Famous Studios
Picture Gallery for "Popeye the Sailor"
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Popeye began his animated career in much the same way he originated on the printed page — as a secondary character whose popularity pushed him into a lead role. He first appeared in the King Features newspaper strip Thimble Theatre in 1929. The strip was already ten years old by the time he arrived, but Popeye became the featured character shortly after he was written in. Similarly, a positive reception following his debut animated performance in the 1933 Betty Boop short Popeye The Sailor quickly lead to his own self-titled series of short theatrical films, beginning in 1933 with I Yam What I Yam.
Popeye was a middle-aged, working class sailor with thinning hair who smoked a corncob pipe. The titles of his film shorts, being consistently formed of horrikibly misspelled words n’ poor grammers, aptly exemplified Popeye’s station. He dated Olive Oyl, a gangly and sometimes fickle girlfriend who made Popeye work for her affections. She was not above taking an interest in other men, at times even falling for Popeye’s chronic nemesis Bluto, a large, brutish bully who fit perfectly into whatever role the antagonist of the story called for. Popeye was a brave and self-assured sailor, but his struggles with Bluto, or whatever disaster he was facing, normally got the best of him until, after a barrage of hardships, he ate from a can of spinach to gain a massive surge of strength. The extra strength allowed him to perform fantastic feats in order to quickly and easily overcome his immediate problem or foe.
Several secondary characters appeared from time to time throughout the series — most being versions of characters taken from the newspaper strip. A portly fellow named Wimpy appeared in a variety of roles. One thing that never changed was his love of hamburgers. He enjoyed them to such a degree that he became absent-minded about everything else. Olive Oyl sometimes cared for an infant named Swee’Pea (with no real explanation in regards to their relationship). Swee’Pea had a tendency to wander off and get into hazardous circumstances from which Popeye had to rescue him. On occasion Popeye also had to care for his own nephews — a set of four rambunctious and untiring quadruplets by the names of Peepeye, Poopeye, Pipeye and Pupeye. A magical, pet dog named Eugene The Jeep sometimes helped Popeye. The dog could appear and disappear at will. Depending on the cartoon, Eugene also had abilities like phasing through solid objects or manipulating his tail into a useful shape. Poopdeck Pappy was Popeye’s ninety-nine year old father. He caused Popeye endless consternation by living life to the fullest, assuming the behavior and engaging in the activities of a much younger man.
In 1941, with the United Stated edging closer to involvement in the second World War, Popeye joined the U.S. Navy and—beginning in the short The Mighty Navy—was outfitted with a white Navy uniform in place of his original dark shirt and brimmed mariner cap. With a few exceptions, the new uniform remained Popeye’s mode of dress throughout the TV cartoons of the 1960s.
Other than the three, 16–21 minute, two-reeler specials Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor (1936), Popeye Meets Ali Baba’s Forty Thieves (1937), and Popeye Meets Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp (1939), the Popeye short films were black & white until 1943, when color was introduced as the standard beginning with the short Her Honor, the Mare.
Paramount Pictures commissioned a total of 230 Popeye the Sailor theatrical shorts. The Fleischer studio produced 108 shorts from 1933 to 1942. Paramount bought the studio in 1942 and renamed it Famous Studios, which continued uninterrupted production of the shorts until 1957. King Features Syndicate commissioned several studios to produce 215 made for television episodes from 1960-62. Later offshoot series starring Popeye included The All New Popeye Hour (1978), The Popeye and Olive Comedy Show (1981), and Popeye and Son (1987).
Theme Song
Episodes
I Yam What I Yam
Blow Me Down!
I Eats My Spinach
Seasin’s Greetinks!
Wild Elephinks
Sock-a-Bye Baby
Let’s You and Him Fight
The Man on the Flying Trapeze
Can You Take It
Shoein’ Hosses
Strong to the Finich
Shiver Me Timbers!
Axe Me Another
A Dream Walking
The Two-Alarm Fire
The Dance Contest
We Aim to Please
Beware of Barnacle Bill
Be Kind to “Aminals”
Pleased to Meet Cha!
The “Hyp-Nut-Tist”
Choose Your Weppins
For Better or Worser
Dizzy Divers
You Gotta be a Football Hero
King of the Mardi Gras
Adventures of Popeye
The Spinach Overture
Vim, Vigor and Vitaliky
A Clean Shaven Man
Brotherly Love
I-Ski Love-Ski You-Ski
Bridge Ahoy!
What — No Spinach?
