Who starred in the very first animated cartoon to be broadcast on television?
Betty Boop! And this is how it happened...

…in the beginning

Television was still very much in its infancy in 1931. Introduced in the U.S. in 1928, television sets were still considered new and experimental technology in 1931; though there were a handful of “channels” there were no regularly scheduled programs, and televisions themselves were very rarely found in private homes.  For most people, having a radio in the home was considered amazing!

A Felix the Cat that rotates

When serious interest in television in the U.S. began in the mid-1920s, a major challenge was to produce a transmitted image of decent quality. In order to improve the image transmitted, it was decided to use a small statue of Felix the Cat, a well-known animated character of the day. Felix’s image was to be transmitted from the television studio to serve as a test broadcast. Felix was just right for this purpose… the right color (black and white) and, as a statue, would be unaffected by the intense heat from studio lights.

The first image of Felix to be transmitted appeared as only 2 inches tall on the then-tiny television receiving screen. The image was broadcast for two hours a day, simply rotating on a turntable. The use of the turntable moved Felix’s image in relationship to the camera, enabling engineers to make adjustments for depth of field. (Focus was a continual problem for early television; the tip of someone’s nose might be in focus, but their ears might be very blurred.) 

Felix rotated like this for almost a decade, with studios experimenting with adjustments and working to improve the crude quality of their early transmitted images.  Except for rotating on the turntable (and occasionally falling off), Felix never moved!

Felix the Cat in NBC television studio showing use as a testing device in early television. Circa 1928. Photo issued by NBC.

Betty Boop moves, talks, sings and in the first ever televised cartoon!

Betty Boop, who made her first film appearance in 1930, soared to stardom just as television had advanced to the point of serving as a sort of side-show to the already popular radio shows. In fact, many of the first television demonstrations were presented as part of ‘Radio Shows.’

Below is an account of Betty’s first television appearance from the book “Gateway To Radio” by Major Ivan Firth and Gladys Shaw Erskine. Like many experimental television demonstrations of the day, the format was that of a variety show, much like vaudeville. Max and Betty were presented as one of the ‘acts.’ The text below is taken from the last chapter of that book entitled "The Future of Radio.”

But perhaps the most successful of all our programs was that in which Max Fleischer, the beloved creator of Koko the Clown, Barnacle Bill, Betty Boop, Bimbo, and a host of other pen and ink stars, appeared for us in person in a presentation of the first animated cartoon to be televised. Standing in front of the brilliant light, Max Fleischer, while carrying on a running conversation with Miss Erskine, drew with rapid sure strokes of his charcoal pencil the pert Miss known to millions as Betty Boop. Suddenly, lo and behold, Miss Boop (Betty to her intimates) came to life, rolled her eyes, blinked her famous lashes, and then, without more ado opened her pouting mouth and sang her Boop-a-doop song, with all the allure of lowered lids. So successful was this feature that it was selected as the only program to be presented at the World’s Radio Fair at Madison Square Garden on the ten foot screen.”

Betty Televised at Madison Square Garden… 1931

Although the authors don’t provide the date for this first presentation, we do know that Betty’s next television appearance was in 1931 at the ‘Radio World’s Fair’ at Madison Square Garden in New York City. As the authors go on to say:

Although scheduled for only one performance, the program was repeated nearly 30 times to the delight of Mr. Carveth Wells, who was acting as special announcer.”

Drawing by Max Fleischer, from the book "Gateway to Radio" by Major Ivan Firth and Gladys Shaw Erskine.

One of the major people working to develop television at the time was Ulises A. Sanabria. Sanabria envisioned the future of television as a tool to be used mainly by theaters for the purpose of showing motion pictures. As a result, Sanabria directed his work at creating large scale viewing screens, such as the ones he used in Madison Square Garden. By 1931, when Max and Betty appeared at Madison Square Garden using Sanabria’s equipment, the screen was a ten foot tall piece of plate glass, frosted on one side and weighing 350 pounds, with the image projected on it from behind.

Portion of the New York Times article about the Madison Square Garden demonstration using Sanabria’s equipment. (September 25, 1931)

This demonstration, referred to as a “television talking moving picture,” was reported in a New York Times article headlined “Television Stages a Talking Picture” (09/25/1931). According to the Times:

Sanabria, the inventor of the Television apparatus said he had been besieged with questions…As a result of this interest in television the Short Wave concern announced yesterday that steps had been taken to begin production as soon as possible on a television receiver for home use.”

And that is how Betty Boop became the first animated character to be broadcast on television, making history by doing what she does best: exciting and inspiring our imagination!

Fun Fact

Interestingly Betty, being fully animated, did not suffer from the depth of field problems that plagued live performers in the early days of television (including the Felix doll turning endlessly on his turntable.) Betty, being two-dimensional, was always in focus! One can only imagine that this clarity of image made Betty’s television debut an even more remarkable experience for those in the audience!