Screen Songs

Screen Songs is the name of a series of animated cartoons produced at the Fleischer Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures between 1929 and 1938.[1] They were revived in color in 1945. It was formerly known as KoKo Song Car-Tunes.

History

The Screen Songs are a continuation of the earlier Fleischer series Song Car-Tunes in color. They are sing-along shorts featuring the famous "bouncing ball", a sort of precursor to modern karaoke videos.[2] 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 1926, the Fleischers released 36 Song Car-Tunes series, with 19 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 other 17 films in the Song Car-Tunes series were silent, designed to be shown with live music in movie theaters.

The Fleischers were ahead of the sound revolution, and just missed the actual change when Red Seal Pictures filed for bankruptcy in the fall of 1926.

Releases after Red Seal Pictures

In 1928, the Weiss Brothers reissued through their Artclass Pictures company and other independent distributors a number of the silent "Ko-Ko Song Car-tunes" with new animation created for the beginnings, removing the original titles and opening original footage.

• For Me and My Gal (1926)
• I Love to Fall Asleep (1926)
• In My Harem (1926)
• Just Try to Picture Me (1926)
• My Sweetie (1926)
• Old Pal (1926)
• Alexander's Ragtime Band (1926)
• The Sheik of Araby (1926)
• Annie Laurie (1926)
• Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning (1926)
• When I Lost You (1926)
• Margie (1926)
• When the Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves for Alabam' (1926)
• Oh! What a Pal Was Mary (1926)
• Everybody's Doing It (1926)
• Yak-A-Hula-Hick-A-Doola (1926)
• My Wife's Gone to the Country (1926)
• My Old Kentucky Home (1926)
• Beautiful Eyes (1926)
• Finiculee Finicula (1926)
• Micky (1926)
• When the Angelus Was Ringing (1926)
• When I Leave This World Behind (1926)
• Tumbledown Shack in Athlone (1927)
• The Rocky Road to Dublin (1927)
• Call Me Up Some Rainy Afternoon (1927)
• Oh I Wish I Was in Michigan (1927)

New contract with Paramount Pictures

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 Vallée, The Mills Brothers, the Boswell Sisters, and others. The series, which eventually focused on many of the "Big Bands" of "The Swing Era" continued until 1938. In 1945, Famous Studios, successors to the Fleischers, revived the Screen Songs as an all animated series. The earliest Screen Song released as part of the Noveltoons series, When G.I. Johnny Comes Home, was released on February 2, 1945.[3]

