Screen Songs
Encyclopedia
Screen Songs is the name of a series of animated cartoons
produced by the Fleischer Studios
and distributed by Paramount Pictures
between 1929 and 1938. They were revived by Famous Studios
in 1945 starting with the Noveltoon Old MacDonald Had a Farm.
. They are sing-along shorts featuring the famous "bouncing ball
", a sort of precursor to modern karaoke
videos. They often featured popular melodies of the day. The early Song Car-Tunes were among the earliest sound films, produced two years before The Jazz Singer
. They were largely unknown at the time because their release was limited to the chain of 36 theaters operated by The Red Seal Pictures Company, which was equipped with the early Lee DeForest Phonofilm
sound reproduction equipment. The Red Seal theater chain -- formed by the Fleischers, DeForest, Edwin Miles Fadiman, and Hugo Riesenfeld
-- went from the East Coast to Columbus, Ohio
.
Between May 1924 and September 1927, the Fleischers released 36 Song Car-Tunes series, with 17 using the Phonofilm sound-on-film
process. The films included Oh Mabel, Come Take a Trip in My Airship, Darling Nelly Gray
, Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly?
, and By the Light of the Silvery Moon
. Beginning with My Old Kentucky Home
(1926), the cartoons featured the "follow the bouncing ball" gimmick, that lead the audience singing along with the film. The Fleischers were ahead of the sound revolution, and just missed the actual change when The Red Seal Company filed for bankruptcy in mid-1927.
The Fleischers signed a new contract with Paramount Pictures
in late 1928. Beginning in February 1929, the song cartoons returned under a new name, Screen Songs, using the Western Electric
sound-on-film process. The first was The Sidewalks of New York
(East Side, West Side) released on 5 February 1929. In the 1930s, the shorts began to feature such musical guest stars as Lillian Roth
, Ethel Merman
, Cab Calloway
, Rudy Vallee
, the Mills Brothers
, the Boswell Sisters
, and others. The series, which eventually focused on many of the "big band
s" of "The Swing Era" continued until 1938.
In 1945, Famous Studios
, successors to the Fleischers, revived the Screen Songs as an all animated series in color. The earliest color Screen Song part of the Noveltoon series, "When G.I. Johnnie Come Home Again." was released on February 2, 1945.
in 1956 for television syndication. These shorts have changed hands in the decades since due to a series of corporate acquisitions involving what would eventually become the revived Republic Pictures
, and the 2006 corporate split of Viacom
(which became the parent of Paramount Pictures in 1994, and later acquired Republic in 1999) into two separate companies. Today the theatrical rights to the Screen Songs are once again owned by Paramount (via Republic), home video rights are owned by Republic licensee Lions Gate Home Entertainment
-- which has yet to announce any sort of home video reissue -- and the television rights are the responsibility of Trifecta Entertainment & Media
. However, the majority of the "Screen Songs" are in the public domain
, and are available on various discount public domain cartoon videos and DVDs. The Screen Songs released between October 1950 and the final release in 1951 were sold to Harvey Comics
, and are now owned by Classic Media
.
The only exception to the above was Let's Sing with Popeye
. This particular film was purchased by Official Films
in the 1950s and re-released to the home movie market. While this cartoon stars the character Popeye
it is unknown if it was included in the sale of the Popeye cartoons to Associated Artists Productions
. It is possible that a.a.p. was supposed to receive this film, but never did, or that they did not do anything with the film at all, since it re-used animation from the original Popeye the Sailor
short released 14 July 1933. Whatever the case may be, it fell into the public domain as would be expected when its ownership is unknown. This film was released as a special feature on the first volume of Warner Bros.
Popeye
DVD series, but it was the same public domain print that has been in circulation. Additionally, it was never given a real general release -- rather, it was shown as part of a Saturday morning matinee Popeye club -- and searches in the Library of Congress
Copyright Catalog turn up no results for the film, suggesting that a copyright was never registered.
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...
produced by the 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...
and distributed by 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...
between 1929 and 1938. They were revived by 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...
in 1945 starting with the Noveltoon Old MacDonald Had a Farm.
