This article is within the scope of WikiProject Animation, a collaborative effort to build an encyclopedic guide to animation on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, help out with the open tasks, or contribute to the discussion.AnimationWikipedia:WikiProject AnimationTemplate:WikiProject AnimationAnimation articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Comics, a collaborative effort to build an encyclopedic guide to comics on Wikipedia. Get involved! If you would like to participate, you can help with the current tasks, visit the notice board, edit the attached article or discuss it at the project's talk page.ComicsWikipedia:WikiProject ComicsTemplate:WikiProject ComicsComics articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Sexology and sexuality, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of human sexuality on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Sexology and sexualityWikipedia:WikiProject Sexology and sexualityTemplate:WikiProject Sexology and sexualitySexology and sexuality articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Fictional characters, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of fictional characters on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Fictional charactersWikipedia:WikiProject Fictional charactersTemplate:WikiProject Fictional charactersfictional character articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Women, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of women on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.WomenWikipedia:WikiProject WomenTemplate:WikiProject WomenWikiProject Women articles
This article is within the scope of WikiProject United States, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of topics relating to the United States of America on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the ongoing discussions.
Below are answers to frequently asked questions about the corresponding page Betty Boop. They address concerns, questions, and misconceptions which have repeatedly arisen on the talk page. Please feel free to change this material in light of new discussion.
Q1: Isn't Betty Boop based on the African American performer Baby Esther?
A1: Despite being mentioned in Helen Kane's unsuccessful suit, there is no evidence that either Helen Kane or any of the creators of Betty Boop knew about Baby Esther. According to animator Grim Natwick, Betty Boop was modeled on Helen Kane.[1] Kane proved in court that she had been doing her act since at least 1923, five years before allegedly first seeing Esther. A PBS story that "became the quoted source for the news that Betty Boop was based on a real-life Black performer" was removed from the PBS website. PBS retracted the story and apologized for spreading misinformation, stating: "Max Fleischer did not whitewash a Black character when he created Betty Boop. But Betty Boop was, partially, influenced by fashion and music whose origins can indeed be traced to Black performers."[2]
References
^Canemaker, John. "Grim Natwick". Film Comment, Jan/Feb 1975, 57-61.
This article does not mention that Betty Boop is cast as African American in the new musical. There is some discussion of her ethnicity as possibly Jewish -- and a question here in the talk section about whether she's African American; however David Foster must have had some reason to cast her that way. Skysong263 (talk) 03:11, 7 December 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Betty Boop was based on Helen Kane. However, the Fleischers and Mae Questel added large parts of their own personalities to her. So, Betty is definitely Jewish, and is portrayed as such in multiple cartoons. As for why Foster cast an African-American woman...it's part of a trend of trying to rewrite History. Portraying British Queens as Black, Isaac Newton as South Asian, Cleopatra as Black. And, it all is in one direction. Nobody casts Daniel Radcliffe as Malcolm X. Anyone trying to claim Betty Boop was "originally Black", or "based, even indirectly, on an African-American performer" is lying, plain and simple. Betty Boop came out of Vaudeville, not Jazz. She couldn't be more obvious if she had a hook nose. Yet, this "Baby Esther" stupidity keeps coming up, like a turd that won't flush. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 197.89.10.57 (talk) 09:00, 8 December 2023 (UTC)[reply]
level-5 vital article is rated C-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
.svg){kind=small}