Filmography

Fleischer Studios

1929
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
The Sidewalks of New York		February 5, 1929
Yankee Doodle Boy		March 1, 1929
Old Black Joe		April 5, 1929
Ye Olde Melodies		May 3, 1929
Daisy Bell		May 31, 1929
Mother, Pin a Rose on Me		July 6, 1929
Chinatown, My Chinatown	One-shot Chinese characters	August 2, 1929
Dixie		August 17, 1929
Goodbye My Lady Love		August 31, 1929
My Pony Boy		September 13, 1929
Smiles	One-shot human quartet	September 27, 1929
Oh, You Beautiful Doll	Tommy and Mariah Cat	October 14, 1929
After the Ball	Charles K. Harris and Fitz the dog	November 8, 1929
Put on Your Old Grey Bonnet	One-shot animal characters	November 22, 1929
I've Got Rings on My Fingers	One-shot animal characters and (human) Irish cop	December 17, 1929
1930
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
Bedelia	Bimbo	January 3, 1930
In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree	One-shot bear characters	January 18, 1930
I'm Afraid to Come Home in the Dark	Bimbo	February 1, 1930
The Prisoner's Song	Bimbo and prisoners	March 1, 1930
I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles	One-shot mouse characters	March 15, 1930
La Paloma	Bimbo	April 12, 1930
Yes! We Have No Bananas	One-shot animal characters	April 26, 1930
Come Take a Trip in My Airship	Mariah Cat (here called "Kitty")	April 26, 1930
In the Good Old Summer Time	One-shot animal characters	June 6, 1930
A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight	One-shot mouse characters	August 1, 1930
The Glow-Worm	Special bilingual entry Song sung first in German, then in English.	August 23, 1930
The Stein Song	One-shot animal characters	September 6, 1930
Strike Up the Band	One-shot dog sailors	September 27, 1930
My Gal Sal	Bimbo	October 18, 1930
Mariutch	Bimbo (in Italian lead role)	November 15, 1930
On a Sunday Afternoon	One-shot dog characters and (briefly) Bimbo	November 29, 1930
Row, Row, Row	Bimbo (in villainous lead role) and Betty Boop prototype	December 20, 1930
1931
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
Please Go 'Way and Let Me Sleep	Bimbo and (briefly) Betty Boop prototype	January 10, 1931
By the Beautiful Sea	One-shot mouse characters	January 24, 1931
I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now	Tommy and Mariah Cat	February 14, 1931
I'd Climb the Highest Mountain	Bimbo	March 7, 1931
Somebody Stole My Gal	Bimbo	March 20, 1931
Any Little Girl That's a Nice Little Girl	Tommy Cat and Betty Boop prototype	April 18, 1931
Alexander's Ragtime Band	Bimbo	May 9, 1931
And the Green Grass Grew All Around	One-shot bug characters	May 30, 1931
My Wife's Gone to the Country	Bimbo and (briefly) Betty Boop	May 31, 1931
That Old Gang of Mine	Mariah and (briefly) Tommy Cat	July 11, 1931
Betty Co-ed	Rudy Vallée, Betty Boop prototype	August 1, 1931
Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Shean	Gallagher and Shean	August 29, 1931
You're Driving Me Crazy	Harriet Lee, vocalist (Radio Queen of 1931-32) Snooks and his Memphis Ramblers	September 19, 1931
Little Annie Rooney	Bimbo (in "Joe" role of song)	October 10, 1931
Kitty from Kansas City	Rudy Vallée, Betty Boop	October 31, 1931
By the Light of the Silvery Moon	Bimbo and (briefly) Betty Boop	November 14, 1931
My Baby Just Cares for Me	Eddie Cantor, Bimbo (monkeylike design)	December 5, 1931
Russian Lullaby	Arthur Tracy, Aloysius	December 26, 1931
1932
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
Sweet Jennie Lee	One-shot animal characters	January 9, 1932
Show Me the Way to Go Home	One-shot animal characters	January 30, 1932
When the Red, Red Robin Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along	One-shot bird characters	February 19, 1932
Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie	The Round Towners Quartet, Betty Boop and Bimbo	March 4, 1932