History
The Screen Songs are a continuation of the earlier Fleischer series Song Car-TunesSound Car-Tunes
Ko-Ko Song Car-Tunes, Song Car-Tunes, or Sound Car-Tunes, is a series of short three minute animation films produced by Max Fleischer and Dave Fleischer between May 1924 and September 1927, pioneering the use of the "Follow the Bouncing Ball" device used to lead audiences in theater sing-alongs...
. They are sing-along shorts featuring the famous "bouncing ball
Bouncing ball
The bouncing ball is a device used in video recordings to visually indicate the rhythm of a song, helping audiences to sing along with live or prerecorded music...
", a sort of precursor to modern karaoke
Karaoke
is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
videos. They often featured popular melodies of the day. The early Song Car-Tunes were among the earliest sound films, produced two years before The Jazz Singer
The Jazz Singer (1927 film)
The Jazz Singer is a 1927 American musical film. The first feature-length motion picture with synchronized dialogue sequences, its release heralded the commercial ascendance of the "talkies" and the decline of the silent film era. Produced by Warner Bros. with its Vitaphone sound-on-disc system,...
. They were largely unknown at the time because their release was limited to the chain of 36 theaters operated by The Red Seal Pictures Company, which was equipped with the early Lee DeForest Phonofilm
Phonofilm
In 1919, Lee De Forest, inventor of the audion tube, filed his first patent on a sound-on-film process, DeForest Phonofilm, which recorded sound directly onto film as parallel lines. These parallel lines photographically recorded electrical waveforms from a microphone, which were translated back...
sound reproduction equipment. The Red Seal theater chain -- formed by the Fleischers, DeForest, Edwin Miles Fadiman, and Hugo Riesenfeld
Hugo Riesenfeld
Hugo Riesenfeld was a Jewish Austrian-American composer. As a film director, he began to write his own orchestral compositions for silent films in 1917, and co-created modern production techniques where film scoring serves an integral part of the action...
-- went from the East Coast to Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
.
Between May 1924 and September 1927, the Fleischers released 36 Song Car-Tunes series, with 17 using the Phonofilm sound-on-film
Sound-on-film
Sound-on-film refers to a class of sound film processes where the sound accompanying picture is physically recorded onto photographic film, usually, but not always, the same strip of film carrying the picture. Sound-on-film processes can either record an analog sound track or digital sound track,...
process. The films included Oh Mabel, Come Take a Trip in My Airship, Darling Nelly Gray
Nellie Gray
"Darling Nelly Gray" is a 19th c. popular song composed by Benjamin Hanby, and as such, is a pseudo-African-American folksong. Hanby composed the song while attending Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio in 1856, in response to the plight of a runaway slave named Joseph Selby or Shelby...
, Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly?
Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly?
"Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly?", music and lyrics by C.W. Murphy and Will Letters , is a British music hall song, originally titled "Kelly From the Isle of Man". It was adapted for American audiences by William McKenna in 1909 for the American musical The Jolly Bachelors...
, and By the Light of the Silvery Moon
By the Light of the Silvery Moon (film)
By the Light of the Silvery Moon is a 1953 musical film. It is the sequel to On Moonlight Bay. Like its predecessor, the movie is based loosely on the Penrod stories by Booth Tarkington.-Plot:...
. Beginning with My Old Kentucky Home
My Old Kentucky Home (film)
My Old Kentucky Home is a short animation film originally released on 13 April 1926, by Max and Dave Fleischer of Fleischer Studios as one of the Song Car-Tunes series...
(1926), the cartoons featured the "follow the bouncing ball" gimmick, that lead the audience singing along with the film. The Fleischers were ahead of the sound revolution, and just missed the actual change when The Red Seal Company filed for bankruptcy in mid-1927.
