Boilesk

The title of this Fleischer cartoon looks like a word in some exotic foreign language, and I guess in a sense it is: that's the word "Burlesque" rendered in an approximation of an old school Brooklyn accent. I've met a few older New Yorkers who still talk like that, but with the passage of time the accent will eventually go the way of Burlesque itself. This cartoon, in any event, is a tribute to that long-gone form of popular entertainment which was similar to Vaudeville, but with one important difference: unlike Vaudeville, Burlesque did not aim for the family trade. Vaudevillians were usually punished for indulging in "blue" material, while performers in Burlesque were actively encouraged to be as earthy as the law allowed. When this film was made Vaudeville was just about dead, but Burlesque was still shimmying away, and hadn't yet degenerated into the seedy bump-and-grind shows that would eventually give the term a bad name. Even so, you won't find many references to Burlesque in mainstream movies after the enforcement of the Production Code in 1934. And it feels appropriate that this amusing short is a product of the Fleischer Studio (as opposed to, say, Disney) since that studio was always the naughtiest where sex is concerned. Just ask Betty Boop!

'Boilesk' was an entry in the studio's long-running Bouncing Ball series, and as usual it presents a mixture of animation and live action. The live action segment features a comedy duo, the Watson Sisters. Kitty Watson is the slender one, while Fanny Watson is, as she admits, "stout." From what I gather the team toured in Vaudeville and played nightclubs, but as far as I can determine they were not regulars on the Burlesque circuit. Certainly their material as presented here isn't what you'd call risqué, yet they don't appear to be out of place in the raucous, low-down milieu created by the Fleischer crew for this short.

The cartoon kicks off with a familiar device, an electric sign that flashes several amusing messages that set the tone: "Midnight Show Starts at 12 o' clock Noon," "You Must See Our Fanny Shimmy!" etc. etc. Inside we find the band bashing away at a medley of tunes that just happen to come from contemporaneous Paramount features (i.e. from the Fleischer Studio's parent organization). Then the curtain rises to reveal a chorus line of lady hippos, all wearing hats with plumes, dancing languidly to "Frankie and Johnny." Their number is greeted with sparse applause because, as it turns out, there's only one guy in the house. After a brief, saucy comedy sketch, another lady hippo who seems to be the star of the show comes out and doffs her dress, revealing her slip, and suddenly the auditorium fills with crazed spectators. There's a great little visual bit: the men pouring into the theater in an over-heated mob look like oatmeal filling a bowl. Miss Hippo shimmies out of her slip down to a black teddy and sashays offstage, then the teddy dances out by itself and takes a bow. Gents, this is definitely not the Mickey Mouse Club! After a few more quick, Vaudeville-like routines by various characters we meet the Watson Sisters. I'd never seen or heard of them before, but in this brief appearance they come off as lively and engaging, as they toss off a few sassy quips and lead the audience in the torch song "I'm Playing With Fire." Kitty, the slender Watson, plays straight woman while her hefty sister Fanny provides the comedy. Fanny's mugging reminded me a little of Marie Dressler, though comparatively restrained.

The animated finale must be seen to be believed. Sociologists who study such things tell us that, underneath the show of bawdy enjoyment, Burlesque houses and strip clubs are hotbeds of barely suppressed hostility, that the showgirls and the men who ogle them hold each other in contempt. I'm not qualified to weigh in on the matter myself, but it looks like the folks who created this cartoon seemed to understand the dynamic instinctively, for during the finale all pretense at civility melts down fast. Fruit is hurled at the dancers, the girls fight back with garter belts fired like slingshots, and all hell breaks loose. Even by Fleischer standards, the final gag will leave you gob-smacked. This cartoon is one for the 20th Century Pop Culture Time Capsule.