Today's Obscure Pop Culture Reference

Pop culture references of the 1930s and ‘40s were, to a large degree by my experience, still common in the 1960s when I grew up. Some from the war you could figure out on your own from the context (and repetition). But there were still obscure ones that I’m learning about today.

The Ub Iwerks studio didn’t produce a lot of funny cartoons. Sometimes, it’s tough to figure out if a gag is intended. A good example is in Rasslin’ Round (1934). There’s a scene, fairly well animated, used three times where a presumably Mexican guy is yelling “Geeve eet to heem, Willie!”



Is that supposed to be funny in itself? It’s possible, considering the dreary sense of humour displayed in Willie Whopper cartoons. Or is it a reference to a radio catchphrase or movie dialogue?

The answer is contained in an Associated Press story by Robbin Coons which appeared in newspapers in mid-August 1934. He reported on Hollywood film and singing stars who went to boxing matches on Tuesdays and Fridays at the Hollywood Legion Stadium or the Los Angeles Olympic auditorium.

Champion of many a battler but especially of those of Mexican extraction, Miss [Lupe] Velez screams and gestures through the evening, almost wearing herself out as she implores her choice to “Geeve it to heem! Keel heem!”

Did people watching this cartoon in 1934 know about this? Maybe, maybe not. Perhaps someone at the studio went to boxing matches, thought it was funny, and threw it into the story. Or maybe it came from somewhere else. At the Iwerks studio, you never know.