Thimble Theatre in other media

Other media
The success of Popeye as a comic-strip and animated character has led to appearances in many other forms. For more than 20 years, Stephen DeStefano has been the artist drawing Popeye for King Features licensing.

Radio
Popeye was adapted to radio in several series broadcast over three different networks by two sponsors from 1935 to 1938. Popeye and most of the major supporting characters were first featured in a thrice-weekly 15-minute radio program, Popeye the Sailor, which starred Detmar Poppen as Popeye along with most of the major supporting characters—Olive Oyl (Olive Lamoy), Wimpy (Charles Lawrence), Bluto (Jackson Beck) and Swee'Pea (Mae Questel). In the first episode, Popeye adopted Sonny (Jimmy Donnelly), a character later known as Matey the Newsboy. This program was broadcast Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday nights at 7:15pm. September 10, 1935 through March 28, 1936 on the NBC Red Network (87 episodes), initially sponsored by Wheatena, a whole-wheat breakfast cereal, which would routinely replace the spinach references. Music was provided by Victor Irwin's Cartoonland Band. Announcer Kelvin Keech sang (to composer Lerner's "Popeye" theme) "Wheatena is his diet / He asks you to try it / With Popeye the sailor man." Wheatena paid King Features Syndicate $1,200 per week.

The show was next broadcast Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 7:15 to 7:30pm on WABC and ran from August 31, 1936 to February 26, 1937 (78 episodes). Floyd Buckley played Popeye, and Miriam Wolfe portrayed both Olive Oyl and the Sea Hag. Once again, reference to spinach was conspicuously absent. Instead, Popeye sang, "Wheatena's me diet / I ax ya to try it / I'm Popeye the Sailor Man".

The third series was sponsored by the maker of Popsicle three nights a week for 15 minutes at 6:15 pm on CBS from May 2, 1938 through July 29, 1938.

Of the three series, only 20 of the 204 episodes are still known to exist.

Popeye (1980)
Director Robert Altman used the character in Popeye, a 1980 live-action musical feature film starring Robin Williams as Popeye (his first movie role), Paul Smith as Bluto and Shelley Duvall as Olive Oyl, with songs by Harry Nilsson. The script was by Jules Feiffer, who adapted the 1971 Nostalgia Press book of 1936 strips for his screenplay, thus retaining many of the characters created by Segar. A co-production of Paramount Pictures and Walt Disney Productions, the movie was filmed almost entirely on Malta, in the village of Mellieħa on the northwest coast of the island. The set is now a tourist attraction called Popeye Village. The US box office earnings were double the film's budget, making it a success.

Upcoming film
In March 2010, it was reported that Sony Pictures Animation is developing a 3-D computer-animated Popeye film, with Avi Arad producing it. In November 2011, Sony Pictures Animation announced that Jay Scherick and David Ronn, the writers of The Smurfs, are writing the screenplay for the film. In June 2012, it was reported that Genndy Tartakovsky has been set to direct the feature, which he plans to make "as artful and unrealistic as possible." In November 2012, Sony Pictures Animation set the release date for September 26, 2014, which was, in May 2013, pushed back to 2015. It will be the second Popeye film to be animated in CGI, first being Popeye's Voyage: The Quest for Pappy, which premiered on FOX on November 9, 2004.

Video and pinball games

 * Nintendo created a widescreen Game & Watch called Popeye in 1981. The handheld game featured Popeye on a boat, and the aim was to catch bottles, pineapples, and spinach cans thrown by Olive Oyl while trying to avoid Bluto's boat. If Bluto hit Popeye on the head with his mallet or Popeye failed to catch an object three times, the game would end.


 * The Nintendo arcade game Donkey Kong was originally conceived as a Popeye video game by Shigeru Miyamoto. But due to licensing disagreements with King Features, this idea was scrapped.


 * When Donkey Kong went on to enormous success, King Features agreed to license the characters to Nintendo to create a Popeye arcade game in 1982. It was later ported to the Commodore 64 home computer as well as various home game consoles: Intellivision, Atari 2600, ColecoVision, Famicom/NES, and Odyssey2. The goal was to avoid Bluto (referred to as "Brutus") and the Sea Hag while collecting items produced by Olive Oyl such as hearts, musical notes, or the letters in the word "help" (depending on the level). Hitting a can of spinach gave Popeye a brief chance to strike back at Brutus. Other characters such as Wimpy and Swee' Pea appeared in the game but did not greatly affect gameplay. A board game based on the video game was released by Parker Brothers.


 * A table top Game & Watch style game was also released by Nintendo in 1983, which featured Popeye trying to rescue Olive while engaging in fisticuffs with Bluto.


 * Nintendo created another Popeye game for the Famicom, Popeye no Eigo Asobi, in 1983. This was an educational game designed to teach Japanese children English words.


 * Two Popeye games published by Sigma Enterprises were spawned for the Game Boy. Popeye (Game Boy), which was released exclusively in Japan in 1990, and Popeye 2 in 1991. Popeye 2 was also released in North America (1993) and Europe (1994) by Activision.