The Fleischers signed a new contract with 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...
in late 1928. Beginning in February 1929, the song cartoons returned under a new name, Screen Songs, using the Western Electric
Western Electric
Western Electric Company was an American electrical engineering company, the manufacturing arm of AT&T from 1881 to 1995. It was the scene of a number of technological innovations and also some seminal developments in industrial management...
sound-on-film process. The first was The Sidewalks of New York
The Sidewalks of New York (cartoon)
The Sidewalks of New York are two cartoon short films made by animation pioneers Max Fleischer and Dave Fleischer, both films using the 1894 song "The Sidewalks of New York"...
(East Side, West Side) released on 5 February 1929. In the 1930s, the shorts began to feature such musical guest stars as Lillian Roth
Lillian Roth
Lillian Roth was an American singer and actress.-Early life:Roth was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She was only 6 years old when her mother took her to Educational Pictures, where she became the company's trademark, symbolized by a living statue holding a lamp of knowledge...
, Ethel Merman
Ethel Merman
Ethel Merman was an American actress and singer. Known primarily for her powerful voice and roles in musical theatre, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage." Among the many standards introduced by Merman in Broadway musicals are "I Got Rhythm", "Everything's...
, Cab Calloway
Cab Calloway
Cabell "Cab" Calloway III was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was strongly associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, New York City where he was a regular performer....
, 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...
, the Mills Brothers
Mills Brothers
The Mills Brothers, sometimes billed as The Four Mills Brothers, were an American jazz and pop vocal quartet of the 20th century who made more than 2,000 recordings that combined sold more than 50 million copies, and garnered at least three dozen gold records...
, the Boswell Sisters
Boswell Sisters
The Boswell Sisters were a close harmony singing group, consisting of sisters Martha Boswell , Connee Boswell , and Helvetia "Vet" Boswell , noted for intricate harmonies and rhythmic experimentation...
, and others. The series, which eventually focused on many of the "big band
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
s" of "The Swing Era" continued until 1938.
In 1945, 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...
, successors to the Fleischers, revived the Screen Songs as an all animated series in color. The earliest color Screen Song part of the Noveltoon series, "When G.I. Johnnie Come Home Again." was released on February 2, 1945.
Legal Status
All Fleischer and Famous Screen Songs released prior to October 1950 were sold to U.M.&M. T.V. Corp.U.M.&M. T.V. Corp.
U.M.&M. T.V. Corp. is best known as the original purchaser of Paramount Pictures' pre-October 1950 shorts and cartoons...
in 1956 for television syndication. These shorts have changed hands in the decades since due to a series of corporate acquisitions involving what would eventually become the revived Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959, and was best known for specializing in westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action....
, and the 2006 corporate split of Viacom
Viacom
Viacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...
(which became the parent of Paramount Pictures in 1994, and later acquired Republic in 1999) into two separate companies. Today the theatrical rights to the Screen Songs are once again owned by Paramount (via Republic), home video rights are owned by Republic licensee Lions Gate Home Entertainment
Lions Gate Entertainment
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation is a North American entertainment company. The company was formed in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1997, and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California...
-- which has yet to announce any sort of home video reissue -- and the television rights are the responsibility of Trifecta Entertainment & Media
Trifecta Entertainment & Media
Trifecta Entertainment & Media is an American entertainment company founded in 2006. The company's founders previously held jobs as executives at MGM Television. Trifecta is primarily a distribution company and also handles advertising sales in exchange for syndication deals with local television...
. However, the majority of the "Screen Songs" are in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
, and are available on various discount public domain cartoon videos and DVDs. The Screen Songs released between October 1950 and the final release in 1951 were sold to Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics was an American comic book publisher, founded in New York City by Alfred Harvey in 1941, after buying out the small publisher Brookwood Publications. His brothers Robert B...
, and are now owned by Classic Media
Classic Media
Classic Media, LLC, is an American production company and distributor of family programming. It was founded in 2000 by former Marvel Entertainment CEO Eric Ellenbogen and former Broadway Video executive John Engelman in hopes of acquiring mismanaged classic properties and giving exposure to...
.
