Mr. B Natural

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Mr. B Natural, seen here in a 1991 episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000

Mr. B Natural is the title and main character (played by Betty Luster) of a short film produced in 1957 by the C.G. Conn Company, and directed by Phil Patton. The short was intended to advertise Conn's line of musical instruments and school bands. The film begins with a fantasy sequence emphasizing the fun of school bands and musical instrument playing, and how they are an investment in a child's "future personality."

The titular character is an androgynous figure who convinces an adolescent boy named Buzz Turner (Bruce Podewell) to take up playing the trumpet when s/he magically appears in his room one day. The actress strongly resembles Mary Martin and the casting was probably inspired by Martin's Peter Pan.^{[citation needed]} In the film, Buzz finds through the gift of music and the help of his mysterious friend the confidence and assertiveness he needs to try out for the school band, make friends, and play solos at concerts and at the big school dance. This feature is typical of many short films of the era that portrayed a stereotypical (and fairly inaccurate) portrayal of life among teenagers and the white middle class in the 1950s.

[edit] Spoofs

Mr. B Natural was featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1991, as the short preceding the film War of the Colossal Beast in experiment #319. It is regarded by fans as one of the most memorable shorts ever done by the show. During the short, Joel Robinson and the bots mocked Mr. B's gender ambiguity and seemingly sinister interest in Buzz, and joked that Mr. B was in fact a demon, or even Satan himself. Following the short, Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo engaged in a tongue-in-cheek debate as to whether Mr. B Natural was a man or a woman.

The character was also played by Bridget Jones in one of the "Turkey Day" host segments of Episode #701 (Night of the Blood Beast), where, to her/his annoyance, s/he attracted the affections of Jack Perkins (played by Michael J. Nelson, the actress's real-life husband).