Mae Questel
Encyclopedia
Mae Questel was an American actress and vocal artist
best known for providing the voices for the animated characters, Betty Boop
and Olive Oyl
. She began in vaudeville
, and played occasional small roles in films and television later in her career, most notably the role of Aunt Bethany in 1989's National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
.
to Simon and Freida Kwestel, she attended Morris High School and studied acting at the American Theatre Wing
and with the Theatre Guild
. Although she wanted to be an entertainer, her parents, who were Orthodox Jews
, actively discouraged her from doing so, at one time forcing her to leave the Theatre Guild school.
Nevertheless, at the age of 17 Questel won a talent contest held at the RKO Fordham Theatre in the Bronx
by imitating Helen Kane
. She was signed by an agent and began performing in vaudeville
as an impressionist. Billed as "Mae Questel - Personality Singer of Personality Songs," she did Fanny Brice
, Marlene Dietrich
, Eddie Cantor
, Mae West
, Maurice Chevalier
and others, as well as doing animal imitations. She was seen by animator Max Fleischer
, who was looking for an actress to provide the voice for his Betty Boop
character. Questel's "Boop-boop-a-doop" routine, done in a style similar to that of the song's originator, Helen Kane, while at the same time evoking something of the naughty allure of film star Clara Bow
, was exactly what Fleischer wanted, and he hired Questel in 1931. She began as one of a number of actresses providing the character's voice, but soon took over the role exclusively.
From 1931 until 1939, Questel provided the voice of Betty Boop in more than 150 animated
shorts, the longest run for any actress doing that voice. During the 1930s she released a recording of "On the Good Ship Lollipop
" which sold more than two million copies. In 1988, she reprised the role in a cameo appearance in Who Framed Roger Rabbit
.
Along with her voice work, and occasional on-camera appearance in Paramount shorts, Questel also attended Columbia University
, where she studied drama.
and Swee'pea in Fleischer's Popeye
animated shorts. She based Olive's nasal vocal style, and expressions like "Oh, dear!" on the persona of the legendary character actress ZaSu Pitts
, and ultimately played the role for more than 20 years. Questel refused to move to Miami, Florida
when Fleischer Studios
relocated there in 1938, so Margie Hines
took over during the Miami years. Questel returned as the voice of Olive Oyl when Paramount Pictures
moved the former Fleischer Studios – which became Famous Studios
– back to New York. She also filled in for Jack Mercer
, the voice of Popeye, for a small number of cartoons made when Mercer was temporarily drawn into war service.
When Hanna-Barbera
began making new Popeye cartoons for television in 1978, Questel auditioned for the role of Olive Oyl, and lost out to another voice-over actress.
in three shorts produced by Van Beuren Studios
, and Minnie Mouse
, Little Lulu
, Little Audrey
and Casper, the Friendly Ghost in their respective animated shorts. In the 1950s, she was the voice for the title character of the pioneering interactive Saturday-morning cartoon series Winky Dink and You
.
Questel's final film was a voice appearance in Felix the Cat: The Movie
. She continued to provide the voices of Betty Boop and Olive Oyl in commercials, television specials and elsewhere until her death.
singing with her sisters, The Gumm Sisters. Over the years she played a number of small parts, including appearing with Rudy Vallee
as Betty Boop in the 1931 short Musical Justice (1931)
and as a nurse in The Musical Doctor in 1932.
In 1961 she was seen as a middle-aged bride in Jerry Lewis
' It's Only Money
, one of Fanny Brice
's mother's card-playing friends at the start of the film Funny Girl
in 1968, and as the "Jewish Mama from Hell" in Woody Allen
's New York Stories
in 1989 in Woody's segment titled "Oedipus Wrecks"; she had earlier sung the song "Chameleon Days" on the soundtrack for Allen's film Zelig
in 1983. Her last non-voice appearance was as the elderly Aunt Bethany in 1989's National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
.
In 1973, Questel had a role in the short-lived ABC television
sitcom The Corner Bar, but she achieved perhaps her greatest visibility in television commercials, notably playing "Aunt Bluebell" in ads for Scott Towels
, but also appeared in spots for Playtex
, Folger's Coffee and others. She also appeared on panel shows and in daytime soap operas.
