A.A.P. RECORDS?
I learn something new every day.
I did not know AAP (Associated Artists Productions), the company that bought the pre-48 Warner Bros. film library and Paramount's Popeye cartoons and syndicated them to television in 1957, had a record label. One of my Christmas gifts this year was a copy of the "Official TV POPEYE Record Album", a 78 rpm vinyl record featuring New York kid show host Captain Allen Swift and Mae Questel singing various Popeye related songs. It came in it's original mailing sleeve (from "A.A.P. Records Inc.") and there is a King Features Syndicate copyright notice on it.
It contains (per the sleeve) "Almost 10 minutes of delightful entertainment" and "Songs & Chatter Children will enjoy over & over again". The record was made available as a 78 or a 45. Swift wrote several of the original tunes and co-produced the tracks (with Arthur Pine). He also does an awful Popeye voice (Swift was clearly more suited to doing Bluto).
But what really amazed me is that A.A.P. supposedly had a record label! Does anyone out there have any other A.A.P. records? I knew A.A.P. had a line of 8mm home movies (see box at left - courtesy of Harry McCracken's
Home Movie Box Museum) - now I wonder how extensively they exploited their acquired properties.
When I worked for United Artists (1978-84) I picked up a lot of AAP background material, but never ran across anything on them producing records. I suspect from the packaging, and despite the $1.00 price printed on the sleeve, that this was some kind of promotional item, a one-shot, perhaps offered for sale through the kid show hosts in local markets.
If anyone has more info on AAP Records, please let me know. It's news to me.
Posted by at December 27, 2004 11:09 AM