The only exception to the above was Let's Sing with Popeye
Let's Sing with Popeye
Let's Sing With Popeye is a 1934 Screen Songs animated short, produced by Fleischer Studios and directed by Dave Fleischer. It was later re-released by Official Films in the 1950s....
. This particular film was purchased by Official Films
Official Films
Official Films was a home movie distributor founded by Leslie Winik in 1939 to produce educational shorts. Soon, after buying the Keystone Chaplin library, they found themselves in the home movie business. They obtained several Van Beuren cartoons, mostly Felix the Cat cartoons. Official retitled...
in the 1950s and re-released to the home movie market. While this cartoon stars the character 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...
it is unknown if it was included in the sale of the Popeye cartoons to Associated Artists Productions
Associated Artists Productions
Associated Artists Productions was a distributor of theatrical feature films and short subjects for television. It existed from 1953 to 1958. It was later folded into United Artists. The former a.a.p. library was later owned by MGM/UA Entertainment and then Turner Entertainment. Turner continues...
. It is possible that a.a.p. was supposed to receive this film, but never did, or that they did not do anything with the film at all, since it re-used animation from the original Popeye the Sailor
Popeye 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:...
short released 14 July 1933. Whatever the case may be, it fell into the public domain as would be expected when its ownership is unknown. This film was released as a special feature on the first volume of Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor (Warner DVD series)
Popeye the Sailor is a fictional cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, which first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
DVD series, but it was the same public domain print that has been in circulation. Additionally, it was never given a real general release -- rather, it was shown as part of a Saturday morning matinee Popeye club -- and searches in the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
Copyright Catalog turn up no results for the film, suggesting that a copyright was never registered.
Fleischer and Famous Studios
| Film | Characters / Musicians | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| The Sidewalks of New York The Sidewalks of New York (cartoon) The Sidewalks of New York are two cartoon short films made by animation pioneers Max Fleischer and Dave Fleischer, both films using the 1894 song "The Sidewalks of New York"... (East Side, West Side) |
February 5 1929 | |
| Yankee Doodle Boy | March 1 1929 | |
| Old Black Joe | April 5 1929 | |
| Ye Olde Melodies | May 3 1929 | |
| Daisy Bell (A Bicycle Built for Two) | May 31 1929 | |
| Mother, Pin a Rose on Me | July 6 1929 | |
| Chinatown, My Chinatown | Chinese | August 2 1929 |
| Dixie | August 17 1929 | |
| Goodbye My Lady Love | August 31 1929 | |
| My Pony Boy | September 13 1929 | |
| Smiles | Male Vocal Quartet | September 27 1929 |
| Oh You Beautiful Doll | Tommy Cat | October 14 1929 |
| After the Ball | Charles K. Harris | November 8 1929 |
| Put on Your Old Grey Bonnet | Animal Quartet | November 22 1929 |
| I've Got Rings on My Fingers | Irish Traffic Cop | December 17 1929 |
| Bedelia | Bimbo | January 3 1930 |
| In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree | Bears | January 18 1930 |
| I'm Afraid to Come Home in the Dark I'm Afraid to Come Home in the Dark I'm Afraid to Come Home in the Dark is popular song, written by Egbert Van Alstyne and Harry Williams in 1907, and made famous by Billy Murray. Today it's popular among collecters of cylinder recordings. Billy Murray recorded the song on several record labels, including Edison Records in 1908... |
Bimbo | February 1 1930 |
| The Prisoner's Song | Prisoners | March 1 1930 |
