Betty Boop was first created as a dog character by Grim Natwick and appeared as the girl friend of another dog named Bimbo. Betty's figure was modeled after Mae West's and her singing style taken from Helen Kane the "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" Girl. The voice of Betty Boop was that of May Questal. Max & Dave Fleisher first produced the Talkartoons for Paramount. Max drew his first comic strip for the "Brooklyn Daily Eagle" in 1902. In 1915 Max, Dave and Joe Fleisher invented the rotoscope which revoulutionized animation. It gave a much smoother, more life-like quality to the motion of the characters. Betty Boop made her debut as a sexy canine cabaret singer in the Max Fleischer short "Dizzy Dishes" on Aug. 8, 1930. In 1931 Betty's friends Koko the Clown and Pudgy, Bimbo's replacement, were introduced. Betty Boop evolved into her own with "Betty Co-Ed" when she shed her dog identity and the long ears became earrings.