Questel had a withered arm; in her on-camera film appearances, she was usually photographed with elbows bent and both hands at her waist or holding an object in the crook of her elbow to make it less obvious that one arm was shorter and smaller than the other.
four times:
at the age of 89 in New York City
. She was buried in West Babylon, New York
's New Montefiore Cemetery. She had two sons, Robert Balkin, who pre-deceased her, and Richard, who survived her.
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
best known for providing the voices for the animated characters, Betty Boop
Betty Boop
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
and Olive Oyl
Olive Oyl
Olive Oyl is a cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar in 1919 for his comic strip Thimble Theatre. The strip was later renamed Popeye after the sailor character that became the most popular member of the cast; however Olive Oyl was a main character for 10 years before Popeye's 1929...
. She began in vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
, and played occasional small roles in films and television later in her career, most notably the role of Aunt Bethany in 1989's National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Christmas Vacation is a 1989 Christmas comedy film directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik. It is the third installment in National Lampoon's Vacation film series, and was written by John Hughes, based on his short story in National Lampoon Magazine, Christmas ‘59...
.
Early career and Betty Boop
Born as Mae Kwestel in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to Simon and Freida Kwestel, she attended Morris High School and studied acting at the American Theatre Wing
American Theatre Wing
The American Theatre Wing is a New York City-based organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre," according to its mission statement...
and with the Theatre Guild
Theatre Guild
The Theatre Guild is a theatrical society founded in New York City in 1918 by Lawrence Langner, Philip Moeller, Helen Westley and Theresa Helburn. Langner's wife, Armina Marshall, then served as a co-director. It evolved out of the work of the Washington Square Players.Its original purpose was to...
. Although she wanted to be an entertainer, her parents, who were Orthodox Jews
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
, actively discouraged her from doing so, at one time forcing her to leave the Theatre Guild school.
Nevertheless, at the age of 17 Questel won a talent contest held at the RKO Fordham Theatre in the Bronx
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
by imitating Helen Kane
Helen Kane
Helen Kane was an American popular singer; her signature song was "I Wanna Be Loved By You". Kane's voice and appearance were a likely source for Fleischer Studios animator Grim Natwick when creating Betty Boop, although It-girl Clara Bow is another possible influence.-Early life:Born as Helen...
. She was signed by an agent and began performing in vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
as an impressionist. Billed as "Mae Questel - Personality Singer of Personality Songs," she did Fanny Brice
Fanny Brice
Fanny Brice was a popular and influential American illustrated song "model," comedienne, singer, theatre and film actress, who made many stage, radio and film appearances and is known as the creator and star of the top-rated radio comedy series, The Baby Snooks Show...
, Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
, Eddie Cantor
Eddie Cantor
Eddie Cantor was an American "illustrated song" performer, comedian, dancer, singer, actor and songwriter...
, Mae West
Mae West
Mae West was an American actress, playwright, screenwriter and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned seven decades....
, Maurice Chevalier
Maurice Chevalier
Maurice Auguste Chevalier was a French actor, singer, entertainer and a noted Sprechgesang performer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including Louise, Mimi, Valentine, and Thank Heaven for Little Girls and for his films including The Love Parade and The Big Pond...
and others, as well as doing animal imitations. She was seen by animator Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...
, who was looking for an actress to provide the voice for his Betty Boop
Betty Boop
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
character. Questel's "Boop-boop-a-doop" routine, done in a style similar to that of the song's originator, Helen Kane, while at the same time evoking something of the naughty allure of film star Clara Bow
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow was an American actress who rose to stardom in the silent film era of the 1920s. It was her appearance as a spunky shopgirl in the film It that brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl." Bow came to personify the roaring twenties and is described as its leading sex...
, was exactly what Fleischer wanted, and he hired Questel in 1931. She began as one of a number of actresses providing the character's voice, but soon took over the role exclusively.
From 1931 until 1939, Questel provided the voice of Betty Boop in more than 150 animated
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
shorts, the longest run for any actress doing that voice. During the 1930s she released a recording of "On the Good Ship Lollipop
On the Good Ship Lollipop
"On the Good Ship Lollipop" was the trademark song of child actress Shirley Temple. Temple first sang it in the 1934 movie Bright Eyes. The "ship" in the song is an aircraft; the scene in Bright Eyes where the song appears takes place on an American Airlines Douglas DC-2 which is taxiing. In the...
