What did the cartoon Bosko originally look like?

Search: bosco cartoon; bosko

Why: Just thinking about how awesome Splash Mountain is and probably about to order Song of the South from China and, omg, maybe Sorry! Splash Mountain Edition.

Anyway, speaking of racist cartoons, I used to see Bosko on "Looney Tunes" clips. When he was in color, I think he was a super stereotypical black kid.

Answer: He looked how I've always seen him! He was created in 1927 as a typical "Negro boy." Bosko was featured in the groundbreaking 1929 "talkie" cartoon "Bosko, The Talk-Ink Kid," in which creator Rudolph Ising animates soundtrack-synchronized speech and dancing:

And he was in the very first Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon short, Sinkin' in the Bathtub, in 1930:

Later, from 1934-38, he and girlfriend Honey were in color in the "Happy Harmonies" series. This one is from 1934:

but this horrific business is from 1937:

Source: ToonZone, Wikipedia

The More You Know: In Of Mice and Magic, Leonard Maltin saysthat this early version of Bosko:

was in fact a cartoonized version of a young black boy... he spoke in a Southern Negro dialect... in subsequent films this characterization was eschewed, or perhaps forgotten. This could be called sloppiness on the part of Harman and Ising, but it also indicates the uncertain nature of the character itself.

Hum.