The Fleischer brothers created Betty Boop as well as Olive Oyl, one of the main characters in Popeye. Both characters can be considered symbols of feminism in two very different forms. Betty Boop is known as one of the most well known sex symbols ever to appear on the animated screen. Her bodacious bod gave all of the guys and gals googly eyes. The Fleischer brothers created her to be just that. Half of her appeal was her naive and helpless nature, while the other half was purely physical sexuality. She was always in need of a man to help her out of a sticky situation. She commanded the male gaze and did not keep her femininity a secret, In fact, she used her feminine sexuality as a tool to get what she wanted.
Though Boop flaunted her hot bod, Olive Oyl was on the other end, fully clothed, still with men drooling all over her, though for very different reasons. Olive Oyl wasn't particularly attractive, actually quite unattractive, lanky, and slightly manly, but she knew how to fend for herself. She was a bad ass biddy and no one wanted to mess with her, which made her so much more attractive since that type of attitude in women was not historically prevalent. She knew how to take care of herself and her man.
Strangely enough, both Betty Boop and Olive Oyl were once played by the same voice actress, Mae Questel. Crazy.
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