Betty Boop and Grampy

Grampy sends Betty Boop a letter inviting her to a party and asking her to bring the gang. Two piano movers, a fireman and a traffic cop all drop what they're doing to join in. Grampy's various contraptions, and his novel uses for household objects, make his place loads of fun. He even manages to improvise music with an electric fan, a tea kettle, a pair of gloves and a piece of pipe from his oven. Everyone has a good time, but Grampy proves to be the most youthful of the bunch.

Grampy is not a particularly appealing (or unappealing) character; but his inventions are always very funny. Betty has little to do in this cartoon, except attract men to Grampy's party. By the time this was made, the censors had de-Boop-ified Betty: reducing her from a cute little tease to a syrupy sweet goody-two-shoes. At least here she gets to inspire the lust of men willing to cause catastrophe by neglecting their work.

This is a fun little Boop short that really stars Grampy.

Grampy is an eccentric old man that by today's standards might come off as a little creepy. Nonetheless, he's a man with great charm... and gadgets. On Betty's way to Grampy's house, she invites all the easily attracted men in her path and humorous antics follow.

I still can't figure out why Grampy's house is so far away from the road!

I'd recommend this short for it's creativity and good music alone.

Betty Boop and Grampy (1936)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Grampy invites Betty Boop and a couple others to his house so that they can see the crazy inventions he has come up with. This includes a chandelier that comes down to serve punch, a special cake cutter and a flute that can play itself when put into a tea pot. BETTY BOOP AND GRAMPY isn't one of the better shorts in the series but there's still enough here that will keeps fans entertained. I think the highlight is a musical number that happens towards the end of the film as the music itself is quite catchy and I also thought that the little dance sequences were fun. The quality of the animation is top-notch as one would expect and I thought there was quite a bit of imagination in use and especially during the finale. There really aren't as many big laughs as one would have hoped for but there's no question that this contains some rather pre-code sexuality from Betty Boop, which was a little surprising considering this came out after the code started to be stricter.

A good deal of the pre-Production Code Betty Boop cartoons are daring and creative, with content that makes one amazed at what's gotten away with. While the later Betty Boop cartoons made after the Code was enforced are still watchable and exceptionally well-made, they are so toned down that they feel bland.

Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style was often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation. The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. The good news is that, while her role is limited here, she has not lost her charm, she is still cute and her comic timing is good.

While it was said in the first paragraph that the later Betty Boop cartoons were bland in comparison to the pre-Code ones there were exceptions. 'Betty Boop and Grampy' is one of those exceptions, and even though not as risqué, daring or surreal as the pre-Code cartoons it does fondly remind one of back when the Betty Boop cartoons had more oomph than after the Code was enforced.

The animation is beautifully drawn and detailed and the music infectious, toe-tapping and dynamic. The dance sequences are fun and Grampy steals the show, a riot of a character and one of the best Betty Boop supporting characters. A rare example of a late Betty Boop cartoon where Bimbo and Koko are not missed too much.

On top of that, 'Betty Boop and Grampy' is one of the funniest and more inventive later Betty Boop cartoons, there is some very funny content here and timed with a lot of wit and imagination. Grampy's inventions are ingenious and rich in imagination.

In summary, one of the best later Betty Boop cartoons and a very good one indeed. 9/10 Bethany Cox

The Betty Boop series of shorts were wonderful Grampy is probably my favorite secondary character. Koko was probably the strongest supporting character in the series, but I like Grampy more. This is his cartoon, hands down. He did that more than once in the series. While not the best of the series, one of the better ones certainly. The bulk of the series is in print and available and well worth having. Recommended.