Wednesday, November 29, 2023

"Betty Boop" (1932)



We just heard the theme song of Popeye the Sailor, so let's back up a couple of years to 1932 where we run into another star from the Max Fleischer cartoon studio - Betty Boop!

Popeye's screen debut in 1933 was actually in a cartoon entitled "Popeye the Sailor" from the Betty Boop series. Kind of like a backdoor pilot!

Betty's theme gets a snappy treatment from Phil Spitalny (in the days before he lead his all-girl orchestra) on this cut from a Hit of the Week record:



Lots of fun with the Eton Boys on the vocals!

Kind of a follow-up to the earlier HotW record of another Betty (Co-Ed) from the Spitalny boys!

I had mentioned Hit of the Week records before, how you got two songs on one side of a Durium disc for 15¢ in an attempt to stimulate records sales during those dark days of the Depression.

I would never want to shortchange anyone, so let's hear the other cut from that record, "Lullaby of the Leaves" again from Mr. Spitalny, this time with vocalist Ben Alley:




I know 15¢ was a lot of money in 1932, but I think I would've been satisfied, especially if Arthur Murray really supervised the tempo!




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