" which sold more than two million copies. In 1988, she reprised the role in a cameo appearance in Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American fantasy-comedy-noir film directed by Robert Zemeckis and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film combines live action and animation, and is based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, which depicts a world in which cartoon characters...
.
Along with her voice work, and occasional on-camera appearance in Paramount shorts, Questel also attended Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, where she studied drama.
Olive Oyl
Beginning in 1933 Questel also provided the voice for Olive OylOlive Oyl
Olive Oyl is a cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar in 1919 for his comic strip Thimble Theatre. The strip was later renamed Popeye after the sailor character that became the most popular member of the cast; however Olive Oyl was a main character for 10 years before Popeye's 1929...
and Swee'pea in Fleischer's Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
animated shorts. She based Olive's nasal vocal style, and expressions like "Oh, dear!" on the persona of the legendary character actress ZaSu Pitts
ZaSu Pitts
ZaSu Pitts was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas and comedies, transitioning to comedy sound films.-Early life:ZaSu Pitts was born in Parsons, Kansas to Rulandus and Nellie Pitts; she was the third of four children...
, and ultimately played the role for more than 20 years. Questel refused to move to Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
when Fleischer Studios
Fleischer Studios
Fleischer Studios, Inc., was an American corporation which originated as an Animation studio located at 1600 Broadway, New York City, New York...
relocated there in 1938, so Margie Hines
Margie Hines
Margie Hines is an American film actress. She is best known for her work as a voice artist at Fleischer Studios, where she voiced Olive Oyl in the Popeye the Sailor cartoons from 1938 to 1943....
took over during the Miami years. Questel returned as the voice of Olive Oyl when Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
moved the former Fleischer Studios – which became Famous Studios
Famous Studios
Famous Studios was the animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was founded as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount acquired the aforementioned studio and ousted its founders, Max and Dave Fleischer, in 1941...
– back to New York. She also filled in for Jack Mercer
Jack Mercer
Jack Mercer was an American animator, storyman and voice actor. He is best known as the voice of cartoon character Popeye the Sailor...
, the voice of Popeye, for a small number of cartoons made when Mercer was temporarily drawn into war service.
When Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
began making new Popeye cartoons for television in 1978, Questel auditioned for the role of Olive Oyl, and lost out to another voice-over actress.
Other voices
In addition to her signature voices of Betty Boop and Olive Oyl, Questel also provided the voice of Felix the CatFelix the Cat
Felix the Cat is a cartoon character created in the silent film era. His black body, white eyes, and giant grin, coupled with the surrealism of the situations in which his cartoons place him, combine to make Felix one of the most recognized cartoon characters in film history...
in three shorts produced by Van Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios was an American animation studio that produced theatrical cartoons from 1928 to 1936.Producer Amedee J. van Beuren first became involved in the animation industry in 1920, when he formed a partnership with Paul Terry and formed the "Aesop's Fables Studio" for the production of...
, and Minnie Mouse
Minnie Mouse
Minerva "Minnie" Mouse is an animated character created by Ub Iwerks and Walt Disney. The comic strip story "The Gleam" by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minnie has since been a recurring alias for her. Minnie is currently voiced by actress Russi...
, Little Lulu
Little Lulu
"Little Lulu" is the nickname for Lulu Moppett, a comic strip character created in the mid-1930s by Marjorie Henderson Buell. The character debuted in The Saturday Evening Post on February 23, 1935 in a single panel, appearing as a flower girl at a wedding and strewing the aisle with banana peels...
, Little Audrey
Little Audrey
Little Audrey is a fictional character, appearing in Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios cartoons from 1947 to 1958. She is considered a variation of the better-known Little Lulu, devised after Paramount decided not to renew the license on Marjorie Henderson Buell's comic strip character...
and Casper, the Friendly Ghost in their respective animated shorts. In the 1950s, she was the voice for the title character of the pioneering interactive Saturday-morning cartoon series Winky Dink and You
Winky Dink and You
Winky Dink And You was a CBS television children's show that aired from 1953 to 1957, on Saturday mornings at 10:30 a.m./9:30 central. It was hosted by Jack Barry, and featured the exploits of a cartoon character named Winky Dink and his dog Woofer, with sound effects provided by Joseph Scholnick....
.
Questel's final film was a voice appearance in Felix the Cat: The Movie
Felix the Cat: The Movie
Felix the Cat: The Movie is a 1988 animated film based on the cartoon and comic strip character of the same name. It was made in Europe during 1986 and 1987, but was not officially released in the United States until 1991.-Plot:...
