The History of Betty Boop
Here is a little history and cartoon information on the very much beloved cartoon diva Ms. Betty Boop:

Betty Boop was first created as a dog character by Grim Natwick and appeared as the girl friend of another dog named Bimbo. Betty's figure was modeled after Mae West's and her singing style taken from Helen Kane the "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" Girl. The voice of Betty Boop was that of May Questal. Max & Dave Fleisher first produced the Talkartoons for Paramount. Max drew his first comic strip for the "Brooklyn Daily Eagle" in 1902. In 1915 Max, Dave and Joe Fleisher invented the rotoscope which revoulutionized animation. It gave a much smoother, more life-like quality to the motion of the characters. Betty Boop made her debut as a sexy canine cabaret singer in the Max Fleischer short "Dizzy Dishes" on Aug. 8, 1930. In 1931 Betty's friends Koko the Clown and Pudgy, Bimbo's replacement, were introduced. Betty Boop evolved into her own with "Betty Co-Ed" when she shed her dog identity and the long ears became earrings. Betty Boop's beginings were quite risque and ahead of her time as gusts of wind raised her skirt long before Marilyn Monroe. By 1932 Betty was considered to be the first andonly female animated screen star who could do it all - Drama, Musicals and Comedy. Betty Boop had a flare all her own, she could be daring and assertive while keeping an air of innocence however in 1933 the Betty Boop short "Boilesque" was banned in Philadelphia for being too risque. By 1934, due to moralist pressure, Betty Boop began showing far less leg. There were more than one hundred Betty Boop cartoons produced including ninty in the official Betty Boop Series. "Stopping the show", "Betty Boop for President" and "Boilesk" are among the most noteworthy. In 1939 her last film "Yip Yip Yipee" was released. In 1934, King Features Syndicate started distribution of "Betty Boop", a newspaper comic strip drawn by Bud Counihan.

When is Betty Boop's Birthday?
Date of Birth: August 8, 1930

Who is the white dog that is featured with Betty Boop?
That's Pudgy, Betty Boop's loyal puppy buddy (created by Myron Waldman).

Who owns Betty Boop? Can I make my own Betty Boop Products to sell?
The Betty Boop Character and trademark is currently owned by King Features Syndicate and Fleischer Studios. Betty Boop is copyrighted and it is illegal to make and sell your own Betty Boop Merchandise.

What happen to the lady who did the voice of Betty Boop?
Mae Questel is the lady. She provided the unique, child-like voice of cartoon characters Betty Boop & Olive Oyl, and died at age 89 on January 4th, 1998. She was a veteran of stage, movies & vaudeville. Born in the Bronx, Questel was discovered at 17 when she was signed to perform on the vaudeville circuit. She did imitations of popular performers! When animator Max Fleischer heard one of Ms. Questel's performances, he signed her to take over the squeaky voice of the now worldwide famous Betty Boop. The voice was actually styled on the voice of another actor, Helen Kane, who created a sensation on Broadway in 1928 with a "boop-boop-a-doop" rendition of the hit song "I Wanna Be Loved by You." During her eight years as the voice of Betty Boop, Questel was in 150 plus cartoon shorts. Her recording of "On the Good Ship Lollipop", in her Betty Boop voice, sold more than two million copies back in the day! The Betty Boop Animated Toon was retired in 1939, but Mae Questel returned to the character when Betty Boop appeared in the 1988 movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit." Also, in 1933, Mae Questel did the voices of Olive Oyl and Swee' Pea for the Popeye Animated Cartoons.