Some of the information is Boop-Oop-a-Dooping full of SPOILERS. Boop-Oop-a-Doop!
| The Black Betty Boop Story[1] |
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Here's a story regarding Black Betty Boop, a 2023[2] Fleischer Studios collaboration that went wrong. The Black businesswoman describes what transpired in her own words here.[3]
"I have a story for you. Once upon a time I really loved Betty Boop, and I just wanted to see a brown Betty Boop like myself. And I wanted to see this brown Betty Boop so bad, that I held on to the dream, that one day there would be a Black Betty Boop who looked like me."
"I used to draw Betty Boop and color her brown, because I loved her character that much. Then when I got old enough. I had a character developed, that wasn't actually Black Betty Boop, but similar to Betty Boop to represent this vision that I had."
"And I started sharing it with the world, because I knew there were other Black women who also had this vision."
"One day, I get a letter in the mail from Fleischer Studios where they were saying, hey we see what you're doing with selling Black Betty Boop, and it was actually 'Black Betty Boo' at the time. I thought that that meant that I wasn't infringing. I didn't even know I was infringing."
"And they didn't even say anything about that, they were like listen we like what you are doing, we want to speak to you about a partnership, can we set up a meeting? And I was like this is it, it is happening. I was so excited. And so over a series of conversations I met with Fleischer, and they said that they wanted to do a partnership."
"They wanted African-American women to be seen and they wanted to diversify. And they wanted to do a Black Betty Boop, it was a long time coming. And they wanted me to head this initiative, and I believed them. We were going to do a legitimate partnership and there were multiple things that were conveyed on what the intentions were behind this were."
"It was supposed to be a 'Betty of the People Initiative' they were going to launch other races of Betty Boop. King of along the line of what I was already doing, because I was selling a Puerto Rican Betty Boop, Hajib Betty Boop, different skin tones of African-American Betty Boops, West Indian, Jamaican Betty Boop."
"Then I noticed there were one obstacle after another. I will share my experience as an African-American woman in business, of how I was treated, what I witnessed and what happened with the initiative and why it fell apart."
"And why I am no longer working with Fleischer Studios and why I ended up realizing that it wasn't the partnership that was initially presented to me. And how there isn't an effort to make African-Americans feel included. And how that no longer worked in alignment with my goals, so I parted ways."
"Being a Black woman in business has a whole lot of challenges. And I am used to dealing with people who don't look like me, who underestimate my intelligence. Who talk down to me, who basically make me feel less than them."
"I am not surprised when it happens, and it happened with the Fleischer Studios."
"Fleischer Studios entered into an agreement with me to be a licensee for to bring forth the 'Black Betty Boop' under the guise that they wanted Black people to feel included."
"It was supposed to be a partnership, throughout this partnership they wouldn't even put our banner up on their website. They were supposed to introduce us to certain merchandising partners, stores, opportunities and they went back on that. That didn't happen."
"They said, we're gonna see what YOU can do."
"Keep in mind, we're dealing with a market, where there's a lot of knock-off Black Betty Boops that are all over different products. Black people don't care if it is a legitimate product or not, they are going to buy it."
"And then on top of that, we're dealing with the idea, the history of Fleischer Studios in the Black community in the 'idea' that they appropriated Black Betty Boop or Betty Boop's image after Baby Esther Jones, and they claim they did not. But that is another story, look at the court case and determine for yourselves."
"When they approached me, it was right on the heels of the PBS special that came out about their appropriation of Betty Boop after an African-American woman. And they wanted to clean that image up. They came to me as if they were sincere, about doing a partnership, and they wanted to represent this character correctly."
"We spent over $10,000, in order to bring top quality. To show the Fleischers that we were serious. We spent money on the imaging, the marketing, the promotion, the PR, all of that."
"And Fleischer didn't even invite us to the opening of Boop! the live show. It's fine, it's demonstrative to them, and what they thought of us. I told my attorney that I am no longer interested in this partnership. They have all the upside, I have rest. And it doesn't even make any sense at this point."
"They said wanted to talk about it, see if we can resolve it first. My manager expressed the concerns, gave some examples. Not only did the Fleischer Studios not listen, they were uninterested in listening."
"What the Fleischers were interested in doing was putting me in my BLACK woman place."
"Reminding me who I am, in their opinion. And default it to, we treated YOU like we treat all other licensees, and I don't know what your expectations were. So now we're gonna do this."
"And I was like are we being serious right now? Considering your reputation in history in the African-American community. And that resistance that's there? And then also considering, that I am the only African-American woman licensee that you even have that is part of your team."
"You are dealing with this type of backlash, and you think I am like all the other partners? You think this launch of a Black Betty Boop which has never happened, was in the same category of any different Betty Boop that was launched? This was never a serious initiative for them."
"And Mark Fleischer himself, said well you are not going back far in history. Remember YOU were the one that was appropriating OUR Betty Boop, using an image that wasn't yours."
"I started to laugh, because are we really going there? Are we really doing that? When we moved to an agreement. If you sent me a C&D from the start, if you felt I was infringing on your image. I would have gladly moved on. But prior to invent over $10,000 to make this happen."
"To give Black people throughout the diaspora, a legitimate character, a representation of us with a big cartoon studio, that has never really been done before in the right way."
"And I said if I was going to be part of this, it had to be done in the right way."
"Mark Fleischer wanted me to remember, who I was. Betty Boop was HIS, and I was stealing his stuff, and the Fleischers were doing me a favor by not sending a C&D, and not filing any legal documents."
"And I was like, don't insult my intelligence, there are thousands of counterfeit Black Betty Boops that are on the market that don't get a cease and desist. And that's who we had to compete against in our non-exclusive agreement that we were tricked into."
"I legitimately thought it was a partnership. And I believe what he said. That's my fault, there were multiple signs along the way. That said that, the Fleischer Studios are not an alignment of doing the right thing."
"They made me open up a company called Black Betty Boop LLC, and that my character would be called Black Betty Boop. But then when it came time to launch, they held up the launch until I agreed to change the name. It was multiple things."
"I think what is most disappointing is to see that level of arrogance to have two white men looking at me, like I am beneath them, talking to me like I am uneducated. And that I can't see what is going on, was interesting."
"And for some, it might be enough to make them wanna just? Make judgements about themselves. Like ohh... I'm a Black woman, so I can't do this. And I'm going to deal with these challenges. Now your focus is going here. Now it hinders you from standing in your greatness, because of how someone else treats you."
"My payback is going to be on my paper, winning, it is going to be being so big you can't forgive me. Being so great you can't ignore me. That is going to be my payback. Making the Fleischer Studios wish they didn't take me for granted."
"And putting me in the category of the stereotypes that they hold."
If the Fleischer Studios got away with it one time, there's no reason why they wouldn't try to do it again. That is all I have to say. I say this to say that this road I travel comes with many different bumps and bruises."
"However I feel so blessed, and I am thankful that thing worked out the way they needed to work out."
"I share this story, because I give the whole real of everything that happened to the good to the bad to the pretty to the dirty. I shared my story when I was high when I was happy about getting the partnership."
"And now I saw the Fleischer Studios for who they really were. And dealing with that disappointment and still picking my head up, and remembering who I am."