's voice. Sandy Fox who was touring as a Betty Boop "character impersonator" also auditioned for this role, and lost out to Bergman. The music was written by Benny Wallace and lyrics by Cheryl Ernst Wells.

Bergman was a famous multi-voice and at one point was "The Official Voice of Snow White," she is best known in history for her voices on the hit TV show "South Park". Bergman later used her Betty Boop vocal imitation for 'Weird Al' Yankovic's Jewish parody "Pretty Fly for a Rabbi". Originally Yankovic wanted her to do most of the track, but her agent forbid her from using her "South Park" Sheila Broflovski character voice due to a possible lawsuit.

Yankovic was not satisfied with Bergman's squeaky Betty Boop imitation so he got Tress MacNeille to do her Fran Drescher vocal imitation, and Bergman's alternative recordings were removed from the track. Bergman can still be vaguely heard saying the line, "For a Rabbi." Which makes sense, because Betty Boop is Jewish.

Betty Boop TV Series (1996)

Richard Fleischer was shopping around for a Betty Boop TV series where Betty would be a intergalactic flight attendant, but plans for this were later scrapped.

The Girl with the Googily Goop (1996)

Googi Goop Production Cel

In the 1996 Warner Bros. series Animaniacs episode The Girl with the Googily Goop, a parody of Betty Boop called Googi Goop makes an appearance. In the original concept Googi is a human girl and looks more like Betty.

To avoid a possible copyright infringement lawsuit by King Features Syndicate and or the Fleischer Studios, Warner changed Googi's design to resemble that of the Warner brothers Yakko, Wakko and sister Dot characters. Googi was voiced by Desirée Goyette, the 1980s voice of Betty Boop.

Betty Boop's Misguided Tours Scrapped TV Series (1998)

Betty Boop's Misguided Tours was a TV show concept about Betty Boop as a tour guide on a bus that travelled to various places around the world. The show was supposed to have been hip and edgy and teen-oriented. The project was described as, "sexy and edgy without being gross." The show was pitched to MTV and HBO. The project was later canned, due to no production companies being interested in the concept.

Bally: Betty Boop (2001)

Bally Gaming Betty Boop

Betty Boop appeared in animated sequences by DMA Animation for Bally Gaming: Betty Boop by Bally Gaming. Bally asked King Features Syndicate for permission to use Betty Boop's image for this game, King Features accepted, but expected high standards. The game featured voice actress Lani Minella in the starring role as Betty Boop, Minella would also voice Olive Oyl for Bally.

Garnier (2001)

2001 Betty Boop 04

Betty Boop made a small cameo appearance in "Garnier Lumia Hair Color" commercial, she was voiced by Michelle Goguen an actress and professional voice over artist from New York City. In Betty's promotion, she is stuck in black and white but as soon as she uses the hair dye she is colorized.

Betty Boop CGI (2001-2002)

Following the announcement of Betty being animated for a Bally game, Betty's Mainframe was announced. The concept for the CGI series started between 2000 and 2001.

The new Betty Boop TV series was going to be created in CGI (Betty Boop CGI) by The Fleischer Studios, King Features with help from Mainframe Entertainment Inc., but plans for the feature were later scrapped. The concept would have had Betty as a leader of her own band, traveling from gig to gig.

Variety told Jennifer Lopez, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and Madonna Ciccone who were popular singers at their peak in the 2000s to watch out. 

Betty Boop CR (2003)


In 2003 Betty Boop appeared in an early 3D rendered slot machine game by SEGA Sammy Holdings. Betty was voiced and promoted by 1980s Japanese pop idol Akina Nakamori. In 2002, a year before this release, the company released a 2D game titled Betty Boop S. Both casino games have animated scenes, but Betty is compared to Marilyn Monroe in them.

Drawn Together (2004-2007)

Hooters Restaurant

In 2003 a pilot for the upcoming Drawn Together series in Adobe Flash was pitched to several networks, including Adult Swim. The series was set as a parody of Big Brother and or The Real World, game shows in which contestants, referred to as housemates who live in isolation from the outside world.

Jordon Young who previously worked on The Simpsons as a layout artist, Matt Silverstein and Dave Jeser created a pilot episode and pitched it to Comedy Central.

The series debuted in 2004 and featured a parody of Betty Boop called Toot Braunstein.[16] Braunstein being a typical Jewish name indicates that Toot is Jewish but she does not follow the Jewish religion and eats pork. Toot is the opposite of Betty Boop, she is deemed a repulsive outdated sex symbol, who is only seen as "sexy" in her 1920s cartoons.

