''Chess-Nuts'' is a 1932
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 ...
films 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
Bimbo and
Koko the Clown.
Synopsis
A live action
chess
Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...
game becomes a chaotic, animated quest for the favors of Betty Boop. Betty comes to life as the black queen and Bimbo becomes the white king. The black king,
Old King Cole
"Old King Cole" is a British nursery rhyme first attested in 1708. Though there is much speculation about the identity of King Cole, it is unlikely that he can be identified reliably as any historical figure. It has a Roud Folk Song Index numbe ...
, wants Betty for himself and carries her away to his castle. Bimbo must come to her rescue, with the assistance of Koko and the other chess pieces. When Bimbo breaks into the castle, he engages Old King Cole in a fight, which results in King Cole's death, with Bimbo, Betty, Koko and the other chess characters parading along the chess board. The two men playing chess are shown to have been playing the game for so long that they grow large beards with a spider in a web between the two beards.
The battle contains elements of chess, bowling, football and boxing. Koko appears briefly as part of Bimbo's team of animated chess men.
References
External links
*
1932 films
Betty Boop cartoons
1930s American animated films
American black-and-white films
1932 animated films
Paramount Pictures short films
Fleischer Studios short films
Short films directed by Dave Fleischer
Films about chess
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