Bosko the Talk-Ink Kid

From Loonipedia

Bosko the Talk-Ink Kid was the first animated short from Warner Bros., produced as a pilot short in May 1929. It features live-action footage of Rudolph Ising drawing Bosko, who comes to life.

Synopsis[edit | edit source]

Animator Rudolf Ising is drawing. He’s trying to come up with a character, eventually he creates an African American boy named Bosko. Ising asks Bosko what he can do, and Bosko proceeds to dance and whistle. Bosko

File:Bosko-1-.jpg
Version of the Title Card

stops and notices something asking Ising, “whose them folks out in the dark?” Ising tells him that it’s the audience; he then asks Bosko if he can make them laugh. After some thinking, Bosko asks Ising to draw him a piano and Bosko starts playing on the piano trying to create laughs (Bosko himself laughs), and sings while tongue sticks out. Bosko continues to sing until his head pops up and we see it’s made of springs. He manages to get his head back together and continues to sing; eventually Ising gets annoyed by his singing and decides to use his ink pen to grab Bosko’s pants, eventually sucking him in. Bosko gets out of some ink and says, “Well so long folks see yah later”, as the cartoon ends.

Notes[edit | edit source]

Bosko the Talk-Ink Kid was never released in theaters, but it has been included in many public domain video releases. A heavily edited version later appeared in the Toonheads special "The Lost Cartoons", which was also it's first public screening in 71 years. 

Video[edit | edit source]









Video Releases[edit | edit source]