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Betty Boop Is Back And She's Black:
It's been a long since I visited this blog. Unfortunately, I can't remember how to use it. It feels completely different now that so many features have been upgraded.
For Betty Boop's new Broadway show she is officially a Black woman. The Fleischer Studios they were talking about diversity and representation, and they finally admitted to Betty's "appropriation" of Black culture by allowing a Black woman to portray her.
Betty Boop is owned by the Fleischers and they can do whatever they want with her. You want her to appeal to everyone right? Also prove that race doesn't matter. A lot of people, they have that Betty Boop charm. So when they see Betty, they see themselves.
Betty's head is not shaped normally. They did try that for a new concept but it didn't work out. People love her the way she is. She's kind of deformed, just like Popeye the Sailor Man.
The show opened in Chicago a place where dreams are born according to producers and directors of the show. 19/11/2023 to 24/12/2023 are the debut schedules.
There was a documentary and one of the Fleischer descendants explained how their family tree kind of wants to give back to the Black community. I was complaining for years about Betty's representation, and in the end, it looks like the Fleischers found a solution.
This reboot doesn't mean Betty is Black forever, she could easily revert in her next phase. They did do some new commercials, and she's pretty much herself. But still outdated. You know with the whole faux-feminism. Yes, Betty is a faux-feminist.
Sex-symbols are the complete opposite to that of a feminist.
To celebrate here's a new Mae Questel remix song for 2023. She's dead, so there'll never be another Betty in the cartoons like her portrayal. So she has to always be remembered for originating the role. And it seems people have not forgotten her.
When people think of Olive Oyl or Betty Boop she often comes to mind.
Just as people want to tribute people who they think is Betty Boop, they should at least have the decency to tribute the actual person who originated the character role, and voiced the character. Mae Questel. It was nobody else that did the character justice.
Maybe Margie Hines? A little? But she wasn't as memorable as Questel. Of course Hines had a more cuter voice. But not as listenable. Little more nasally.
You wouldn't believe this. You know Cindy Robinson? She said that there'll "NEVER" be another Mae Questel, and she honored Questel as "beautifully" originating Betty's role.
She said she tries her best to do Betty justice with her voice-matching.
She really went in on people who don't know Betty's voice, and other voice actresses who voice Betty today. She really made sense. She's been saying it for years. About contracts, and how Betty's voice is a voice-matching game which she doesn't like doing. She'd rather voice new characters.
But she doesn't mind lending her voice to Betty.
When I first played "Betty Boop's Love Meter" I loved the part where she did her "Boop-Boop-Be-Doop" routine. The Apple game, it wouldn't allow her to say it so often. So you'd hear it here and there, depending on your video game score.
If you don't know Robinson for being the "Official voice of Betty Boop" of course shared with several other actresses, you'll probably know her as the new "Amy Rose" from Sonic the Hedgehog?
Also Desirée Goyette said some nice things about Questel too. I have to give them both props, that is so nice of them. Goyette was the 1980s Betty and 1990s parody Betty.
Questel who's voice had dropped quite drastically actually accepted Goyette as the new voice of Betty by saying things have to change when she got replaced, and that Goyette wasn't so bad. But of course Questel returned for Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
But yeah that being said there is a "NEW" Betty in town.
And her name is Jasmine Rogers!
I don't care what race Betty is. All I know is that she's Betty, and as long as they stick to "some" source material, it is fine. Betty was always white. To pretend she was always Black would be a lie. I can't lie about that.
That was Baby Esther Jones who was Black, she was not Betty Boop. She had no tie to Betty whatsoever, other than the fact that she scatted years earlier, and that the Fleischers used Jones' M-G-M Movietone as defense in court.
Esther Jones was referenced on a Chicago TV station for the Broadway debut. And the new Betty Boop said, that the Black community should "not" forget Jones. More was said, but the news snipped it, because the Broadway show doesn't want "anyone" associated with the character.
According to the Fleischer Studios, nobody is the inspiration behind Betty. Though they did admit that Betty has taken inspiration from multiple female performers of the past.
Like Clara Bow? And so on.
Jones was a known Florence Mills impersonator. Mills replaced Gertrude Saunders in the all-Black musical "Shuffle Along" in 1921. Fun fact, a Black composer and music arranger who worked on the music arrangements for the reboot of "Shuffle Along" from 2015-2016, well he also has provided the music arrangements for this new Betty Boop musical.
Ain't that something!???
And David Foster, well he writes great hits for many Black stars. Including Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, and so he wrote the new songs.
He and Jerry Mitchell, well they worked really hard on this Broadway show. I researched them, and tried to obtain information. And from what I got, they were killing themselves on this project. Working to the bone. Hoping that people will come see the show.
Betty's race does not matter as she can be "any ethnicity" but she still made her debut as a Black woman. Regardless Betty is Black. So the new Betty Boop for 2023, is Jasmine Amy Rogers. And Rogers has made this Betty her own.
Prior to the casting there was such a big "controversy" surrounding it. It is quite funny, because the people who complained the most about what they wanted in a new Betty Boop. I noticed that they don't end up supporting the show, and most of them are not really fans of Betty Boop.
The role has been recreated, they've changed some of Betty's origins. She sings a little differently, and the character is written very well.
This David Foster musical, well they didn't really want to appropriate the "Boop-Boop-Be-Doop" catchphrase, so it not over-used. He felt it was stealing.
But Betty does it, she's not Betty without it.
She does the baby-talk routine but not so often. When she sings, she has a more deeper singing voice, and it is the complete opposite to the usual baby voice.
Rogers baby-talk is a little deeper. But she's so convincing that I don't have a bad word to say about her. She's just doing her job the best she can.
I can't really go into detail here, because I've already covered it. So if anyone is interested please follow the links below.
The cast were carefully picked. Some of the original people who auditioned they didn't really make the cut. And there probably was a good reason.
There's also Angelica Hale who portrays Trisha a Betty Boop fan. Her character is really likeable, when I see her, I see the old me from 10+ years ago. A major fan.
The actress was so nice, that she shared the whole arc for Trisha Evans. And gave fans an insight on who Trisha is, and she plays a major role in the show.
She originated the Trisha role. Of course Rogers, well she initially auditioned for Trisha. Everyone is an understudy of someone. But hopefully the 2023 show debut goes well from the 19th of November to the 24th.
For many years I think I've been too much of a 🗑️ talker, obviously it is always a downfall to be outspoken. I'm still not sorry for anything I said in the past, and stand by everything I ever said. Anyone offended 🤬 you. This is a direct message to the sensitive society.
Boop-Boop-Be-Doop! Bop!
There's even official "Black Betty Boop" merchandise being sold. It just proves my point, that Betty is a Harlem creation. Like that old song, it doesn't really matter if Betty is Black or White.
Betty's black, she's white, it's tough for you to beat that,
She's black, she's white, hoo!
Betty's black, she's white, it's tough for you to beat that,
You can read a Broadway real review here:
https://boopboopbedoop.wordpress.com/2023/11/19/boop-review/
And if you want to know anything else, it is all here:
https://boopboopbedoop.wordpress.com/2023/10/27/boop-the-betty-boop-musical/
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