I Wanna be a Life Guard
Let’s Get Movin’
Never Kick a Woman
Little Swee’Pea
Hold the Wire
The Spinach Roadster
Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor
I’m in the Army Now
The Paneless Window Washer
Organ Grinder’s Swing
My Artistical Temperature
Hospitaliky
The Twisker Pitcher
Morning, Noon and Night Club
Lost and Foundry
I Never Changes My Altitude
I Likes Babies and Infinks
The Football Toucher Downer
Protek the Weakerist
Popeye Meets Ali Baba’s Forty Thieves
Fowl Play
Let’s Celebrake
Learn Polikeness
The House Builder-Upper
Big Chief Ugh-Amugh-Ugh
I Yam Love Sick
Plumbing is a “Pipe”
The Jeep
Bulldozing the Bull
Mutiny Ain’t Nice
Goonland
A Date to Skate
Cops is Always Right
Customers Wanted
Popeye Meets Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp
Leave Well Enough Alone
Wotta Nightmare
Ghosks is the Bunk
Hello, How Am I
It’s the Natural Thing to Do
Never Sock a Baby
Shakespearian Spinach
Females is Fickle
Stealin Aint Honest
Me Feelins is Hurt
Onion Pacific
Wimmin is a Myskery
Nurse-Mates
Fightin’ Pals
Doing Impossikible Stunts
Wimmin Hadn’t Oughta Drive
Puttin on the Act
Popeye Meets William Tell
My Pop, My Pop
With Poopdeck Pappy
Popeye Presents Eugene, the Jeep
Problem Pappy
Quiet! Pleeze
Olive’s Sweepstake Ticket
Flies Ain’t Human
Popeye Meets Rip Van Winkle
Olive’s Boithday Presink
Child Psykolojiky
Pest Pilot
I’ll Never Crow Again
The Mighty Navy
Nix on Hypnotricks
Kickin’ the Conga Round
Blunder Below
Fleets of Stren’th
Pip-Eye, Pup-Eye, Poop-Eye an’ Peep-Eye
Olive Oyl and Water Don’t Mix
Many Tanks
Baby Wants a Bottleship
You’re a Sap, Mr. Jap
Alona on the Sarong Seas
A Hull of a Mess
Scrap the Japs
Me Musical Nephews
Spinach Fer Britain
Seein’ Red, White ‘n’ Blue
Too Weak to Work
A Jolly Good Furlough
Ration Fer the Duration
The Hungry Goat
Happy Birthdaze
Wood-Peckin’
Cartoons Ain’t Human
Her Honor the Mare
The Marry-Go-Round
We’re on Our Way to Rio
The Anvil Chorus Girl
Spinach-Packin’ Popeye
Puppet Love
Pitchin’ Woo at the Zoo
Moving Aweigh
She-Sick Sailors
Pop-Pie a la Mode
Tops in the Big Top
Shape Ahoy
For Better or Nurse
Mess Production
House Tricks?
Service with a Guile
Klondike Casanova
Peep in the Deep
Rocket to Mars
Rodeo Romeo
The Fistic Mystic
The Island Fling
Abusement Park
I’ll Be Skiing Ya
Popeye and the Pirates
The Royal Four-Flusher
Wotta Knight
Safari So Good
All’s Fair at the Fair
Olive Oyl for President
Wigwam Whoopee
Pre-Hysterical Man
Popeye Meets Hercules
Wolf in Sheik’s Clothing
Spinach vs. Hamburgers
Snow Place Like Home
Robin Hood-Winked
Symphony in Spinach
Popeye’s Premiere
Lumberjack and Jill
Hot Air Aces
The Balmy Swami
Tar with a Star
Silly Hillbilly
Barking Dogs Don’t Fite
Fly’s Last Flight
How Green is My Spinach
Gym Jam
Beach Peach
Jitterbug Jive
Popeye Makes a Movie
Baby Wants Spinach
Quick on the Vigor
Riot in Rhythm
Farmer and the Belle
Vacation with Play
Thrill of Fair
Alpine for You
Double-Cross-Country Race
Pilgrim Popeye
Let’s Stalk Spinach
Punch and Judo
Popeye’s Pappy
Lunch with a Punch
Swimmer Take All
Friend or Phony
Tots of Fun
Popalong Popeye
Shuteye Popeye
Big Bad Sindbad
Ancient Fistory
Child Sockology
Popeye’s Mirthday
Toreadorable
Baby Wants a Battle
Firemen’s Brawl
Popeye, the Ace of Space
Shaving Muggs
Floor Flusher
Popeye’s 20th Anniversary
Taxi-Turvy
Bride and Gloom
Greek Mirthology
Fright to the Finish
Private-Eye Popeye
Gopher Spinach
Cookin’ with Gags
Nurse to Meet Ya
Penny Antics
Beaus Will Be Beaus
Gift of Gag
Car-azy Drivers
Mister and Mistletoe
Cops is Tops
A Job for a Gob
Hill-billing and Cooing
Popeye for President
Out to Punch
Assault and Flattery
Insect to Injury
Parlez Vous Woo
I Don’t Scare
A Haul in One
Nearlyweds
The Crystal Brawl
Patriotic Popeye
Spree Lunch
Spooky Swabs
The opening theme for each Popeye short was re-recorded, based on a standard arrangement with slight variations. The standard arrangement itself was changed several times, although each of its variations sounded similar.
The only opening themes that differed significantly from the standard were the very first Popeye short, I Yam What I Yam (1933), and the three Fleischer Studio color specials, Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor (1936), Popeye Meets Ali Baba’s Forty Thieves (1937), and Popeye Meets Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp (1939).