Mae Questel | |
|---|---|
 Questel in 1930 | |
| Born | Mae Kwestel (1908-09-13)September 13, 1908 |
| Died | January 4, 1998(1998-01-04) (aged 89) Manhattan, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Columbia University |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1930–1989 |
| Known for | Voice ofBetty Boop,Olive Oyl andLittle Audrey |
| Notable work | Betty Boop Popeye the Sailor Noveltoons |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Mae Questel (/ˈmeɪˌkwɛˈstɛl/; bornMae Kwestel; September 13, 1908 – January 4, 1998) was an American actress. She was best known for providing the voices for the animated charactersBetty Boop (from 1931) andOlive Oyl (from 1933).
Questel began her career invaudeville, primarily working as an impressionist. She later performed on Broadway and in films and television, including her role as Aunt Bethany inNational Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989).
Born Mae Kwestel on September 13, 1908, inthe Bronx, New York City, to Simon and Freida (née Glauberman) Kwestel, she attendedMorris High School and studied acting at theAmerican Theatre Wing and with theTheatre Guild.[1] Although she wanted to be an entertainer, her parents, who wereOrthodox Jews, actively discouraged her from doing so, at one point forcing her to leave the Theatre Guild school.
Nevertheless, at the age of 17, Questel won a talent contest held at the RKO Fordham Theatre in the Bronx by imitating actress and singerHelen Kane. She was signed by an agent and began performing in vaudeville as an impersonator. Billed as "Mae Questel – Personality Singer of Personality Songs", she did impressions ofFanny Brice,Marlene Dietrich,Eddie Cantor,Mae West,Maurice Chevalier, and others, as well as doing animal imitations.[1]
She was seen by animatorMax Fleischer, who was looking for an actress to provide the voice for his Betty Boop character. Questel's "Boop-boop-a-doop" routine, done in a style similar to the version Helen Kane created, while at the same time evoking something of the naughty allure of film starClara Bow, was exactly what Fleischer wanted, and he hired Questel in 1931.[1] She began as one of a number of actresses providing the character's voice, but soon took over the role exclusively.[2]
From 1931 until 1938, Questel provided the voice of Betty Boop in more than 80animated shorts, the longest run for any actress doing that voice. During the 1930s, she released a recording of "On the Good Ship Lollipop", which sold more than two million copies. In 1988, she reprised her role as Betty Boop in a cameo appearance inWho Framed Roger Rabbit, which was Questel's most extensive work forDisney; she had provided brief additional voices for some of Disney's earlier films. Along with her voice work, and occasional on-camera appearance in Paramount shorts, Questel also attendedColumbia University,[1] where she studied drama.
Beginning in 1933,[1] Questel provided the voice for Olive Oyl in the Max FleischerPopeye cartoons. She made her debut with "I Eats Me Spinach" and essentially became the permanent voice until her hiatus to start a family in 1938. She reportedly based Olive's nasal vocal quality and expression, "Oh, dear!", on character actressZaSu Pitts.[3]
WhenHanna-Barbera began making theAll New Popeye cartoons for television in 1978, Questel auditioned for the role of Olive Oyl, but lost out toMarilyn Schreffler.[4]
Starting in 1938,Margie Hines, who was the original voice of Betty Boop, replaced Mae Questel when production made the transition from New York to the Miami Studio, Florida. Questel returned as the voice of Olive Oyl in 1944 after the studio reorganized asFamous Studios,Paramount Pictures and had returned to New York, a role in which she would remain until 1962. She also filled in forJack Mercer as the voice of Popeye for a small number of cartoons, made when Mercer was temporarily drawn intowar service, alongsideFloyd Buckley andHarry Foster Welch.[2][5][6]
In addition to her signature voices of Olive Oyl and Betty Boop, Questel also provided the voice ofLittle Audrey.[1] In 1958, she voicedWendy the Good Little Witch in the theatrical Casper cartoon shortWhich is Witch. In the 1950s, she was the voice for the title character of the pioneering interactive Saturday-morning cartoon seriesWinky Dink and You. She provided the voice ofCasper, the Friendly Ghost inGolden Records'Casper the Friendly Ghost and Little Audrey Says in 1962.[7]
InThe Flintstones series, she voiced characters from the spin-offsThe Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show,The Flintstone Comedy Hour, and theFlintstone Frolics. She voiced Wiggy Rockstone after the original voice actress,Gay Autterson, left the role in 1982.
She continued to provide the voices of Betty Boop and Olive Oyl in commercials, television specials, and elsewhere for the rest of her life. In 1988, she reprised her role as Betty Boop in the filmWho Framed Roger Rabbit.[8]
In 1935, Mae Questel played the voice of theWoman in the Shoe in the Max Fleischer cartoon,The Kids in the Shoe.
Questel played a number of small parts, including appearing withRudy Vallee as Betty Boop in the 1931 shortMusical Justice (1931)[9] and as a nurse inThe Musical Doctor in 1932.
In 1962, she played a Jewish mother in an episode of crime dramaNaked City. In 1962, she was seen as a middle-aged bride inJerry Lewis'It's Only Money,[2] one ofFanny Brice's mother's card-playing friends at the start of the filmFunny Girl in 1968, and as the "Jewish Mama from Hell" inNew York Stories in 1989 inWoody Allen's segment titled "Oedipus Wrecks";[2] she had earlier sung the song "Chameleon Days" on the soundtrack for Allen's filmZelig in 1983.[1] Her last nonvoice appearance was as the elderly Aunt Bethany in 1989'sNational Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.[10]
In 1973, Questel had a role in the short-livedABC televisionsitcomThe Corner Bar,[1] but she achieved perhaps her greatest visibility in television commercials, notably playing "Aunt Bluebell" in ads forScott Towels from 1971 to 1979, and appeared in spots forPlaytex,Folger's Coffee, and others. She also appeared on panel shows and in daytime soap operas.[1]
Questel appeared onBroadway four times:[11]
Questel married Leo Balkin on December 22, 1930, and they were divorced prior to 1950. She married Jack E. Shelby on November 19, 1970; they remained married until his death. She had two sons, Robert Balkin and Richard Balkin.[1]
Questel died on January 4, 1998, from complications related toAlzheimer's disease at the age of 89[16] in herManhattan apartment. She was buried inNew Montefiore Cemetery inWest Babylon, New York.[1]
Notes
In later years, Marilyn Schreffler would provide the voice for Olive Oyl for Hanna-Babera's "All New Popeye" cartoons