| I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles | Mice | March 15 1930 |
| La Paloma | Dog | April 12 1930 |
| Yes, We Have No Bananas | April 26 1930 | |
| Come Take a Trip in My Airship | Kitty | April 26 1930 |
| In the Good Old Summertime | Cats | June 6 1930 |
| A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight | Drunken Mice | August 1 1930 |
| The Glow Worm | August 23 1930 | |
| The Stein Song | Hot Dog Vendor | September 6 1930 |
| Strike Up the Band (Here Comes a Sailor) | September 27 1930 | |
| My Gal Sal | Chubby Dog | October 18 1930 |
| Mariutch | Bimbo | November 15 1930 |
| On a Sunday Afternoon | Dog Woman | November 29 1930 |
| Row, Row, Row | Bad Dog | December 20 1930 |
| Please Go 'Way and Let Me Sleep | Sheriff | January 10 1931 |
| By the Beautiful Sea | Mouse | January 24 1931 |
| I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now "I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now" is a popular song. The music was written by Joseph E. Howard and Harold Orlob, the lyrics by Will M. Hough and Frank R. Adams. The song was published in 1909... |
White Boy Cat | February 14 1931 |
| I'd Climb the Highest Mountain | Boy Dog | March 7 1931 |
| Somebody Stole My Gal Somebody Stole My Gal "Somebody Stole My Gal" is a popular song from 1918, written by Leo Wood. In 1923 Ted Weems & his Orchestra had a five-week run at number one with his million-selling version of Leo Wood’s 1922 standard... |
Boy Dog | March 20 1931 |
| Any Little Girl That's a Nice Little Girl | Tommy Cat and 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... prototype |
April 18 1931 |
| Alexander's Ragtime Band Alexander's Ragtime Band "Alexander's Ragtime Band" is the name of a song by Irving Berlin. It was his first major hit, in 1911. There is some evidence, although inconclusive, that Berlin borrowed the melody from a draft of "A Real Slow Drag" submitted by Scott Joplin that had been submitted to a... |
Dog | May 9 1931 |
| And the Green Grass Grew All Around And The Green Grass Grew All Around And The Green Grass Grows All Around, also known as The Green Grass Grew All Around is a song that was first published in 1912, with words by William Jerome and melody by Harry Von Tilzer. Today it is a popular children's song, and a good example of a cumulative song.There are many variations of... |
Boy Fly 1931 | May 30 |
| My Wife's Gone to the Country | Bimbo and (briefly) Betty Boop | May 31 1931 |
| That Old Gang of Mine | Lady Alley Cat | July 11 1931 |
| Betty Co-ed | 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... and Betty Boop prototype |
August 1 1931 |
| Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Shean | Gallagher and Shean Gallagher and Shean Gallagher & Shean was a highly successful double act on vaudeville and Broadway in the 1910s and 1920s, consisting of Edward Gallagher and Al Shean .-Career:... |
August 29 1931 |
| You're Driving Me Crazy | Jungle Animals | September 19 1931 |
| Little Annie Rooney (1931) Little Annie Rooney (1931) Little Annie Rooney Based on the 1890 popular song written by Michael Nolan and not to be confused with the comic strip launched by King Features Syndicate in 1927 or the unrelated 1925 silent movie, was part of the Fleischer Studios Screen Songs series. The song is about a girl called Little Annie... |
October 10 1931 | |
| Kitty from Kansas City Kitty from Kansas City Kitty from Kansas City was a 1930 song, famously sung by Hubert Prior Vallée, a French Vermont singer, popularly called Rudy Vallée. The song is about a Midwestern girl called Kitty and her apparent lack of intelligence, and obesity, due to a lyric: "She wasn't hard to see; she weighed 243."Some... |
Rudy Vallee and Betty Boop | October 31 |
| By the Light of the Silvery Moon | Eddie Cantor Eddie Cantor Eddie Cantor was an American "illustrated song" performer, comedian, dancer, singer, actor and songwriter... |
November 14 1931 |
| My Baby Just Cares for Me | Eddie Cantor | December 5 1931 |