Toot's background in her 1920s cartoons is never quite explained in the series, though they say she is partially based on Amy Crews from Big Brother 3. Drawn Together also in the 2000s made fun of Betty's Boop's "Hooters" mascot campaign by making Toot the "Tooters" girl.

For the series final Toot reveals that she is nothing like Betty Boop, and admits that Betty Boop wouldn't do the stuff that she does which is taboo. Toot was voiced by Tara Strong.

Instead of a "Boop-Oop-a-Doop" routine, Toot does more of a "Tooty-Tooty-Too" with a "Toot" or often uses strong language. Toot is the only Betty Boop parody to obtain a huge fanbase of her own. Toot made her last appearance in a 2010 DVD movie special, after the series was axed in 2007 for vulgar and offensive content.

Patricia Heaton also made a complaint against the series for being offensive when she and her daughter went out and came across a Drawn Together billboard promoting a same-sex kiss between a Disney Princess, known as Princess Clara who also was voiced by Strong.


Toot Braunstein Drawn Together Betty Boop

In the pilot episode Toot wore a black dress with straps in comparison to Betty's strapless dress. Toot's official outfit is based on Betty's dress from Sally Swing, only sleeveless.

Other Appearances


Betty appeared in a 1987 "25th Anniversary Special" on TV. She made cameo appearances in television commercials and the 1988 feature film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, which was followed up by a cameo voiced by Mary Healey in One of the All-Time Greats in 1989.

While television revivals were conceived, nothing has materialized from the plans. In 1993 there were plans for an animated feature film of Betty Boop but those plans were later canceled. The musical storyboard scene of the proposed film can be seen online.

From 2007-2008, Betty appeared in the Nintendo DS Game Betty Boop's Double Shift. In 2009 she appeared in a mobile game by Namco called Betty Boop Movie Mix Up. A Betty Boop Musical was in development for Broadway with music by David Foster.

Nintendo DS (2007-2008)

Betty Boop Nintendo

The first ever playable Betty Boop game was released in early 2007-2008 by DSI Games titled Betty Boop's Double Shift. In a review Nintendodojo gave the game very poor ratings, it was also criticized for the unresponsive touch controls.

Betty Boop & Bally Technologies  (2011-2015)

Boop

Betty Boop has appeared in several slot machine games with Bally Technologies starting with Betty Boop's Love Meter which was then followed by Betty Boop's Fortune Teller, Betty Boop's Firehouse and Betty Boop's 5th Avenue.

Two of which were ported to the ipad/iphone for itunes. The game features Cindy Robinson who is the official voice of Betty for the Bally game releases. Robinson has provided the voice-over for Bally for five years running. The slot machines are often feature CGI openings and Betty speaks directly to the player.

Bally has a vast history with the cartoon character Betty Boop, during the 90s Bally hired a Betty Boop impersonator known simply as Angelia, who worked as a MGM Betty Boop impersonator. She started out as Betty in 1993 and later went on to portray Betty in person for Bally where she was a integral part of promoting the slot machines for casino managers and none other than the Fleischer family, including Max Fleischer's son Richard Fleischer.

Angelia worked with Bally starting in the 1990s, she retired from portraying Betty in 2003. For the opening of Betty Boop's Love Meter, Betty can be heard saying, "Bally and Betty back together again." The Bally slot machines featured at Casinos are known to be quite popular with guests.

Betty Boop Dance Card (2014)

Betty Boop Bop

In 2014 Betty Boop was featured in Betty Boop Dance Card by game designer Mickey Blumental of Fowl Moon Studios, in an IOS rhythm action card game on the iPhone & the iPad. The game was quickly followed by Betty Boop Bop and Betty Boop BeatInitially it was set for a PlayStation Vita release, which somehow never came to fruition. The game opening sequence features Heather Halley as Betty Boop and David Babich as Bimbo. In the game Betty's voice and singing vocals are provided by Camilla Bard.

The Betty Boop Movie

Boop cowell

In 2014, it was announced by Simon Cowell that he would be producing the Betty Boop the Movie[17] partnering with Animal Logic. Leaked emails suggest that the role of Betty was originally to have been played by Lady Gaga and suggested that the film will be a live action hybrid along the lines of Who Framed Roger Rabbit.


