101 Arabs With Dirty Fezzes

Title: Arabs With Dirty Fezzes (The Arabs With Dirty Fezzes on the retitle; unsure about the original)
Studio: Lantz
Date: 7/31/39
Credits: -
Series: (Babyface Mouse?)
Running time (of viewed version): 6:46

Synopsis: Grampa Babyface reminisces about being in a foreign legion and being overrun by Arabs.















Comments: Starring Ugly Face Mouse. The Arabs wear turbans in this, not fezzes. If it's supposed to be a fez wearing country, I don't believe they should be Arabs, but something more along the lines of Moroccans. This cartoon has kids pointing bayonets at their family members and noose around the neck execution scenes, and still it isn't good. "Six Delicious Flavors Desert" is a reference to Jell-O, the dessert that came in six delicious flavors.

100 It's The Natural Thing To Do

1939 Number: 100
Title: It's the Natural Thing To Do
Studio: Fleischer
Date: 7/30/39
Credits:
Directed by
Dave Fleischer
Animated by
Tom Johnson
Lod Rossner
Series: Popeye
Running time (of viewed version): 6:41

Synopsis: The gang tries to be non-violent. It doesn't work out.























Comments: The 100th cartoon of the year. Self referentially a movie with the Popeye Fan Club at the beginning. Mocking the anti violence types, with a lack of violence leading to extreme boredom. Weird pupily (or rather eye white) shot of Popeye. That's right Olive, never dunk your donuts above your elbow. Additional tongue action. A bit more cartoony than normal. Punctuated movement, as in this, works better than constant movement. The title transitions to the action. In the opening fight, it jumps from pose to pose. The final fight involves all three fighting for the joy of it, Bluto making sure Popeye gets the spinach. Rather sexual undertones.

As I'm posting this, I've just finished work on Gulliver's Travels, and I have to say I'm glad to be reminded what a funny Fleischer cartoon looks like. (Sorry about the info gaps above, I'll fill them in at some point.)

BoxOffice July 29, 1939

Boxoffice July 29. 1939

p38E?39?
"Cartoon editors, assistant editors and film librarians of Walt Disney Productions will be represented by the Society of Motion Picture Film Editors, and production employes by the Federation of Screen Cartoonists, it was announced."

p47ish?
"New Cartoon Star

Walter Lantz has introduced a new charter, "Pan," making his bow in "Petern," a Technicolor cartoon short for Unirsal release. "Pan" was created by Will i)gany, the artist, and the story for the el was supplied by Elaine Pogany, his fe"

p86?
"... A new

W.

sales-

A. Holliday. for-

Max

Hampton HowFleischer studios. ard, who has been active here in that capacity, is being transferred to New York to work on the exploitation of '•Gulliver's Travels.""

Work on

the

full

length

Technicolor

feature, "Gulliver's Travels." is on the home stretch, with all studio activities concentrated on the completion of that pro-"

p88
"pLEISCHER'S STUDIO
technicians discovered this week the best heart around the premises was the heart of Stone of Milton Stone, to be specific. After a series of heart beat amplifying— beginning with the studio's huskiest^ it was discovered the bump-bump under the ribs of the studio's cafeteria manager was the most convincingly heartlike. And so Milton Stone's heart was placed under contract. The first two 200 pounders sounded for heart beats suprised the technicians and themselves by producing hop. skip and
reverberations. The tests were made secure the proper heart sound to be heard by the Lilliputians as they arrive at the conviction that Gulliver is not a mountain. Continued additions are being
made

to

the studio's personnel which

is

nearing the 600 mark."

"Besides having all three paint mills at the Fleischer Studios now grinding 24 hours a day, an additional outside mill has been secured for the studio's use. Some 60 more artists have been added since last week's announcement that the studio's staff had reached the 500 mark!"


"
Two

local

vig.

Fleischer Studio personaUties

made

news: Dave Fleischer and Pinto ColThe former brought to boat his first

sailfish,
a 73-pounder, while fishing in the Gulf Stream out from Fort Lauderdale. It has dubbed, appropriately enough, "Gulliver." It is to be mounted. Pinto broke down and made public his panacea for the tortured larynx he sustains after a long session of acting as the studio's human sound effect machine. It's a long tall chilled beaker of buttermilk. This professional No. 1 clown is known as the "voice of the studio." He also announces that he is the "world's cornest coronet player.""

099 Snowman's Land

Title: Snowman's Land
Studio: Warner Bros.
Date: 7/29/39
Credits:
Supervision
Charles Jones
Story by
Dave Monahan
Animation
Ken Harris
Musical Direction
Carl W. Stalling
Series: Merrie Melodies
Running time (of viewed version): 7:40

Synopsis: Idiot mounty gets his man.














Comments: More dog men. Musically this bears a resemblence to later cartoons. Idiot hero sounds to be Pinto Colvig. Hard to take a villain seriously in a super droopy night cap. In some ways, Dirty Pierre is Homer, and the hero is Flanders... The winter background improves the cartoon, as it so often does. I'm not sure why they're frightened of a snowman version of Dirty Pierre. Perhaps they think it a ghost. The characters look more maturely Jones-y.

Ford Home Almanac, July 1939; plus, Betty Boop Festival

Here's the cover for an almanac from Ford. I suppose it would have had tips on repairing dings from rogue jitterbuggers dancing on your hood.
---
More to the present, there's going to be a Betty Boop Festival in Wisconsin, August 5-8th.
http://www.bettyboopfestivalwi.com/index.html
There are screenings of Betty Boop shorts, presented by Stephen Worth of the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive; it's unclear to me if these will actually be on film or video. As it's more of a Grim Natwick and Betty Boop festival, I'm not sure any 1939 Betty Boops will be shown, but it's possible.