| Russian Lullaby | Arthur Tracy Arthur Tracy Arthur Tracy was an American vocalist, billed as The Street Singer. His performances in theatre, films and radio, along with his recordings, brought him international fame in the 1930s... |
December 26 1931 |
| Sweet Jennie Lee | Jean Harlow Jean Harlow Jean Harlow was an American film actress and sex symbol of the 1930s. Known as the "Blonde Bombshell" and the "Platinum Blonde" , Harlow was ranked as one of the greatest movie stars of all time by the American Film Institute... |
January 9 1932 |
| Show Me the Way to Go Home | Eddie Cantor | January 30 1932 |
| When the Red, Red Robin Comes Bob-Bob-Bobbin' Along | Joan Crawford Joan Crawford Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre.... |
February 19 1932 |
| Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie | The Round Towners Quartet, Betty Boop | March 4 1932 |
| Just One More Chance | Betty Boop | April 1 1932 |
| Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning "Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning" is a song written by Irving Berlin in 1918 that gives a comic perspective on military life. Berlin composed the song as an expression of protest against the indignities of Army routine shortly after being drafted into the United States Army in 1918... |
Les Reis and Artie Dunn, Betty Boop | April 22 1932 |
| Shine On Harvest Moon | Alice Joy | May 6 1932 |
| Let Me Call You Sweetheart | Ethel Merman Ethel Merman Ethel Merman was an American actress and singer. Known primarily for her powerful voice and roles in musical theatre, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage." Among the many standards introduced by Merman in Broadway musicals are "I Got Rhythm", "Everything's... and Betty Boop |
May 20 1932 |
| I Ain't Got Nobody I Ain't Got Nobody "I Ain't Got Nobody" was a c. 1915 song, written by Spencer Williams. Publisher Roger Graham received co-composer credits. It became a perennial standard, recorded many times over following generations, in styles ranging from pop to jazz to country music.... |
The Mills Brothers | June 17 1932 |
| You Try Somebody Else | Ethel Merman and Betty Boop | July 29 1932 |
| Rudy Vallee Melodies | Rudy Vallee and Betty Boop | August 5 1932 |
| Down Among the Sugar Cane | Lillian Roth Lillian Roth Lillian Roth was an American singer and actress.-Early life:Roth was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She was only 6 years old when her mother took her to Educational Pictures, where she became the company's trademark, symbolized by a living statue holding a lamp of knowledge... |
August 26 1932 |
| Just a Gigolo Just a Gigolo (song) "Just a Gigolo" is a popular song, adapted by Irving Caesar in 1929 from the Austrian song "Schöner Gigolo, armer Gigolo", written in 1928 by Leonello Casucci and Julius Brammer .-History:... |
Irene Bordoni Irène Bordoni Irène Bordoni was a French singer and a Broadway and film actress.-Early years:Born in Ajaccio, France, from an Italian family, she had been a child actor, performing in Paris on stage and in silent films for a few years, having signed with theatrical agent André Charlot... and Betty Boop |
September 9 1932 |
| School Days | Gus Edwards Gus Edwards (songwriter) Gus Edwards was an American songwriter and vaudevillian. He also organised his own theatre companies and was a music publisher.-Early life:... |
September 30 1932 |
| Romantic Melodies | Arthur Tracy and Betty Boop | October 21 1932 |
| When It's Sleepy Time Down South | The Boswell Sisters | November 11 1932 |
| Sing a Song | James Melton James Melton James Melton , a popular singer in the 1920s and early 1930s, later began a career as an operatic singer when tenor voices went out of style in popular music around 1932-35... |
December 2 1932 |
| Time on My Hands Time on My Hands (animated film) Time On My Hands is a 1932 Screen Songs animated short, produced by Fleischer Studios and directed by Dave Fleischer.The song featured in this Screen Song Time on My Hands was a popular song which was published in 1930.-Summary:... |