Bettybooplovercanceledbettyboop2014-2016

It had been suggested that the Syco Entertainment & Animal Logic Betty Boop film feature had been canned. Instead Betty was set to make a brand new TV appearance in 2018, which also did not happen. Syco & Animal Logic did not comment. Initially the "immediate release" for the film was featured on the Animal Logic website. It was indicated that the project was secretly in the works but according to Sony who were originally working on the film, they stated it was "weirdly sexualized" yet childlike, and they felt that they shouldn't go through with it. Sony went on to say that it was just weird and they didn't want to chase it.

It is a known fact that Betty Boop is a fictional sex symbol from the 1930s, and without her risqué nature, she has no appeal. Betty's sex appeal is what made the original cartoons a hit. In the original series when "The Hays Code" kicked in and Betty was toned down, Betty's original series started to flop leading to Betty being retired in 1939. Sony claimed they didn't know who to market the film towards and they also wondered what audience the film would appeal to.

Normaal Animation Betty Boop Series (2018)

Betty Boop was originally set to return in a new series Betty Boop Series (Normaal Animation) in 2018 by Normaal Studios. Betty Boop would have taken center stage in a new animated series being developed by Normaal Animation, marking the first time the iconic character would star in her own show in three decades.

Betty Boop Musical (2018)

Fosterbroad

A Betty Boop Musical has been in the works since 2002, there had been plans since the 1980s to create a musical based on Betty Boop starring Broadway star "Bernadette Peters" but that also did not happen. Jason Robert Brown was hired to write the music for the show but was later fired. Five years later there was a whole new creative team featuring David Foster. In 2014 David Foster posted an update on the Broadway show and said that they were in their first reading for the musical. According to information the Broadway musical was originally set for fall 2018, however this version was later scrapped.

Betty Boop Toys & Games

Betty Boop Toys & Games & Products, include Betty Boop Precious Kids Dolls, which are the official Betty Boop dolls. The first Betty Boop Doll was made in 1931, a replica was remade by Danbury in 2005, Danbury Mint still make porcelain Betty Boop dolls which are collected by fans of Betty Boop, although the Danbury Mint Betty Boop dolls are very expensive. Betty Boop's Love Meter was released for the iPad in early January 2012.

Betty Boop's Cabaret (2022)

Betty Boop's Cabaret Video Game 1

Betty Boop's Cabaret is a 2022 interactive pull-tab game.

Boop! The Boop-a-Doosical (2023)

Boop! The Boop-Oop-a-Doosical 2023

The "Betty Boop" Pre-Broadway musical Boop! will run in Chicago in late Fall of 2023. In 2022, Jessica Vosk stated at her Carnegie Hall concert that she was going to portray Betty Boop for the musical. For the 2023 Betty's Day Off workshop session Kim Exum appeared as Betty Boop.

Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty Boop 1

Jasmine Amy Rogers won the role of Betty Boop, as producers felt that she had a lot of moxie and she was just what they were seeking for the "new" Betty Boop. This new version of Betty has been reinvented and reimagined, and is a woman of the 21st century.

Make-up artists created Rogers' look by drawing inspiration from female stars from the 1910s to 2000s. Inspirations for Rogers' image as Betty Boop includes Theda Bara, Dorothy Dandridge, Janet Jackson, Devon Aoki, Josephine Baker, and cartoon flapper girls.

On the 30th of September Rogers went to the official Meet & Greet to meet all the cast and crew, and she was also praised by the Fleischer Studios and given great publicity in the news. The finalized Broadway musical Boop! will run in New York in Spring of 2025.

Black Betty Boop (2023-2024)

Official Black Betty Boop 2023

Through a collaboration with the Fleischer Studios, an official "Black Betty Boop" boutique known as the "Black Betty Boop Shop" opened and sold Betty Boop merchandise. The "Black Betty Boop" character already existed prior, but has been brought to life. The Fleischers stated that they were reaching out to identify communities in an effort to make Betty's universal principles as diverse and inclusive as possible. As of 2024, the "Black Betty Boop" collaboration is now defunct due to conflict and contract disputes.[18]

Trivia

  • Betty Boop is a rare NTF in the 2024 "Betty Boop Dance" series.
  • Several Betty Boop projects have been in the works some for many years now, but have either been canceled or pushed back for a later release date.
  • Betty still continues to appear on merchandise, and in the last few years or so, the Betty Boop franchise has collaborated with a number of famous collaborators.
  • As of August 26, 2022, Betty Boop appears officially as a non-fungible token.[19]
  • A balloon featuring Betty Boop made an appearance at the 91st Hollywood Christmas Parade on November 26, 2023. Family Film Awards funded the balloon. The Hollywood Stunt Kids Association wrangled it.
  • A more simplistic "Betty Boop" archived page.[20]

Links

See Also


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