It's Time For Saraka

Remember when I said I would put up scans of the entire Inbad the Ailer pamphlet if I got one? Well, I got one. I'll assemble these into a movie (well, a glorified slideshow) at some point.
Merry Xmas.

Wonder Bakers at the Fair

Title: Wonder Bakers at the World's Fair
Studio: Ted Eshbaugh
Date: (1939?)
Credits:
An Eshbaugh-Victor Production
Series: -
Running time (of viewed version): 3:36 (for footage on Cultoons)

Synopsis: Buy our mass produced baked goods.













Comments: I'm not certain this is a 1939 cartoon; it looks and sounds older. But jingle music retained this type of sound for awhile, so thats not dispositive. And Ted Eshbaugh's output as a solo and at Van Beuren didn't show so much evolution between known dated pieces (say, the Wizard of Oz in 1933 and Sunshine Makers in 1935) to really rule it out. In favor of 1939: the title is "The Wonder Bakers at the World's Fair"; as there were two World's Fairs in 1939-40, not mentioning the city would allow this to have been shown in San Francisco and New York. On the other hand, it also would have allowed it to be shown in 1933 and 1939, in Chicago and New York and San Francisco. If we can pin down creation of either the Wonder Baker bakers or the Hostess hostess mascots to after 1933, we can pin down the segments to the '39-40 fairs (I don't think anyone is arguing for 1963 or the Knoxville entry). Is there any evidence of when Eshbaugh was associated with someone named Victor (or the Voctor part of RCA Victor maybe)? As Eshbaugh's Wizard of Oz from 1933 was color (and he'd been working on color since 1932, based on the article at http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2006/08/04/how-the-first-color-cartoons-were-made/ , it was technically feasible.

Apparently, all sugar is ok and needs no testing for quality unlike flour, yeast and milk. Only bad ingredients are funny. The hostess is attractive. There really isn't much to comment on in this, content wise.

You can find this cartoon on Thunderbean's Cultoons Ads and Oddities
http://www.thunderbeananimation.com/dvdsales.html
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BQ7JVG?ie=UTF8&seller=AKK5M0EM2CKQI&sn=thunderbean

The Amazing Recovery of Inbad the Ailer

Title: The Amazing Recovery of Inbad the Ailer
Studio: Lantz
Date: 1939
Credits: -
Series: Advertising
Running time (of viewed version): -

Title Frame: A motion picture presented at the New york World's Fair by the makers of Saraka.





10 Girl frame: Da-da-da da-da! Three luscious nautch girls, slim and sinuous as the houris of Paradise, were swaying in a seductively Oriental dance.




13 "At Saambi's signal, a Nubian marched in. On a salver, he carried an orange colored tin bearing the mystic words "SARAKA for constipation.""

14 " "Saraka!" cried Inbdad. And the look on his face was like that of a thirsty traveler lost in the desert, who suddenly sights a cool, green oasis."

--

This has not been viewed by me. This came out for the 1939 New York World's Fair for the laxative Saraka. It looks great, ad is strangely clear for a '39 Lantz color cartoon, but maybe it's just been juiced for 4 color printing. There was reportedly a print on eBay in 2004. The images here come from the booklet put out based on it (essentially screenshots). I'd love to see this. I'd also love to have the booklet so I could scan in the entire thing. In time...

The other images are a promo button form the campaign (I have one), an ad from Life from 1937 in a different style (so Lantz had to adapt the storyline, I suppose), and a 1939ish ad from the Lantz based campaign. I should transcribe the '39 life ad, but I'm not going to right now. You should be able to read it if you like by clicking on the image.

Pin:

1939 ad:

1937 ad:



August 21, 1939 Life magazine Saraka ad:
http://books.google.com/books?id=9EEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA37&lpg=PA37&dq=%22inbad+the+ailer%22&source=bl&ots=yLhi779buK&sig=DSf4DSscUGw1KVZLYkqHR8V6_xg&hl=en&ei=845LTLr1HMKB8gbymsk1&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDMQ6AEwBA


Time for Saraka (Inbad the Ailer)
http://www.worldsfaircommunity.org/index.php?showtopic=4332

Cartoon Brew's piece on it:
http://www.cartoonbrew.com/old-brew/animated-and-constipated.html

A print was apparently on ebay in 2004
http://www.peacethroughunderstanding.org/index.php?showtopic=3687&st=0&p=25568&#entry25568

http://librarydisplays.wolfsonian.org/Comparative%20Colonialism%20Web/86.19.184.htm

'37 ad: http://dr-hermes.livejournal.com/581473.html

Charlie McCarthy at the NYWF, September 1939

The other examples from
http://strippersguide.blogspot.com/2008/03/obscurity-of-day-mortimer-and-charlie.html





Dream of Venus was an exhibit designed (?) by Salvador Dali. I have a book on it, but haven't read it yet. It involved live nude girls. Huzzah. You can see some at archive.org:
http://www.archive.org/details/Medicusc1939_2

Rose Court NYWF postcard, July 17, 1939

Because it's good to remember people actually went to the fair...



"Mrs. Helen Roman (possibly Rowan)
2305 Fullerton Av.
Chicago
Ill"

(postmark: Jul 17 12-M 1939, Flushing N.Y.)

"Hello Helen
Sure am having a good time. wish all you girls were with me. It sure is pretty here and every body is so friendly. from (?)

Lu."

Google Maps shows a building that was probably there in 1939. It's close to I-94; I could hop on I-94, which is also close to me at the moment, and see Helen Roman/Rowan's old house in person in a little over four hours. I'm not going to do that tho...

Betty Boop World's Fair pin fob

While Betty Boop's last Fleischer cartoon had already premiered, and the last cartoon in her series was only a month away from premiering, visitors to the New York World's Fair in mid July, 1939, would still have been able to buy a pin doohickey in her image, chained to the pleasant stndard 1939 NYWF fob. I'm not sure if the image with a black dress is a variant, or if it's simply a trick of the light.

These pins are not uncommon, so someone did a brisk business (if only the manufacturer).