Fleischer Studio style Mouth Charts from 1939's "How to Draw Animated Cartoons" Book

Tips on animating dialog from 1939's "How to Draw Animated Cartoons" by Edward F. Hopper and Screen Cartoon Studios. Dig those crazy Fleischer Studio style mouth shapes!

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Dizzy Dishes (1930) Betty Boop's First FUN Appearance

Back when Betty Boop was a dog and Bimbo was tall: It's one of my favorite Fleischer cartoons, "Dizzy Dishes," animated by Grim Natwick (creator of Betty Boop) and Ted Sears.

Look at the LOVE as Bimbo the waiter dances across the floor to take an order. I love how he takes a bow for the applause meant for the chorus girls! And check out the freaky painting at 1:03 ...and that song! as each customer barks his order in turn: "One roast lamb!"..."I vant HAM!" The ending is as ridiculous and surreal as you would expect from early Fleischer cartoons.

I love the unpolished vocal performances, too. At times Bimbo talks without even ANY attempt at making his lips sync...or even move at all. The Fleischers new that "funny" was more important than "polished," even though oftentimes they had both.

This is just one of those cartoons I can watch over and over ^_^ Every time I see it I discover gags and visual treats I had never noticed before.

If you click on the video (after it starts playing) it'll jump you to YouTube where you can watch it BIGGER. Which I recommend. If you have a good connection, click on the red HQ button to see it in the best quality. Now that YouTube has grown up in quality, there are seemingly thousands of fun and rare cartoons waiting to be discovered there. ENJOY!

Other favorites from the same era: Barnacle Bill and Bimbo's Initiation

Bimbo's Initiation - Wanna Be a Member?

If you've never seen this cartoon, you're in for a treat! Fleischer Brothers Studios' Talkartoon, "Bimbo's Initiation" is one of the all-time weirdest and funnest and mind-bendingest cartoons ever made. Yes, I realize that "funnest" isn't a word, but I didn't want to interrupt the flow.

The reason I'm posting it here is that I finally found a decent copy of it on the web! Most of the versions I've seen are extremely low-res, but the one you're about to see is pretty clear and has a nice resolution. If you click ON the video while it's playing instead of just hitting the "play" arrow, you will be able to see it on its own page even BIGGER.

I have never found this on a commercial DVD, so if anyone out there knows where there's a better version available, please leave a comment and tell us where we can find it!

This 1931 cartoon features one of the first appearances by Betty Boop...before she starred in her own series for the Fleischer Studios. She was originally designed as a sexy dog character, and she still has dog-ears in this cartoon. Eventually the dog ears were replaced by the earrings she still wears to this day. For more information on this Max and Dave Fleisher cartoon masterpiece, see THIS article on Bimbo's Initiation at The Big Cartoon Database.

There's no point in discussing the "plot." I could summarize it, buy why? It's really beyond description and its creepy animated delights are eternal. I seriously never get tired of watching this cartoon.

Until it's available on DVD, sit back and press, "play." Watch, laugh, repeat.

Wanna be a member?