. She continued to provide the voices of Betty Boop and Olive Oyl in commercials, television specials and elsewhere until her death.
On-camera roles
Questel's first on-camera appearance came in 1930, an uncredited appearance in Bubbles, a one-reeler that featured a young Judy GarlandJudy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
singing with her sisters, The Gumm Sisters. Over the years she played a number of small parts, including appearing with Rudy Vallee
Rudy Vallée
Rudy Vallée was an American singer, actor, bandleader, and entertainer.-Early life:Born Hubert Prior Vallée in Island Pond, Vermont, the son of Charles Alphonse and Catherine Lynch Vallée...
as Betty Boop in the 1931 short Musical Justice (1931)
Musical Justice (1931)
Musical Justice is an Paramount Pictures musical short starring Betty Boop and Rudy Vallée.- Plot summary :Musical Justice stars Rudy Vallée as judge and His Connecticut Yankees as jury presiding over the Court of Musical Justice. the judge hears three separate cases...
and as a nurse in The Musical Doctor in 1932.
In 1961 she was seen as a middle-aged bride in Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis is an American comedian, actor, singer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He is best known for his slapstick humor in film, television, stage and radio. He was originally paired up with Dean Martin in 1946, forming the famed comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
' It's Only Money
It's Only Money
It's Only Money is a comedy film directed by Frank Tashlin and starring Jerry Lewis. It was filmed from October 9 to December 17, 1961 and was released on November 21, 1962 by Paramount Pictures.-Plot:...
, one of Fanny Brice
Fanny Brice
Fanny Brice was a popular and influential American illustrated song "model," comedienne, singer, theatre and film actress, who made many stage, radio and film appearances and is known as the creator and star of the top-rated radio comedy series, The Baby Snooks Show...
's mother's card-playing friends at the start of the film Funny Girl
Funny Girl (film)
Funny Girl is a 1968 romantic musical film directed by William Wyler. The screenplay by Isobel Lennart was adapted from her book for the stage musical of the same title...
in 1968, and as the "Jewish Mama from Hell" in Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
's New York Stories
New York Stories
New York Stories is a 1989 anthology film; it consists of three shorts with the central theme being New York City.The first is Life Lessons, directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Richard Price and starring Nick Nolte. The second is Life Without Zoë, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and written by...
in 1989 in Woody's segment titled "Oedipus Wrecks"; she had earlier sung the song "Chameleon Days" on the soundtrack for Allen's film Zelig
Zelig
Zelig is a 1983 American mockumentary film written and directed by Woody Allen, and starring Allen and Mia Farrow. Allen plays Zelig, a curiously nondescript enigma who is discovered for his remarkable ability to transform himself to resemble anyone he's near.The film was shot almost entirely in...
in 1983. Her last non-voice appearance was as the elderly Aunt Bethany in 1989's National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Christmas Vacation is a 1989 Christmas comedy film directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik. It is the third installment in National Lampoon's Vacation film series, and was written by John Hughes, based on his short story in National Lampoon Magazine, Christmas ‘59...
.
In 1973, Questel had a role in the short-lived ABC television
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
sitcom The Corner Bar, but she achieved perhaps her greatest visibility in television commercials, notably playing "Aunt Bluebell" in ads for Scott Towels
Scott Paper Company
The Scott Paper Company is a USA-based corporation which manufactures mostly paper based consumer products.Scott Paper was founded in 1879 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by brothers E. Irvin and Clarence Scott, and is often credited as being the first to market toilet paper sold on a roll...
, but also appeared in spots for Playtex
Playtex
Playtex and PlayTex are a brand and trademark. It used to be associated with bras and women's undergarments. Currently there are two separate companies with the Playtex name....
, Folger's Coffee and others. She also appeared on panel shows and in daytime soap operas.
Questel had a withered arm; in her on-camera film appearances, she was usually photographed with elbows bent and both hands at her waist or holding an object in the crook of her elbow to make it less obvious that one arm was shorter and smaller than the other.
Broadway
Questel appeared on BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
four times:
- Doctor Social (1948) with Dean JaggerDean JaggerDean Jagger was an Academy Award winning American film actor.-Career:Born Ira Dean Jagger in Columbus Grove, Ohio, Jagger made his film debut in The Woman from Hell with Mary Astor...