Just One More Chance	Arthur Jarrett, Betty Boop	April 1, 1932
Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning	Les Reis and Artie Dunn, Betty Boop	April 22, 1932
Shine On Harvest Moon	Alice Joy, one-shot animal characters	May 6, 1932
Let Me Call You Sweetheart	Ethel Merman, Betty Boop	May 20, 1932
I Ain't Got Nobody	The Mills Brothers, one-shot animal characters	June 17, 1932
You Try Somebody Else	Ethel Merman, Betty Boop	July 29, 1932
Rudy Vallee Melodies	Rudy Vallee, Betty Boop	August 5, 1932
Down Among the Sugar Cane	Lillian Roth, one-shot animal characters	August 26, 1932
Just a Gigolo	Irene Bordoni, Betty Boop	September 9, 1932
School Days	Gus Edwards, one-shot animal characters	September 30, 1932
Romantic Melodies	Arthur Tracy, Betty Boop and Bimbo	October 21, 1932
When It's Sleepy Time Down South	The Boswell Sisters, one-shot animal characters	November 11, 1932
Sing a Song	James Melton, one-shot animal characters	December 2, 1932
Time on My Hands	Ethel Merman, Betty Boop	December 23, 1932
1933
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
Dinah	Mills Brothers, one-shot animal characters	January 13, 1933
Ain't She Sweet?	Lillian Roth, Tommy and Mariah Cat	February 3, 1933
Reaching for the Moon	Arthur Tracy, one-shot space alien characters	February 23, 1933
Aloha Oe	Royal Samoans, one-shot jungle animal characters	March 17, 1933
Popular Melodies	Arthur Jarrett, Betty Boop	April 7, 1933
The Peanut Vendor	Armida, one-shot animal characters	April 28, 1933
Song Shopping	Ethel Merman and Johnny Green, one-shot animal characters	May 19, 1933
Boilesk	The Watson Sisters, one-shot animal characters	June 9, 1933
Sing, Sisters, Sing	Three X Sisters, one-shot animal characters	June 3, 1933
Down by the Old Mill Stream	The Eton Boys, one-shot animal characters	July 21, 1933
Stoopnocracy	Stoopnagle and Budd, one-shot animal characters	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	December 15, 1933
1934
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
Keeps Rainin' All the Time	Gertrude Niesen	January 12, 1934
Let's All Sing Like the Birdies Sing	Les Reis and Artie Dunn, one-shot cat and bird characters	February 9, 1934
Tune Up and Sing	Lanny Ross	March 9, 1934
Lazy Bones	Borrah Minnevitch and His Harmonica Rascals	April 13, 1934
This Little Piggie Went to Market	Singin' Sam	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	Popeye (Billy Costello)	Produced for Saturday morning matinee "Popeye Club".
1935
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
I Wished on the Moon	Abe Lyman and his Orchestra, Wiffle Piffle	September 20, 1935
It's Easy to Remember	Richard Himber and his Orchestra	November 29, 1935
1936
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
No Other One	Hal Kemp and His Orchestra/Skinnay Ennis, Wiffle Piffle	January 24, 1936
I Feel Like a Feather in the Breeze	Jack Denny and his Orchestra, Wiffle Piffle	March 27, 1936
I Don't Want to Make History	Vincent Lopez and his Orchestra, Wiffle Piffle	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 and his Orchestra, Wiffle Piffle	November 27, 1936
1937
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
Never Should Have Told You	Nat Brandwynne and His Orchestra, Wiffle Piffle	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 and His Rippling Rhythm Orchestra	July 30, 1937
Whispers in the Dark	June Robbins / Gus Arnheim and his Orchestra	September 24, 1937
Magic on Broadway	Jay Freeman / Jay Freeman and his Orchestra	November 26, 1937
1938
Film	Characters / Musicians	Original release date
You Took the Words Right Out of My Heart	Phyllis Kenny / Jerry Blaine and his Streamline Rhythm Orchestra	January 28, 1938
Thanks for the Memory	Bert Block and his Orchestra	March 25, 1938
You Leave Me Breathless	Bob Eberle / Jimmy Dorsey and his Orchestra	May 27, 1938
Beside a Moonlit Stream	Frank Dailey and his Orchestra	July 29, 1938

