They Loved the Style, Not the Black Woman: Esther Jones and the Betty Boop Lesson

updated from 11/1/23 

Exploitation is a hand
that smiles while taking.

It praises your light,
then sells your flame.

It calls it “help,”
but leaves you colder.

These days when people are pretty casual and complacent about women’s identity and women’s essence being mocked, adopted, and ultimately …owned; I think of women like Esther Jones. A woman who had her entire essence stolen from her. A woman who had to live her days watching others profit from her essence and creation. 

History has taught us these lessons before.  

What is known about Esther Jones

Esther Lee Jones was a child performer active in Harlem in the late 1920s and is associated with the stage name “Baby Esther.” Accounts describe her as singing in a playful, babyish scat style that included sounds and vocal flourishes later linked to Betty Boop’s voice. The historical record on her life is limited, which is part of why she remained obscure compared with the cartoon character she influenced.

It is interesting how people never seem to know enough about you at times like these.

Baby Esther Jones was not officially credited as Betty Boop’s creator. But her performance style was important enough to appear in the lawsuit that defeated Helen Kane’s claim of originality. 

Here are 10 facts about Betty Boop and Esther “Baby Esther” Jones:

1. Betty Boop first appeared in 1930 in the Fleischer Studios cartoon Dizzy Dishes. In that first appearance, she was not yet the fully human flapper figure people recognize today. She was originally drawn with poodle-like features.

2. Betty Boop was created by Fleischer Studios, associated with Max Fleischer and the Fleischer animation team. Animator Grim Natwick is widely credited with drawing the early version of the character.

3. Helen Kane sued Fleischer Studios and Paramount in 1932, claiming Betty Boop copied her look, voice, mannerisms, and “boop-oop-a-doop” style. The lawsuit sought $250,000.

4. Helen Kane lost the case. The court did not accept her claim that she had exclusive ownership over the singing style, baby voice, or “boop” mannerisms associated with Betty Boop.

5. Esther Jones, known professionally as Baby Esther or Little Esther, was a Black child performer and singer active in the late 1920s and early 1930s. She was associated with jazz-age stage performance and baby-voiced vocal stylings.

6. Baby Esther’s name entered the Betty Boop legal story because Fleischer’s defense argued that Helen Kane’s style was not original. The defense pointed to Esther Jones as one performer who had used similar baby-style vocal effects before Kane claimed them as her own.

7. Baby Esther herself did not testify in the Betty Boop lawsuit. Reports on the case note that she was not available to testify, and the defense relied on testimony from others and a screen test said to feature her performance.

8. A screen test of Baby Esther was reportedly shown during the trial, but that film is now considered lost. That makes the story harder to prove in the way modern audiences often want: with surviving audio or video evidence.

9. It is accurate to say Baby Esther was used as evidence against Helen Kane’s claim of originality. It is stronger than saying she had nothing to do with the Betty Boop controversy, but more careful than saying, “Betty Boop was definitely based on Esther Jones,” which goes beyond what the surviving evidence can fully prove.

10. The truth is this: Betty Boop became famous, Helen Kane claimed ownership, and Baby Esther’s earlier Black performance style was brought into court to show that Kane’s act was not as original as she claimed. That is the part we can say with confidence. The wider story is also a familiar American pattern: Black performance genius travels through the culture, gets copied, renamed, softened, commercialized, and then the original Black artist becomes harder to find in the official memory.     

    See also Cab Calloway and co. The Black Performance Genius Behind America’s “Iconic” Jazz Style – Survivor Affirmations

    Esther Jones was used as evidence in a defense against Helen Kane’s lawsuit, and her performance history helped undermine Kane’s claim. That is different from Esther being a party to the case or receiving formal credit for inspiring Betty Boop.

Injustice Trauma: When the Violence Isn’t the Only Wound – WESurviveAbuse

 Here’s a simple timeline of the key events:

Late 1920s: Esther Jones, known as “Baby Esther,” performed in Harlem and used a playful babyish scat style that later became part of the Betty Boop story.

1930: Max Fleischer introduced Betty Boop as an animated character.

1932: Helen Kane sued Fleischer Studios and Paramount, claiming Betty Boop copied her image and singing style.

At the trial: Fleischer’s defense presented Baby Esther as evidence that the “boop-oop-a-doop” style existed before Helen Kane and was not her original creation.

Court outcome: The court ruled against Helen Kane, so Fleischer and Paramount kept Betty Boop.

Afterward: Esther Jones did not become the legal or public “owner” of Betty Boop, and she remained much less famous than the character she helped influence. So much money is still being made off of her unique style and creativity.