Louis Armstrong in 1932 Betty Boop Cartoon

DISCLAIMER:
Please do NOT watch this if you're concerned about political correctness (of today) -- this pre-code item is certainly FULL OF RACIAL STEREOTYPES of the time it was conceived and produced (1932).

If, however, you're interested in some of the earliest footage of Louis Armstrong (quite possibly THE earliest footage) and/or the animation skills/techniques of the Max Fleischer studios, you will enjoy this brief clip!

Another item from archive.org: 

DESCRIPTION (ibid.):

Betty Boop: 

I'll Be Glad When You're Dead, You Rascal You (1932)

Producer: Max Fleischer
Sponsor:
Paramount Publix Corporation
Audio/Visual:
sound, black and white
Creative Commons license: 
Public Domain


Reviews and discussion (excerpts - ibid.):

Reviewer: valeyard - - December 28, 2006
Subject: Great song, hard to watch
It's a great song. It's hard to watch though, because of the way they juxtapose Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra with such racial stereotypes. It just doesn't seem right to have them portrayed that way. I can't help wondering how Armstrong felt about being portrayed that way. Still it's a gem to watch solely for the song. Love the song.

Reviewer: Al W. - - March 24, 2008
Subject: Times Change
It's hard to call things like this racist when the prevailing sentiment of the times was that it was OK. There are so many old films that contain things that we as modern people find offensive, but I'll contend that they need to stay and preserve the feelings of the time. And I'll add, this song really swings. The black performers of the 30's really knew how to play great music and given that the times were what they were, this is one of the few venues we have that preserve that part of history.

DOWNLOAD (Divx, 88 MB)