; - Leonard SpigelgassLeonard SpigelgassLeonard Spigelgass was an American film producer and screenwriter.Born in Brooklyn, New York, Spigelgass got his start collaborating on the script for Erich Von Stroheim's Hello, Sister!...
' A Majority of OneA Majority of One-Plot:The comedy involves Mrs. Jacoby, a Jewish widow from Brooklyn, New York, and Koichi Asano, a millionaire widower from Tokyo. Mrs. Jacoby is sailing to Japan with her daughter and foreign service officer son-in-law who is being posted to the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo...
(1959) with Cedric HardwickeCedric HardwickeSir Cedric Webster Hardwicke was a noted English stage and film actor whose career spanned nearly fifty years...
and Barnard HughesBarnard HughesBernard Aloysius Kiernan “Barnard” Hughes was an American actor of theater and film. Hughes became famous for a variety of roles; his most notable roles came after middle age, and he was often cast as a dithering authority figure or grandfatherly elder.-Personal life:Hughes was born in Bedford...
– she reprised her role (as "Essie Rubin") in the 1961 film adaptation; - Enter LaughingEnter LaughingEnter Laughing is a play by Joseph Stein.Based on the semi-autobiographical novel by Carl Reiner, it centers on the journey of young aspiring actor David Kolowitz as he tries to extricate himself from overly protective parents and two too many girlfriends, while struggling to meet the challenge of...
(1963) based on the novel by Carl ReinerCarl ReinerCarl Reiner is an American actor, film director, producer, writer and comedian. He has won nine Emmy Awards and one Grammy Award during this career...
, with Alan ArkinAlan ArkinAlan Wolf Arkin is an American actor, director, musician and singer. He is known for starring in such films as Wait Until Dark, The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Catch-22, The In-Laws, Edward Scissorhands, Glengarry Glen Ross, Marley & Me, and...
, Alan MowbrayAlan MowbrayAlan Mowbray MM, , was an English stage and film actor who found success in Hollywood.Born Alfred Ernest Allen in London, England, he served with distinction the British Army in World War I, being awarded the Military Medal for bravery...
, Sylvia SidneySylvia SidneySylvia Sidney was an American actress who rose to prominence in the 1930s appearing in numerous crime dramas.-Early life:...
and Michael J. PollardMichael J. Pollard- Early life :Born Michael John Pollack, Jr. in Passaic, New Jersey, he is the son of Sonia and Michael John Pollack. He attended the Montclair Academy and the Actors Studio.- Career :...
; and - BajourBajour (musical)Bajour is a musical with a book by Ernest Kinoy and music and lyrics by Walter Marks. The musical is based on the Joseph Mitchell short stories The Gypsy Women and The King of the Gypsies published in The New Yorker...
(1964), the Walter MarksWalter Marks (composer)Walter Marks is an American film and musical theatre composer and lyricist.Walter Marks is noted for the Broadway musical scores for Bajour and Golden Rainbow. The song "I've Gotta Be Me" from Golden Rainbow was recorded by Sammy Davis, Jr...
musical, starring Herschel BernardiHerschel BernardiHerschel Bernardi was an American film, Broadway, and television actor....
, Nancy Dussault and Chita RiveraChita RiveraChita Rivera is an American actress, dancer, and singer best known for her roles in musical theater. She is the first Hispanic woman to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award...
.
Death
Questel died from complications related to Alzheimer's diseaseAlzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
at the age of 89 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. She was buried in West Babylon, New York
West Babylon, New York
West Babylon is a census-designated place in the town of Babylon in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 43,452 at the 2000 census.-Geography:West Babylon is located at ....
's New Montefiore Cemetery. She had two sons, Robert Balkin, who pre-deceased her, and Richard, who survived her.
Selected filmography
- Bubbles (film)Bubbles (film)-Plot:A Vitaphone Varieties short which starts with Mae Questel singing the introductory song "My Pretty Bubble". Bubbles features a land of make believe where the Vitaphone Kiddies dance and sing...
(1930) - Minnie the MoocherMinnie the Moocher"Minnie the Moocher" is a jazz song first recorded in 1931 by Cab Calloway and His Orchestra, selling over 1 million copies. "Minnie the Moocher" is most famous for its nonsensical ad libbed lyrics . In performances, Calloway would have the audience participate by repeating each scat phrase in a...
