Betty Boop Comics: Masculine Women, Feminine Men

I love Betty Boop.  I don't care if she's a heterosexual sex symbol, with an oversized head, long legs, a low-cut dress, and a squeaky baby-doll voice, she's assertive, confident, independent, and gay-positive (for the 1930s).

But, other than the various notepads, mugs, shoes,makeup kits, shower curtains, Christmas tree ornaments, aprons, clocks, t-shirts, lamps, pillows, bedpreads, diaries, and Alabama Crimson Tide football logos, I thought she existed solely through cartoons:

1931-1933: 23 black and white and color cartoons from Fleischer Studios, some masterpieces of surrealism: "The Old Man of the Mountain," "I Heard," "Bimbo's Initiation," "Minnie the Moocher"

1934-1939: 67more, mostly unwatchable, with Betty a middle-aged spinster in sensible shoes.  Her dog, kid brother, or elderly friend have the adventure, while she sits at home saying "be careful."

Let's rewatch "Minnie the Moocher" instead.

So I was surprised to discover that there were Betty Boop comic strips, drawn by Bud Counihan and distributed by King Features from 1934 to 1937.  First they starred Helen Kane, the original voice of Betty Boop, but after 14 weeks Betty herself took precedence.  She was a Hollywood movie star, with gags mostly involving backstage issues, which presumably audiences in the Golden Age of Movies would find interesting:

Betty has so much trouble getting to the set that she is exhausted.  Fortunately, her scene involves sleeping (used twice).

She has to do retakes of all of her dangerous stunts, but when it comes time to kiss her leading man, she only gets one take.

They can't afford to pay extras for a crowd scene, so she leaves the studio and attracts a mob of fans

She can't cry on cue. Her director reads her a sad story, but no tears.  He suggests that she think of something unpleasant from her past, but nothing bad has ever happened to her.  Finally he berates her for being a bad actress, and now she can cry.

The gay connection: all of Betty's leading men are queens with mascara-ed eyes and limp wrists, who sashay across the stage, saying "Oh...um...I guess we have to kiss now, dearie."

When she has to choose from among seven of them, she chooses a mannekin instead, claiming that it's more lively than any of the lavender-soaked poofs.

Even Van Twinkle, the superstar she dates, is rather poofy. Plus when he breaks up with her, he says "I value your friendship, but..."

Soon Betty's kid brother Billy, a scrappy Brooklyn boy, comes to live with her.  He's cast in movies, too, and causes his own problems. Like he refuses to do a hand-stand because there's a rip in his pants.

That's Von Twinkle's poofy kid brother in the top hat and monocle.











Later in the series, Aunt Tillie, a tough, barking Amazon with tattooed biceps, moves in with Betty.She is also cast in movies, naturally.  She can't find a leading man who can withstand her energetic lovemaking (flirting), so she suggests her diminuitive. flamboyantly feminine boyfriend Hunky.

Masculine women, feminine men, a common comedy trope of the 1930s.

But, as in the cartoons, Betty is relegated to the background, saying "That's not a good idea" while Billy and Aunt Tillie have the adventures.

No wonder the series only lasted for 4 years.

See also: The Gay Symbolism of Betty Boop