Popeye the Sailor
Also known as Popeye · Popeye and Son · Popeye the Sailor (TV series) · Popeye the Sailor Man · פופאי המלח · פופאי ובנו · פופי
- Years 1960-1963 (King Features TV); theatrical shorts 1933-1957
- Country United States
- Network Syndication / Educational Television / Middle East Channel / Channel 2
- Comic debut 17 January 1929 (Thimble Theatre)
- Creator E. C. Segar
- Theatrical shorts ~230 cartoons, 1933-1957 (Fleischer / Famous Studios)
- King Features TV ~220 episodes, 1960-1963; executive producer Al Brodax
- Theme song I'm Popeye the Sailor Man (Sammy Lerner, 1933)
- In Israel Educational Television, Middle East Channel; Popeye and Son on Channel 2 / Junior
- Hebrew voice Simcha Barbiro (Popeye)
- Israeli weekly Popi magazine, 1971-1973
Popeye the Sailor is the spinach-powered sailor created by E. C. Segar on 17 January 1929 as a one-shot in the comic strip Thimble Theatre.
Readers demanded his return; he soon displaced Ham Gravy as Olive Oyl's partner and became one of the most famous cartoon characters of the twentieth century.
When trouble hits he gulps a can of spinach and gains enormous strength - usually to rescue Olive from Bluto (renamed Brutus in the 1960s TV package).
About 230 theatrical shorts were produced from 1933 to 1957 (Fleischer, then Famous Studios for Paramount). In 1960-1963 King Features Syndicate commissioned roughly 220 new television cartoons for syndication, executive-produced by Al Brodax and split among several studios.
Sammy Lerner's 1933 theme "I'm Popeye the Sailor Man" remains the character's signature song.
In Israel classic packages aired on Educational Television and the Middle East Channel; the children's weekly Popi (1971-1973) printed Hebrew comic strips; and Shaike Paikov's song "Popeye the Sailor" was performed by Tzahi Noi at the 1974 Children's Song Festival.
Popeye and Son (1987) later aired on Channel 2 and Junior Channel in a Hebrew dub led by Simcha Barbiro as Popeye.
From comics to TV
Popeye debuted in Segar's Thimble Theatre in 1929. Fleischer/Famous theatrical shorts (1933-1957) made spinach and Bluto central, with Sammy Lerner's theme as the signature march.
After those shorts hit TV in the 1950s, King Features ordered a new syndicated package (1960-1963). Believing they lacked rights to the name Bluto, they renamed the rival Brutus.
In Israel
Classic packages aired on Educational Television (including a Hebrew dub) and the Middle East Channel.
The weekly Popi (1971-1973) printed translated strips.
Shaike Paikov's "Popeye the Sailor" was sung by Tzahi Noi at the 1974 Children's Song Festival.
Popeye and Son (1987) aired on Channel 2 and Junior Channel; Simcha Barbiro is the Hebrew voice most associated with Popeye.
Did you know?
Popeye was not created as a spinach ad - spinach became central mainly in the cartoons, after an old study misstated iron content by a decimal point.
In Israel "Popeye" is also the name of a Rafael air-to-surface missile - which is why this catalog card once wrongly showed the missile instead of the sailor.
In Hebrew slang a spinach omelette is sometimes called a "Popeye".
Cast
| Image | Name | Character |
|---|---|---|
| No photo | Jack Mercer | Popeye |
| No photo | Mae Questel | Olive Oyl |
| No photo | Jackson Beck | Brutus |
Series details
- Network
- Syndication / Educational Television / Middle East Channel / Channel 2
- Studio / production
- King Features Syndicate
- Creators
- E. C. Segar · Al Brodax
Opening theme
Lyrics
פתיחה (אנגלית)
Image
Comments
No approved comments yet.