Grampy’s Indoor Outing (1936)

Grampy’s Indoor Outing Review

Grampy’s Indoor Outing is a 1936 animated short film from the Betty Boop series. It is a very surreal flick.

Betty Boop and Little Jimmy are prevented by a thunderstorm from going to the carnival. Inventive Grampy devises a substitute as he turns an entire house into a carnival. There had been solid Grampy outings before this one, but it is this movie where he really gave us one classic Betty Boop cartoon. The first half is just build-up with the Little Jimmy character being as forgettable as ever, but it is in the second half where the movie reached greatness.

There is this extended sequence where Grampy literally creates carnival rides and games inside the house itself. The final scene was particularly unforgettable with the building and the stairs making for an entire ride. Every single invention of Grampy’s was clever and so much fun while only that final one was outlandish, but in the best cartoony way possible. The animation here is gorgeous and so uniquely lively and fluid.

Grampy’s Indoor Outing has less memorable Betty and Little Jimmy, but Grampy was so cool here as he literally made a carnival our of a house in one unforgettable sequence.

My Rating – 4