Famous Studios

"Start your day with a song, And sing the whole day through. Even while you're busy working, Do just like the birdies do! Though the day may be long, You never will go wrong Low key, high key, any old key, Just start your day with a song!"
-Opening to the Famous Studios Screen Song shorts.

For all the shorts, the musical arrangements were made by Winston Sharples.

Film	Theme	Song	Director	Story	Animation	Scenics	Original release date
The Circus Comes to Clown[lower-alpha 1]	Circus	"The Man on the Flying Trapeze"	I. Sparber	Bill Turner Larz Bourne	Tom Johnson Frank Endres	Anton Loeb	December 26, 1947
Base Brawl	Baseball	"Take Me Out to the Ball Game"	Seymour Kneitel		Dave Tendlar Tom Golden	Robert Connavale	January 23, 1948
Little Brown Jug	Cider	"Little Brown Jug"		Bill Turner Larry Riley	Orestes Calpini Morey Reden Bill Hudson	Tom Ford	February 20, 1948
The Golden State	California	"California, Here I Come"		Larz Bourne Larry Riley	Dave Tendlar Bill Hudson	Robert Little	March 12, 1948
Winter Draws On[lower-alpha 2]	Bird Migration	"Alabamy Bound"		Larz Bourne Bill Turner	Al Eugster Irving Spector	Tom Ford	March 19, 1948
Sing or Swim	Beach	"By the Beautiful Sea"		I. Klein Larry Riley		Robert Connavale	June 16, 1948
Camptown Races	Blackface Acts	"Camptown Races"		Bill Turner Larry Riley		Tom Ford	July 30, 1948
The Lone Star State	Texas	"Deep in the Heart of Texas"	I. Sparber	Larz Bourne	Dave Tendlar Morey Reden	Robert Connavale	August 20, 1948
Readin', Ritin' and Rhythmetic	School	"School Daze"	Seymour Kneitel	I. Klein	Al Eugster Bill Hudson		October 22, 1948
The Funshine State	Florida	"Tallahassee"		Larz Bourne	Dave Tendlar Morey Reden	Shane Miller	January 7, 1949
The Emerald Isle	Ireland	"MacNamara's Band"		I. Klein	Al Eugster Bill Hudson	Tom Ford Robert Owen	February 25, 1949
Comin' Round the Mountain	Hillbillies	"She'll Be Comin' 'Round the Mountain"	I. Sparber	Bill Turner	Tom Johnson Frank Endres	Anton Loeb	March 11, 1949
The Stork Market	Newborn Babies	"Pretty Baby"	Seymour Kneitel	Bill Turner Larry Riley	Al Eugster Wm. B. Pattengill	Shane Miller	April 8, 1949
Spring Song	Spring	"Spring Song"	I. Sparber	I. Klein	Myron Waldman Larry Silverman		June 3, 1949
The Ski's the Limit	Switzerland	"I Miss My Swiss, My Swiss Miss Misses Me"		Bill Turner Larry Riley	Dave Tendlar Tom Golden	Robert Connavale	June 24, 1949
Toys Will Be Toys	Toys	"Oh, You Beautiful Doll"	Seymour Kneitel	I. Klein	Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier	Robert Little	July 29, 1949
Farm Foolery[lower-alpha 3]	Autumn/Winter Harvest	"Shine On, Harvest Moon"		Larz Bourne	Al Eugster Bill Hudson	Tom Ford	August 5, 1949
Our Funny Finny Friends[lower-alpha 4]	Fishes	"Three Little Fishies"		Larz Bourne Larry Riley			August 26, 1949
Marriage Wows	Wedding	"For Me and My Gal"	I. Sparber	Bill Turner Larry Riley	Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier		September 16, 1949
The Big Flame Up[lower-alpha 5]	Firefighting	"There'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight"		I. Klein	Dave Tendlar Martin Taras		September 30, 1949
Strolling Thru the Park	1890s Parks	"Strolling Thru the Park"	Seymour Kneitel		Myron Waldman Larry Silverman	Robert Little	November 4, 1949
The Big Drip[lower-alpha 2]	Noah's Ark	"It Ain't Gonna Rain No Mo'"	I. Sparber	Larz Bourne Larry Riley	Myron Waldman Nick Tafuri	Tom Ford	November 25, 1949
Snow Foolin'	Winter	"Jingle Bells"		I. Klein	Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier		December 16, 1949
Blue Hawaii	Hawaii	"Blue Hawaii"	Seymour Kneitel	Larz Bourne	Al Eugster Wm. B. Pattengill	Lloyd Hallock Jr.	January 13, 1950
Detouring Thru Maine	Maine	"The Maine Stein Song"			Al Eugster Bill Hudson		February 17, 1950
Short'nin' Bread	Baked Goods	"Shortenin' Bread"	I. Sparber	Larz Bourne Larry Riley	Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier	Anton Loeb	March 24, 1950
Win, Place and Show Boat	Mississippi Riverboat	"Waiting for the Robert E. Lee"			Al Eugster Wm. B. Pattengill	Robert Connavale	April 28, 1950
Jingle Jangle Jungle	Africa	"Civilization (Bongo Bongo Bongo)"	Seymour Kneitel	Joe Stultz Larry Riley	Myron Waldman Larry Silverman	Tom Ford	May 19, 1950
Heap Hep Injuns	Native Americans	"My Pony Boy"	I. Sparber	Larz Bourne	Tom Johnson George Rufle	Anton Loeb	June 30, 1950
Gobs of Fun[lower-alpha 6]	Sailors	"Strike Up the Band (Here Comes a Sailor)"		Larry Riley Joe Stultz	Al Eugster Irving Spector	Robert Owen	July 28, 1950
Helter Swelter	Summer	"In the Good Old Summer Time"	Seymour Kneitel	Larz Bourne Larry Riley	Al Eugster Wm. B. Pattengill	Tom Ford	August 25, 1950
Boos in the Nite[lower-alpha 7]	Halloween	"Pack Up Your Troubles"	I. Sparber	Joe Stultz Larry Riley	Myron Waldman Nick Tafuri	Anton Loeb	September 22, 1950
Fiesta Time[lower-alpha 8]	Mexico	"El Rancho Grande"	Seymour Kneitel	I. Klein	Myron Waldman Larry Silverman		October 20, 1950
Fresh Yeggs[lower-alpha 9]	Prisons	"Give My Regards to Broadway"		Larz Bourne	Myron Waldman Nick Tafuri	Robert Owen	November 17, 1950
Tweet Music[lower-alpha 10]	Birds	"Let's All Sing Like the Birdies Sing"	I. Sparber	Joe Stultz	Al Eugster George Rufle		February 9, 1951
Drippy Mississippi	Mississippi River	"M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I"	Seymour Kneitel	Larz Bourne	Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier	Anton Loeb	April 13, 1951
Miners Forty-Niners	Miners	"Clementine"	I. Sparber	I. Klein	Myron Waldman Larry Silverman		May 18, 1951
Sing Again of Michigan[lower-alpha 11]	Michigan	"I Want to Go Back to Michigan Down on the Farm"		Larz Bourne	Al Eugster George Rufle	Robert Owen	June 29, 1951