(1932) - Crazy TownCrazy Town (1932 cartoon)Crazy Town is a 1932 Fleischer Studios Talkartoon animated short film featuring the Betty Boop.-Synopsis:Betty and Bimbo take a trip to Crazytown for a small vacation where anything can happen. mice are roaring & birds swim in the lake. Hats are worn on feet & shoes on heads. Betty and bimbo...
(1932) - Snow-White (1933)
- Betty Boop's Birthday PartyBetty Boop's Birthday PartyBetty Boop's Birthday Party is a 1933 Fleischer Studio animated short film, starring Betty Boop and featuring Koko the Clown and Bimbo.-Plot:...
(1933) - Betty Boop's May PartyBetty Boop's May PartyBetty Boop's May Party is a 1933 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop, and featuring Koko the Clown and Bimbo.-Plot:...
(1933) - Mother Goose LandMother Goose LandMother Goose Land is a 1933 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop.-Synopsis:Betty, while reading a book of Mother Goose stories, wishes she could visit such a wonderful place. Betty's wish is granted when Mother Goose appears, and gives her a tour of Mother Goose Land...
(1933) - Popeye the SailorPopeye the Sailor (1933 cartoon)Popeye the Sailor is a 1933 Fleischer Studios animated short, directed by Dave Fleischer. While billed as a Betty Boop cartoon, it actually starred Popeye the Sailor in his first animated appearance.-Summary:...
(1933) - I Heard (1933)
- Morning, Moon and Night (1933)
- Betty Boop's Hallowe'en PartyBetty Boop's Hallowe'en PartyBetty Boop's Hallowe'en Party is a 1933 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop.-Plot:It's Hallowe'en, and Jack Frost covers the fields with frost. A chilly scarecrow plucks a wind-blown piece of paper out of the air; it's an invitation to Betty's Hallowe'en party...
(1933) - I Eats my Spinach (1933)
- Sock-a-bye, Baby (1934)
- Ha! Ha! Ha! (1934)
- Betty in BlunderlandBetty in BlunderlandBetty in Blunderland is a 1934 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop.-Plot:Betty falls asleep doing a jigsaw puzzle of Alice and the white rabbit. She "awakes" just in time to follow the rabbit through the looking glass into a modern wonderland...
(1934) - Can You Take It (1934)
- The Old Man of the Mountain (1934)
- Betty Boop's Rise to FameBetty Boop's Rise to FameBetty Boop's Rise to Fame is a 1934 Fleischer Studios animated short film, starring Betty Boop.-Plot:In a live action sequence, a reporter interviewing Max Fleischer asks him about his latest animated star Betty Boop. Max obligingly draws Betty "out of the inkwell" and asks her to perform a...
(1934) - Betty Boop's TrialBetty Boop's TrialBetty Boop's Trial is a 1934 Fleischer Studios animated short film, starring Betty Boop.-Plot:When handsome motorcycle police officer Freddy pursues Betty, she accidentally breaks the speed limit. Freddy is forced to arrest her and take her to traffic court...
(1934) - Betty Boop's Life GuardBetty Boop's Life GuardBetty Boop's Life Guard is a 1934 Fleischer Studios animated short film, starring Betty Boop.-Plot:Betty is spending the day at the beach, where her boyfriend Fearless Freddy works as a life guard. Betty is enjoying the ocean while floating in her inflatable rubber horsey when it springs a leak...
(1934) - Poor CinderellaPoor CinderellaPoor Cinderella is a 1934 Fleischer Studio animated short film featuring Betty Boop. The first entry in the Color Classics series, Poor Cinderella was Fleischer Studio's first color film, and the only appearance of Betty Boop in color during the Fleischer era.-Synopsis:In this retelling of the...
(1934) - There's Something About a SoldierThere's Something About a SoldierThere's Something About a Soldier is a 1934 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop.-Synopsis:Betty is recruiting soldiers for a war against mosquitos. She offers a kiss to anyone who enrolls.-External links:*...
(1934) - Betty Boop's Little PalBetty Boop's Little PalBetty Boop's Little Pal is a 1934 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop, and featuring Pudgy .-Plot:...
(1934) - Betty Boop's Prize ShowBetty Boop's Prize ShowBetty Boop's Prize Show is a 1934 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop.-Plot:Betty and her boyfriend Freddy are appearing on stage at the Slumberland Theatre. Betty is the school marm in an old style melodrama, and Freddy is the dashing hero, who rescues her from the clutches...