Ethel Merman and Betty Boop | December 23 1932 |
| Dinah | Mills Brothers | January 13 1933 |
| Ain't She Sweet? | Lillian Roth | February 3 1933 |
| Reaching for the Moon | Arthur Tracy | February 23 1933 |
| Aloha Oe | Royal Samoans | March 17 1933 |
| Popular Melodies | Arthur Jarrett and Betty Boop | April 7 1933 |
| The Peanut Vendor | Armida | April 28 1933 |
| Song Shopping | Ethel Merman and Johnny Green | May 19 |
| Boilesk | The Watson Sisters | June 9 1933 |
| Sing, Sisters, Sing | Three X Sisters | June 3 1933 |
| Down by the Old Mill Stream | The Eton Boys | July 21 1933 |
| Stoopnocracy | Stoopnagle and Budd Stoopnagle and Budd Stoopnagle and Budd were a popular radio comedy team of the 1930s, who are sometimes cited as forerunners of the Bob and Ray style of radio comedy... |
August 18 1933 |
| When Yuba Plays the Rumba on the Tuba | The Mills Brothers | September 15 1933 |
| Boo Boo Theme Song | Funnyboners | October 13 1933 |
| I Like Mountain Music | The Eton Boys | November 10 1933 |
| Sing, Babies, Sing | Baby Rose Marie Rose Marie Rose Marie is an American actress. As a child performer she had a successful singing career as Baby Rose Marie.... |
December 15 1933 |
| Keeps Rainin' All The Time | Gertrude Niesen Gertrude Niesen Gertrude Niesen was an American torch singer, actress, comedienne and songwriter who achieved popular success in musicals and films in the 1930s and 1940s.-Life and career:... |
January 12 1934 |
| Let's All Sing Like the Birdies Sing | Les Reis and Artie Dunn | February 9 1934 |
| Tune Up and Sing | Lanny Ross | March 9 1934 |
| Lazy Bones | Borrah Minnevitch Borrah Minnevitch Borrah Minnevitch , born Bora Minjevic, was a notable harmonica player, actor, and leader of his group The Harmonica Rascals... and His Harmonica Rascals |
April 13 1934 |
| This Little Piggie Went to Market | Singin' Sam Singin' Sam Singin’ Sam aka Harry Frankel was a minstrel performer, vaudevillian and popular personality during the early days of radio... |
May 25 1934 |
| She Reminds Me of You | The Eton Boys | June 22 1934 |
| Love Thy Neighbor | Mary Small | July 20 1934 |
| Let's Sing with Popeye Let's Sing with Popeye Let's Sing With Popeye is a 1934 Screen Songs animated short, produced by Fleischer Studios and directed by Dave Fleischer. It was later re-released by Official Films in the 1950s.... |
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... (Billy Costello) |
Produced for Saturday morning matinee "Popeye Club" Later re-released by Official Films Official Films Official Films was a home movie distributor founded by Leslie Winik in 1939 to produce educational shorts. Soon, after buying the Keystone Chaplin library, they found themselves in the home movie business. They obtained several Van Beuren cartoons, mostly Felix the Cat cartoons. Official retitled... in the 1950s 1950s The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century... |
| I Wished on the Moon | Abe Lyman Abe Lyman Abe Lyman was a popular bandleader from the 1920s to the 1940s. He made recordings, appeared in films and provided the music for numerous radio shows, including Your Hit Parade.... and his Orchestra |
September 20 1935 |
| It's Easy to Remember | Richard Himber and his Orchestra | November 29 1935 |
| No Other One | Hal Kemp Hal Kemp James Harold "Hal" Kemp was a jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader, composer, and arranger. He was born in Marion, Alabama and died in Madera, California following an auto accident... and His Orchestra / Skinnay Ennis |
January 24 1936 |
| I Feel Like a Feather in the Breeze | Jack Denny and his Orchestra | March 27 1936 |
| I Don't Want to Make History | Vincent Lopez Vincent Lopez Vincent Lopez was an American bandleader and pianist.Vincent Lopez was born of Portuguese immigrant parents in Brooklyn, New York and was leading his own dance band in New York City by 1917... and his Orchestra |
