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Betty Boop Comic Strip

Betty Boop Comic Strip by Bud Counihan

Betty Boop Comic Strip
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Name

Betty Boop Comic Strip

The original Betty Boop comic strip was drawn by Bud Counihan, assisted by Hal Seeger. The strip was distributed by King Features from 1934, which was the peak of Betty's popularity, to 1937. 

The Fleischers filed in injunction against King Features, as they were unable to complete negotiations.[1] King Features continued to push the comic without the Fleischers approval.

The injunction that Fleischer Studios sought to stop King Features Syndicate from turning Betty Boop into a comic strip without consent was eventually thrown out in court by Judge Knox. Nevertheless, a few of the comic strip's official characters were eliminated and replaced with fresh ones. Fearless Fred was replaced by Van Twinkle, and Billy Boop by Bubby Boop.

Characters

Helen Kane the Original Boop-Boop-a-Doop Girl


When Helen Kane learned in 1933[2] that the Fleischer Studios was planning to create a comic strip of "Betty Boop" and was in the process of negotiating, Helen got in touch with King Features Syndicate[3] ahead of time and suggested a comic that would feature her as the "Original Boop-Boop-a-Doop Girl." Although Kane's comic was a failure, this was an attempt to battle Betty in cartoon form.


Helen Kane bore a striking resemblance to Betty Boop in the comic strip. In an attempt to set herself apart from Betty Boop, Helen Kane claimed to be the "original" in most of the comic strips, which gave readers a brief look at her Broadway career. The comic first appeared in Hearst newspapers in 1934, around the same time that Betty's comic debuted.

In a comic strip, Helen asserts that she is not an "imitator," possibly making reference to Margie Hines, Betty Boop, or Mae Questel. The other voices of Betty Boop, Little Ann Little and Bonnie Poe among them, were testifying against Kane at the time in a $250,000 infringement case.

Dynamite Comics: Betty Boop Comic Strip

In July, Dynamite Comics announced a new deal with the Fleischer Studios and King Features to publish new Betty Boop comics. In a press release, Nick Barrucci, CEO and Publisher of Dynamite Entertainment, says, "Betty Boop is timeless, like Superman, Marilyn Monroe, Mickey Mouse, or Louis Armstrong. She's a fixture of American culture, with such a wide appeal that her image can be found anywhere from a young child's wardrobe to the toughest biker's tattoos. Every generation over the past 85 years has embraced her charm and personality. Personally, I can recall her appearance in the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit as the defining moment in which I first fell in love with the character. We hope that Dynamite's upcoming line of original Betty Boop comic books and graphic novels will serve as the defining moment for a whole new generation of 'Boopers'. Betty Boop will be solicited in an upcoming edition of Diamond Comic Distributors' Previews catalog, and will also be available digitally through Comixology, Dynamite Digital, iVerse, and Dark Horse Digital.  Betty Boop is the premiere title in Dynamite’s all ages line, so keep an eye out for more kid friendly titles from the publisher in the near future.

Trivia

  • Titan Comics reissued this Betty Boop comic strip series in the 1980s and again in 2015. There was also the comic strip "Helen Kane the original Boop-Boop-a-Doop Girl."
  • Betty appeared in the comic strip "Betty Boop & Felix the Cat" in the 1980s; it lasted from 1984 to 1988. The comic, which was illustrated by the Walter Brothers, featured Betty as a working lady with Felix as her favorite cat.

Links

See Also


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