See also

• The Golden Age of American animation
• Kartunes

Notes

1. First Screen Song short in the Paramount Picture series.
2. First two Screen Song shorts featuring Buzzy the Crow in the Paramount Picture series.
3. Only Screen Song short with only a picture cameo appearance of Little Audrey.
4. Only Screen Song short featuring the fishes from McElligot's Pool, based on the book by Dr. Seuss in the Paramount Picture series.
5. Only Screen Song short featuring Tim Turtle in the Paramount Picture series.
6. Only Screen Song short featuring Herman in the Paramount Picture series.
7. Only Screen Song short featuring the ghosts from Casper the Friendly Ghost in the Paramount Picture series.
8. First Harveytoon short in the Paramount Picture series and first Screen Song/Harveytoon short reissued by Harvey Films.
9. Only Screen Song/Harveytoon and Harveytoon short featuring Wolfie in the Paramount Picture series.
10. Only Screen Song/Harveytoon and Harveytoon short featuring Inchy in the Paramount Picture series.
11. Final Screen Song short featuring Buzzy the Crow in the Paramount Picture series and third Harveytoon short featuring him in it. Also9 final Screen Song short reissued by Harvey Films and the very first.

References

1. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 133–134. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
2. Markstein, Don. "Screen Songs". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
3. Pointer, Ray (2016) "The Art and Inventions of Max Fleischer: American Animation Pioneer," McFarland & Co. Publishers

External links

• Screen Songs at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on March 29, 2017.
• Betty Boop Screen Songs on YouTube

Further reading

• Leslie Cabarga, The Fleischer Story (Da Capo Press, 1988)
• Leonard Maltin, Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons (Penguin Books, 1980, revised edition 1987)