May 22 1936 |
| The Hills of Wyomin | The Westerners / Curt Massey | July 31 1936 |
| I Can't Escape From You | Billie Bailey / Joe Reichman and His Orchestra | September 25 1936 |
| Talking Through My Heart | Dick Stabile Dick Stabile Dick Stabile was an American jazz saxophonist and bandleader.-Biography:Stabile got his start playing in theater ensembles on Broadway in the 1950s. He joined Ben Bernie's orchestra in 1928, where he remained for several years... and his Orchestra |
November 27 1936 |
| Never Should Have Told You | Nat Brandwynne and His Orchestra | January 29 1937 |
| Twilight On the Trail | The Westerners / Louise Massey | March 26 1937 |
| Please Keep Me in Your Dreams | Barbara Blake / Henry King and his Orchestra | May 28 1937 |
| You Came to My Rescue | Shep Fields Shep Fields Shep Fields was the band leader for the "Shep Fields and His Rippling Rhythm" orchestra during the Big Band era of the 1930s.-Biography:... and His Rippling Rhythm Orchestra |
July 30 1937 |
| Whispers in the Dark | June Robbins / Gus Arnheim Gus Arnheim Gus Arnheim was an early popular band leader. He is noted for writing several songs with his first hit being "I Cried for You" from 1923. He was most popular in the 1920s and 1930s... and his Orchestra |
September 24 1937 |
| Magic on Broadway | Jay Freeman | November 26 1937 |
| You Took the Words Right Out of My Heart | January 28 1938 | |
| Thanks for the Memory | March 25 1938 | |
| You Leave Me Breathless | May 27 1938 | |
| Beside a Moonlit Stream | Eddie Cantor | July 29 1938 |
| The Circus Comes to Clown | Circus | December 26 1947 |
| Base Brawl | Tommy Tortoise | January 23 1948 |
| Little Brown Jug | Animals | February 20 1948 |
| The Golden State | March 12 1948 | |
| Winter Draws On Recorded on November 17, 1995 | Buzzy | March 19 1948 |
| Sing or Swim | Animals | June 16 1948 |
| Camp Town Races | Farm Animals | July 30 1948 |
| The Lone Star State | Cowboys | August 20 1948 |
| Readin', Ritin' and Rhythematic | October 22 1948 | |
| The Funshine State | January 7 1949 | |
| The Emerald Isle | Lephechauns | February 25 1949 |
| Comin' Round the Mountain | Hillbilly Cats | March 11 1949 |
| The Stork Market | Storks | April 8 1949 |
| Spring Song | Flowers | June 3 1949 |
| The Ski's the Limit | June 24 1949 | |
| Toys Will Be Toys | Toys | July 15 1949 |
| Farm Foolery | Farm Animals | August 5 1949 |
| Our Funny Finny Friends | Fish | August 26 1949 |
| Marriage Wows Recorded on October 18, 1994 | Bertha | September 16 1949 |
| The Big Flame-Up | Tim Turtle | September 30 1949 |
| Strolling Thru the Park | November 4 1949 | |
| The Big Drip | Buzzy the Crow | November 25 1949 |
| Snow Foolin | Animals | December 16 1949 |
| Blue Hawaii | Hawaiians | January 13 1950 |
| Detouring Thru Maine | February 17 1950 | |
| Short'nin' Bread | Bakery | March 24 1950 |
| Win, Place and Showboat | Elephant | April 28 1950 |
| Jingle Jangle Jungle | Ubangis | May 19 1950 |
| Heap Hep Injuns | Indians | June 30 1950 |
| Gobs of Fun | Herman the Mouse | July 28 1950 |
| Helter Swelter | Animals | August 25 1950 |
| Boos in the Nite | Ghosts | September 22 1950 |
| Fiesta Time | Mexicans | October 20 1950 |
| Fresh Yeggs | Wolfie | November 17 1950 |
| Tweet Music | Birds | February 9 1951 |
| Drippy Mississippi | April 13 1951 | |
| Miners Forty Niners | Gold Miners | May 18 1951 |
| Sing Again of Michigan | Buzzy the Crow | June 29 1951 |
See also
- Fleischer StudiosFleischer StudiosFleischer Studios, Inc., was an American corporation which originated as an Animation studio located at 1600 Broadway, New York City, New York...
- The Golden Age of American animationThe Golden Age of American animationThe Golden Age of U.S. animation is a period in the United States animation history that began with the advent of sound cartoons in 1928 and continued into the early 1960s when theatrical animated shorts slowly began losing to the new medium of television animation.Many memorable characters emerged...