Campaign 2020: Cartoon Characters Who Ran for President, Part Five and Six

Long before Hilary Clinton stepped onto the political stage, we had two other woman seek the office of Chief Commanding Officer.  These week, we're examining the Presidential campaigns of  two forward-thinking women who sought to break the glass ceiling.

Part 5:  Betty Boop for President!

In 1932, the country was in the midst of the Great Depression.   Incumbent Herbert Hoover was up against Franklin D. Roosevelt and his "New Deal."   Americans may have been ready for something new, and cartoon debutante Betty Boop may have sensed it.   She announced her candidacy in a 1932 promotional film, "Betty Boop For President."

In the film Betty is running not against Roosevelt or Hoover but Mr. Nobody.   Mr. Nobody, in my humble opinion, wins the award for the most honest politician to ever grace a platform, as exhibited by his campaign speech:

Who will make your taxes light?... Mr. Nobody!
Who'll protect the voters' right?... Mr. Nobody!
Should you come home some early dawn,
See a new milkman is on:
Who cares if your wife is gone?... Mr. Nobody!

While they do not appear in the film, Betty momentarily morphs into Hoover and Al Smith.   Al Smith?  Who is Al Smith, you say?  Al Smith was actually the Democratic nominee for president in 1928 and conventional thinking was that he would run again in 1932.  We can assume the cartoon was long into production before Roosevelt was able to clinch the nomination at the 1932 Democratic Convention (on the fourth ballot, for you trivia lovers).

Betty is actually sworn in as president in the film and speaks in front of Congress, depicted as a stable of donkeys and elephants, on her upcoming agenda.  The end of the film, we can assume, was a hint at Betty's next item on her agenda:   Ending Prohibition.  You can watch her entire candidacy in under 7 minutes by clicking below: 

Part 6:   Olive Oyl for President!

The Presidential election of 1948 was considered the greatest upset in the history of Presidential politics, with Harry Truman beating Thomas Dewey despite virtually every poll predicting a Dewey win.   What would have REALLY been an upset is if Olive Oyl had won.   Olive Oyl took a quick dive into politics in the 1948 film "Olive Oyl for President."  This is a bit of a cheater as most of the film is actually a dream Popeye is having, but the film ends with an actual campaign.   You can see a clip below; but I suggest you watch the full film by clicking HERE.

Not to be outdone, Popeye ran for President as well in 1956 in the lackluster film "Popeye for President" (are you noticing a trend here?).  However, Popeye was no match for Adlai Stevenson or winner Dwight Eisenhower.   No need to watch; it is included strictly for archival purposes.

Happy New Year 2020

Happy New Year 2020!   My new year's resolution is to spend some time on this blog again.   To celebrate, here's an oddity - a Popeye cartoon without any violence!  From 1938, here's a clip from Let's Celebrake with Popeye, Bluto and Olive.   Be sure to search out the whole cartoon on DailyMotion!

Christmas Morning Cartoon: Christmas Comes But Once a Year

Merry Christmas, one and all!   This year we're celebrating the Holidays with a Max Fleischer Color Classic from 1936:   Christmas Comes But Once a Year.   This cartoon marks the first and only color appearance of Grampy, a wild inventor that co-starred with Betty Boop in several classic cartoons.  At this time, the Max Fleisher studios was trying to make Disney-type cartoons along with their roster of Popeye and Betty Boop cartoons.  This cartoon is kind of a weird bridge between the two styles:   The first couple of minutes tries to create a scene full of sincerity and pathos, but it comes off as cloying, maudlin and a little annoying.   However, once Grampy enters the cartoon, the picture takes off, because this is what the Fleischers were great at: innovention. 
Grampy appeared in ten Betty Boop cartoons and was always a welcome addition to the films.   If you have a desire to see more I suggest you check out Grampy's Indoor Outing and The Impractical Joker, two of his better films.
This cartoon also showcases the three-dimensional sets that the Fleischers liked to use with their characters.   You can see them at the beginning and the end.   Enjoy!

Saturday Morning Cartoon: Cartoons Ain't Human

Here's a favorite Popeye cartoon from 1943:   Cartoons Ain't Human, released by Famous Studios.   In this outing, Popeye makes his own animated cartoon, which he screens for Olive and his four nephews.   For the trivia connoisseurs, the nephews are names Peep-eye, Pip-eye, Pup-eye and Poop-eye.  In later cartoons, the number of nephews could change randomly to three or two, depending on how many they wanted to animate.   This was also the last black-and white Popeye cartoon before the studio switched to all-color.Enjoy!

Saturday Morning Cartoon: Goonland

Today's cartoon features that one-eyed runt, that spinach-slurpin' sailor, Popeye.   Popeye originally appeared in in a comic strip called "Thimble Theater" on January 17, 1929.  He was originally just an incidental character, but his popularity rose and rose until he became the star of the strip.  In 1933, the Max Fleischer studios began producing Popeye animated cartoons.   They were highly successful, and for a time Popeye was the #1 cartoon star in the US, passing over Mickey Mouse for the title.  The Fleischers lost their studio to Paramount in 1942, and the Popeye cartoons began a gradual decline in quality at that time.   However, in their heyday they were inventive and fun, and rarely the same Popeye / Olive / Bluto rivalry thing over and over.  Here's a great one from 1938: "Goonland," which chronicles Popeye's quest to find his long-lost father.



For those of you who prefer the Popeye / Olive / Bluto rivalry, here's another great one, "The Paneless Window Washer" from 1937.