Fleischer Studios
Fleischer Studios () is an American animation studio founded in 1929 by brothers Max and Dave Fleischer, who ran the pioneering company from its inception until its acquisition by Paramount Pictures, the parent company and the distributor of i ...
animated short
Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most anima ...
film starring
Betty Boop
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick.Pointer (2017) She originally appeared in the ''Talkartoon'' and ''Betty Boop'' film series, which were produced by Fleischer ...
, and featuring
Koko the Clown
Koko the Clown is an animated character created by Max Fleischer. He first appeared as the main protagonist in ''Out of the Inkwell'' (1918-1929), a major animated series of the silent era. Throughout the series, he goes on many adventures with hi ...
and
Bimbo
Bimbo is slang for a conventionally attractive, sexualized, naive, and unintelligent woman. The term was originally used in the United States as early as 1919 for an unintelligent or brutish man.
As of the early 21st century, the "stereotypic ...
. The animated short is certainly one of the more surreal entries in the Betty Boop filmography.
Plot
Betty, Bimbo and Koko are the owners of a traveling
medicine show
Medicine shows were touring acts (traveling by truck, horse, or wagon teams) that peddled "miracle cure" patent medicines and other products between various entertainments. They developed from European Charlatan, mountebank shows and were common i ...
. They are selling "Jippo", an all-purpose health tonic. Koko's contortionist display doesn't convince the local townsfolk to open their wallets, but Betty's song and dance gets the whole town eager to buy their product. Betty, Koko and Bimbo sell bottles. Drinking the tonic causes everyone to exhibit strange side-effects. A feeble old man drinks some and becomes a large baby, while a baby drinking it becomes an old man. Other effect seen include massive weight gain, unusual hair growth, rapid changes in shape and size, and even death.
The cartoon's ending makes a reference to "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", a movie adaptation which was released earlier that year by Paramount Pictures.
The film is now owned by
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
via
Turner Entertainment Co.
Turner Entertainment Company is an American multimedia company founded by Ted Turner in 1986. Purchased by Time Warner in 1996 as part of its acquisition of Turner Broadcasting System (TBS), the company was largely responsible for overseeing th ...
Music
Betty sings "
Now's the Time to Fall in Love "Now's The Time To Fall In Love" is a 1931 song from the Depression era written by Tin Pan Alley tunesmiths Al Sherman and Al Lewis. The song was made popular by Eddie Cantor on his weekly radio show. The song takes a positive attitude toward t ...
" with the words changed to "Now's the time to buy Jippo". An old man's heart sings "Darling, I Am Growing Old-er" from
Silver Threads Among the Gold
"Silver Threads Among the Gold", first copyrighted in 1873, was a popular song in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Today it is a standard of barbershop quartet singing. The lyrics are by Eben E. Rexford, and the music ...
.
The animated short features the song "
Nobody's Sweetheart
"Nobody's Sweetheart", also known as "Nobody's Sweetheart Now" and "You're Nobody's Sweetheart Now", is a popular music, popular song, written in 1924 in music, 1924, with music by Billy Meyers and Elmer Schoebel, and lyrics by Gus Kahn and Ernie ...
", followed by a scat vocal variations. The recording artist was long assumed to be
Cliff Edwards
Clifton Avon "Cliff" Edwards (June 14, 1895 – July 17, 1971), nicknamed "Ukulele Ike", was an American singer, musician and actor. He enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standar ...
aka "Ukulele Ike"; it is certainly in the style which he made famous. However, some state it was William Costello, which wouldn't be unlikely, considering he did the voice acting of later
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, Elzie Crisler Segar.
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...