(1934) - Baby Be GoodBaby Be GoodBaby Be Good is a 1935 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop.-Synopsis:Betty Boop is putting her nephew junior to bed, but he isn't ready to sleep. He jumps on the bed then uses a tube of toothpaste to put stripes on the cat. When Betty catches him, she tells him a fairy tale...
(1935) - Stop That NoiseStop That NoiseStop That Noise is a 1935 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop. It is now public domain.-Synopsis:A sleepless Betty can't take the noise of the city any more, and heads out into the country for some peace and quiet. She soon discovers that the country has its own problems...
(1935) - The Kids in the Shoe (1935)
- Betty Boop and GrampyBetty Boop and GrampyBetty Boop and Grampy is a 1935 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop, and featuring Grampy in his first appearance.-Plot:Betty receives an invitation to a party from her elderly relative, Grampy...
(1935) - Making StarsMaking StarsMaking Stars is a 1935 Fleischer Studio animated short film, starring Betty Boop. The short contains one of the earliest clear examples of the oriental riff that would become popular as a leitmotif for asian culture following the release of the 1974 song Kung Fu Fighting.-Synopsis:Betty is the MC...
(1935)
- The Spinach Overture (1935)
- Be HumanBe Human (1936 cartoon)Be Human is a 1936 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop and Grampy. It is now public domain.-Plot:Betty Boop is incensed at her farmer neighbor's cruelty to his animals...
(1936) - Christmas Comes But Once a YearChristmas Comes But Once a YearChristmas Comes but Once a Year is a 1936 animated short produced by Fleischer Studios and released on December 4, 1936. It is part of the Color Classics series.-Summary:...
(1936) - Making FriendsMaking FriendsMaking Friends is a full length by the hardcore melodic punk rock band No Use for a Name, released in 1997. It also includes a hidden track cover of the Kiss song "Beth"...
(1936) - Bridge Ahoy! (1936)
- House Cleaning BluesHouse Cleaning BluesHouse Cleaning Blues is a 1937 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop, and featuring Grampy.-Synopsis:Betty wakes up after the morning after her birthday party. The house is a shambles, and Betty is not looking forward to cleaning up. She sings the title song while struggling...
(1937) - Whoops! I'm a CowboyWhoops! I'm a CowboyWhoops! I'm a Cowboy! is a 1937 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop.-Synopsis:Betty's short weakling boyfriend Wiffle Piffle proposes to her. Betty turns him down, saying/singing she's only interested in a "bronco-busting" he-man cowboy. Whiffle sets off for a dude ranch to...
(1937) - The Hot Air SalesmanThe Hot Air SalesmanThe Hot Air Salesman is a 1937 Fleischer Studios animated short film starring Betty Boop and featuring Wiffle Piffle.-Synopsis:Wiffle Piffle is an annoying door to door salesman, selling a variety of useless gadgets. As he cheerfully walks from house to house, both arms are continuously moving as...
(1937) - Funny Girl (1968)
- New York StoriesNew York StoriesNew York Stories is a 1989 anthology film; it consists of three shorts with the central theme being New York City.The first is Life Lessons, directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Richard Price and starring Nick Nolte. The second is Life Without Zoë, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and written by...
(1989) - Who Framed Roger RabbitWho Framed Roger RabbitWho Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American fantasy-comedy-noir film directed by Robert Zemeckis and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film combines live action and animation, and is based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, which depicts a world in which cartoon characters...
(1988; cameo) - National Lampoon's Christmas VacationNational Lampoon's Christmas VacationChristmas Vacation is a 1989 Christmas comedy film directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik. It is the third installment in National Lampoon's Vacation film series, and was written by John Hughes, based on his short story in National Lampoon Magazine, Christmas ‘59...
(1989) - Felix the Cat: The MovieFelix the Cat: The MovieFelix the Cat: The Movie is a 1988 animated film based on the cartoon and comic strip character of the same name. It was made in Europe during 1986 and 1987, but was not officially released in the United States until 1991.-Plot:...
(1991, cameo)
External links
- Mae Questel at the TCM Movie Database
- Mae Questel at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
- Mae Questel at Behind the voice actors
- Mae Questel at Otrrpedia