Betty Boop's Hallowe'en Party (1933)

I haven't been to a Halloween party since 2007. I guess I just eventually reached an age when I decided to always be a homebody on Halloween and hand out candy... Actually it was grad school; I blame grad school for turning me in to a hermit. But I do know that I sure would be excited to go to Betty Boop's Halloween party if she invited me. Judging from her Halloween cartoon, Betty Boop's Hallowe'en Party, which was released November 3rd, 1933 (nearly 83 years ago), it would be a rather trippy experience, with me and Betty being the only humans among a boat-load of Jack-o'-lanterns, anthropomorphic animals, phantoms, and a mean old gorilla antagonist who would eventually crash the party. It doesn't look like there would be any alcohol, with the entertainment consisting of such traditional party activities as singing, dancing (Betty would personally provide the music), and bobbing for apples.

Did you know that apple bobbing used to be a pre-marriage custom, where girls would find their future husbands by secretly marking apples? And the boy that would successfully catch the marked apple with his teeth would be the lucky soon-to-be husband? I wonder if Betty marked any of those apples.

I kind of feel like apples might have lost there place in Halloween nowadays, having been replaced by candy bars and corn syrup.  

This is a pretty standard cartoon with lots of traditional Halloween iconography, which I have to admit I never seem to get tired of. There's a popular GIF that goes around online at Halloween time showing Betty dancing and lighting three Jack-o'-lanterns that came from this cartoon. Oddly Bimbo and Koko the Clown aren't here, but that's not a huge problem, because this time Betty doesn't need Bimbo to save her. 

I personally prefer Mysterious Mose (1930) over Betty Boop's Hallowe'en Party, but the two cartoons do make a great pairing on Halloween, as does Red Hot Mama (1934), Minnie the Moocher (1932), and another Fleischer Studios short Swing You Sinners (1930). Fans of Betty Boop and Fleischer Studios would do well to visit the aforementioned shorts on Halloween; they are easy to find on YouTube nowadays.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Dynamite Comics: Betty Boop - Issue#1

With all the comic book reboots of classic franchises and icons occurring lately, one can only wonder why it took so long for someone to finally get around to Betty Boop.

The first issue of the long awaited Betty Boop comic series finally arrived this month from Dynamite comics, and it turned out to be well worth the wait. There are eleven cover variants, and as you can see from the above image, I couldn't help picking up a few.

After reading through issue#1 for the first time, I felt suitably pleased by the appropriate noirish feel (Betty just belongs on stage in the smoke-filled 1930s nightclub) combined with the charm of the original Fleischer Studios cartoons. There's also something both fresh and classic to Giselle Lagace's art style, and I'm very happy with the look and feel she brings to the pages. Betty does look a little taller, which is totally cool with me. 

It is a lot of fun to read, with a surreal and lighthearted horror story, by Roger Langridge, called Enter the Lizard that introduces several funny antagonists, such as Lenny Lizardlips and Dolly, a sinister Gothic ghost witch from Hell. Fans of the original cartoons will be pleased to see Betty's Pre-code pals Bimbo and Koko the Clown, as well as Grampy and Pudgy and even the lesser known Sally Swing from the later days of the original cartoon series. I wouldn't be surprised if Little Jimmy or Betty's boyfriend for a time Freddy eventually make appearances. Lookout for Mister Natwick, an obvious tribute to Betty's original animator Grim Natwick.

I'm super pleased by the first issue, and I seriously doubt I will be let down by the coming releases. May Betty Boop reign supreme in this new comic form, and may the future hold many Boop-Oop-A-Doop surprises. Let the era of Betty begin.