Friday, May 4, 2012

Friday Video: Minnie the Moocher

Friday, May 4, 2012
Loretta reports:

Early animated films can be surprisingly trippy.  This one features two of my 20th C favorites: Betty Boop & Cab Calloway.  He’s the man dancing at the beginning. Not Astaire, but brilliant in his own way, and another great talent from that era.







And he’s so fabulous that you should treat yourself and watch him here, performing the song with his band.  For more, check out this biography.

Readers who receive our blog via email might see only a rectangle or square where the video ought to be.  To watch the video, please click on the title to this post.

7 comments:

News From the Holmestead said...

Loretta, Cab Calloway is a trip, isn't he? Love the man, and love the song Minnie the Moocher. Though it was recorded in 1934, they still play it on the jazz station I listen to.

Have you seen a very much older Calloway sing that song in the Blues Brothers movie? (One of my all-time favorite movies, and Cab Calloway's performance is delightful, especially given his advanced years.) He looked so dashing in his all-white tux!) Here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/74l99e

MrsT said...

Cab Calloway was a treasure - loved the later version on the Blues Brothers movie, but I'd never seen this early version. Thank you for posting it!

Susan said...

I love Cab Calloway! I have a cat named Minnie the Moocher...

Heather Wilkinson Rojo said...

I love the video. Looks like Cab Calloway was the first to do the "moonwalk"- long, long before Michael Jackson!

Zenspinner said...

I love this video particularly for one reason...he almost always wore long tails in back but they are absent from this video, allowing full view of his glorious assets. :) Serious history crush going on here.

Unknown said...

Trufax: Many artists from the Fleischer studio assisted in the creation of Disney's "Dumbo". You can see their names on the credits.

Explains a lot, doesn't it? XD

Unknown said...

Trufax: Many artists from the Fleischer studio assisted in the creation of Disney's "Dumbo". You can see their names on the credits.

Explains a lot, doesn't it? XD

 
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