Screen Songs
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.
History
The Screen Songs are a continuation of the earlier Fleischer series Song Car-Tunes. 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 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
The Internet Movie Database lists these Fleischer animation films as being released by Weiss Brothers-Artclass Pictures in 1926 and 1927.[1] This suggests the Fleischers turned to Weiss Brothers to release these films—some sound, some silent—from the Song Car-Tunes series after the Fleischers ended their Red Seal Pictures partnership with DeForest. In 1928, a few of the silent Song Car-Tuness may have been rereleased with sound by Weiss Brothers and probably also with new name.
- 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)
- 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 Vallee, 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 in color. The earliest color Screen Song released as part of the Noveltoons series, When G.I. Johnny Comes Home, 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. TV Corporation 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 what is now Melange Pictures, a division of Viacom, Paramount's parent company), home video rights are owned by Viacom/Paramount licensee Olive Films, 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 DreamWorks Classics (formerly Classic Media), due to purchase from DreamWorks Animation.
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.
Filmography
Fleischer Studios
| 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 |
| 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 | 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 |
| 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 Vallee, Betty Boop prototype | August 1, 1931 |
| Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Shean | Gallagher and Shean | August 29, 1931 |
| You're Driving Me Crazy | Unknown Female Singer, 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 Vallee, 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 |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 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". Later re-released by Official Films in the 1950s. |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 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 (final B&W Screen Song) | Frank Dailey and his Orchestra | July 29, 1938 |
Famous Studios
| Film | Theme | Song | Director | Story | Animation | Scenics | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Circus Comes to Clown (first color Screen Song) | 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 | Larz Bourne Bill Turner |
Dave Tendlar Tom Golden |
Robert Connavale | January 23, 1948 |
| Little Brown Jug | Cider | "Little Brown Jug" | Seymour Kneitel | Bill Turner Larry Riley |
Orestes Calpini Morey Reden Bill Hudson |
Tom Ford | February 20, 1948 |
| The Golden State | California | "California, Here I Come" | Seymour Kneitel | Larz Bourne Larry Riley |
Dave Tendlar Bill Hudson |
Robert Little | March 12, 1948 |
| Winter Draws On | Bird Migration | "Alabamy Bound" | Seymour Kneitel | Larz Bourne Bill Turner |
Al Eugster Irving Spector |
Tom Ford | March 19, 1948 |
| Sing or Swim | Beach | "By the Beautiful Sea" | Seymour Kneitel | I. Klein Larry Riley |
Al Eugster Irving Spector |
Robert Connavale | June 16, 1948 |
| Camptown Races | Blackface Acts | "Camptown Races" | Seymour Kneitel | Bill Turner Larry Riley |
Al Eugster Irving Spector |
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" | Seymour Kneitel | Larz Bourne | Dave Tendlar Morey Reden |
Shane Miller | January 7, 1949 |
| The Emerald Isle | Ireland | "McNamara's Band" | Seymour Kneitel | I. Klein | Al Eugster Bill Hudson |
Tom Ford Robert Owen |
February 25, 1947 |
| 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 |
Shane Miller | June 3, 1949 |
| The Ski's the Limit | Switzerland | "I Miss My Swiss, My Swiss Miss Misses Me" | I. Sparber | 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 | Winter Harvest | "Shine On, Harvest Moon" | Seymour Kneitel | Larz Bourne | Al Eugster Bill Hudson |
Tom Ford | August 5, 1949 |
| Our Funny Finny Friends | Fish | "Three Little Fishies" | Seymour Kneitel | Larz Bourne Larry Riley |
Al Eugster Bill Hudson |
Tom Ford | August 26, 1949 |
| Marriage Wows | Wedding | "For Me and My Gal" | I. Sparber | Bill Turner Larry Riley |
Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier |
Tom Ford | September 16, 1949 |
| The Big Flame Up | Firefighting | "There'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight" | I. Sparber | I. Klein | Dave Tendlar Martin Taras |
Tom Ford | September 30, 1949 |
| Strolling Thru the Park | 1890s Parks | "While Strolling Through the Park One Day" | Seymour Kneitel | I. Klein | Myron Waldman Larry Silverman |
Robert Little | November 4, 1949 |
| The Big Drip | 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' | Christmas | "Jingle Bells" | I. Sparber | I. Klein | Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier |
Tom Ford | 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" | Seymour Kneitel | Al Eugster Bill Hudson |
February 17, 1950 | ||
| Short'nin' Bread | Baked Goods | "Shortnin' Bread" | I. Sparber | Larz Bourne Larry Riley |
Myron Waldman Gordon Whittier |
Anton Loeb | March 24, 1950 |
| Win, Place and Showboat | Mississippi Riverboat | "Waiting for the Robert E. Lee" | I. Sparber | Larz Bourne Larry Riley |
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, 1949 |
| Heap Hep Injuns | Native Americans | "My Pony Boy" | I. Sparber | Larz Bourne | Tom Johnson George Rufle |
Anton Loeb | June 30, 1950 |
| Gobs of Fun | Sailors | "Strike Up the Band (Here Comes a Sailor)" | I. Sparber | 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 | Halloween | "Pack Up Your Troubles" | I. Sparber | Joe Stultz Larry Riley |
Myron Waldman Nick Tafuri |
September 22, 1950 | |
| Fiesta Time | Mexico | "El Rancho Grande" | Seymour Kneitel | I. Klein | Myron Waldman Larry Silverman |
October 20, 1950 | |
| Fresh Yeggs | Prisons | "Give My Regards to Broadway" | Seymour Kneitel | Larz Bourne | Myron Waldman Nick Tafuri |
Robert Owen | November 17, 1950 |
| Tweet Music | Birds | "Let's All Sing Like the Birdies Sing" | I. Sparber | Joe Stultz | Al Eugster George Rufle |
Robert Owen | 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 | "Oh My Darling, Clementine" | I. Sparber | I. Klein | Myron Waldman Larry Silverman |
Anton Loeb | May 18, 1951 |
| Sing Again of Michigan | Michigan | "I Want to Go Back to Michigan Down on the Farm" | I. Sparber | Larz Bourne | Al Eugster George Rufle |
Robert Owen | June 29, 1951 |
Note: In all the shorts, the musical arrangements were made by Winston Sharples.
References
- 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)
See also
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