“I YAM WHAT I YAM,
I’M POPEYE THE SAILOR MAN!”
by Edwina Campbell
Popeye, one of the most iconic cartoon characters in the world, was created by Elzie Crisler Segar in 1929, and made his debut in the comic strip “Thimble Theater” part of the New York Evening Journal.
History states that Popeye was based on a real person named Frank “Rocky” Fiegel (Figure 1). Fiegel was born in Poland in 1868 and later lived in Chester, Illinois, which is where Segar met him and listened to his stories of life. Segar based many of Popeye’s escapades on the real adventures of Fiegel, including that Fiegel had an injured eye resulting from a fight, hence the name “pop—eye.”
Once created, Popeye rose to become an all-time favorite cartoon character, not only in comic strips but in animated TV shows and films, and in real-life movies. Popeyes adventures usually centered around rescuing the love of his life, Olive Oyl, from some dastardly deed at the hands of his archrival, Brutus (originally named Bluto). Brutus invariably puts Olive Oyl in some type of peril and Popeye would rush to the rescue, only to be beaten down by Brutus until he (Popeye) pops out his can of spinach, downs the spinach and instantly obtains amazing strength. He is then able to beat Brutus into submission and free Olive Oyl from imminent danger. Popeye, the underdog, suddenly becoming a superhero and saving the day and his girlfriend, had great appeal to all age groups.
Popeye had a cluster of friends and family around him including his friend Winchester Wimpy, the hamburger loving gent; Sweet Pea, an adopted child of Popeye; his Pappy; and his enemies Sea Hag; and Bluto and several others who would come and go in his life. When Popeye entered the world of animation, he was given a raspy style voice by Bill Costello and when Costello died in 1971, Jack Mercer became the voice of Popeye. You had to listen closely when Popeye spoke as he was not always easy to understand and he was also constantly muttering funny, rather satirical sayings to himself, and then laughing about them.
There is no end to the Popeye paraphernalia and collectibles that have been manufactured over time. Some examples include figural replicas, toys (Figures 2 and 3), toy banks, household items such as table lamp bases, clothing, spinach can labels (Figure 5) and anything else imaginable.
Popeye, with his swaggering, pipe- smoking, spinach-eating, and mean upper cut persona, is a cartoon character that I am glad I grew up with. We will never have another character quite like him. And always remember…
“He’s strong to the finish ‘
cause he eats his spinach.
He’s Popeye the Sailor Man!”
SPECIAL NOTE: In doing research for this article, I spoke to several people in Chester, Illinois. Chester, a town along the Mississippi River, is as the mayor’s office described “all things Popeye.” There are many things to see and do in Chester that focus on Popeye and the other comic strip characters, including an annual Popeye Picnic held in September.
All the Popeye toys and memorabilia pictured with this article are from the joint collection of Edwina Campbell and Gus Coccia.