 * In 1994, Technos Japan released Popeye: Beach Volleyball for the Game Gear, and Popeye: Volume of the Malicious Witch Seahag (Popeye: Ijiwaru Majo Shihaggu no Maki) for the Japanese Super Famicom. A side scrolling adventure game that was mixed with a board game, the game never saw US release, but a ROM of the game can be found at various emulation sites. It featured many characters from the Thimble Theatre series as well. In the game, Popeye had to recover magical hearts scattered across the level to restore his frozen friends as part of a spell cast upon them by the Sea Hag in order to get revenge on Popeye.


 * Midway (under the Bally label) released Popeye Saves the Earth, a SuperPin pinball game, in 1994.


 * In 2003, Nova Productions released a strength tester called Popeye Strength Tester.


 * In 2005, Namco released a Game Boy Advance video game called Popeye: Rush for Spinach.


 * Released June 2007, the video game The Darkness featured televisions that played full-length films and television shows that had expired copyrights. Most of the cartoons viewable on the "Toon TV" channel are Famous Studios Popeye shorts.


 * In fall 2007, Namco Networks released the original Nintendo Popeye arcade game for mobile phones with new features including enhanced graphics and new levels.

Marketing, tie-ins, and endorsements
From early on, Popeye was heavily merchandised. Everything from soap to razor blades to spinach was available with Popeye's likeness on it. Most of these items are rare and sought-after by collectors, but some merchandise is still being produced.


 * Games and toys


 * Mezco Toyz makes classic-style Popeye figures in two sizes.
 * KellyToys produces plush stuffed Popeye characters.


 * Restaurants


 * Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen (aka Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits), a fast food restaurant chain, is not named after Popeye the Sailor but after the character "Popeye" Doyle from the 1971 film The French Connection, who was in turn named after real police detective Eddie Egan, who was called "Pop Eye" because of his keen observational skills. The restaurant chain would later obtain a license for use of the cartoon character and advertise the name as Popeye's after Popeye the Sailor, causing some confusion as to the source of the name. Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen locations in Puerto Rico make extensive use of Popeye the Sailor and associated characters.
 * Wimpy's name was borrowed for the Wimpy restaurant chain, one of the first international fast food restaurants featuring hamburgers, which they call "Wimpy Burgers."


 * Retail foods and beverages


 * Allen Canning Company produces its own line of spinach, called "Popeye Spinach", in various canned varieties. The cartoon Popeye serves as the mascot on the can.
 * In 1961, Buitoni Pasta marketed Popeye-shaped spinach macaroni.
 * Popeye appeared in a 1979 Dr Pepper commercial during the "Be a Pepper" campaign (possibly as a tie-in for the movie, going so far as to modify his traditional catchphrase to "I'm Popeye the Pepper-man").
 * In 1989, Popeye endorsed Instant Quaker Oatmeal, citing it as a better food than spinach to provide strength. The commercials had the tagline "Can the spinach, I wants me Quaker Oatmeal!" The Religious Society of Friends (also known as the Quakers) was offended by the promotion given the physical aggression from "Popeye the Quaker man" and also the excessive submissiveness of Olive Oyl.
 * In 2001, Popeye (along with Bluto, Olive, and twin Wimpys) appeared in a television commercial for Minute Maid Orange juice. The commercial, produced by Leo Burnett Co, showed Popeye and Bluto as friends (and neglecting Olive Oyl) due to their having had Minute Maid Orange Juice that morning. The ad agency's intention was to show that even the notable enemies would be in a good mood after their juice, but some, including Robert Knight of the Culture and Family Institute, felt the commercial's intent was to portray the pair in a homosexual romantic relationship—an allegation that Minute Maid denies. Knight was interviewed by Stephen Colbert on Comedy Central's The Daily Show about this issue.
 * World Candies Inc. produced Popeye-branded "candy cigarettes", which were small sugar sticks with red dye at the end to simulate a flame. They were sold in a small box, similar to a cigarette pack. The company still produces the item, but has since changed the name to "Popeye Candy Sticks" and has ceased putting the red dye at the end.
 * In 2013, McLean Design produced a packaging design using licensed characters and artwork for a Popeye branded energy drink. The drink is launching in the US with two flavors.


 * Sports


 * Starting in 1940, Popeye became the mascot of the Flamengo (Rio de Janeiro – Brazil), the most popular soccer team with almost 50 million fans around the world. The mascot of the soccer club is currently a cartoon vulture.


 * Other


 * In 1979, salsa singer Adalberto Santiago releases Adalberto Santiago Featuring Popeye El Marino. Fania Records JM 536.
 * During the 1960s, Popeye appeared in advertising for Crown gasoline.
 * In 1987, Stabur Graphics commissioned artist Will Elder to paint "Popeye's Wedding" as oil on masonite. Released was a stamped, numbered and signed Limited Edition lithograph, edition size of 395. The lithograph shows Popeye and Olive Oyl in front of the preacher (Popeye slipping a lifesaver-ring onto Olive's finger) along with Nana Oyl, Alice the Goon, Swee'Pea (cradled in Popeye's free arm), Wimpy, Granny, Eugene the Jeep and Brutus (holding a large cauldron of steaming, cooked rice). Twenty-one other characters watch from the pews. The litho is titled "Wit Dis Lifesaver, I Dee Wed!" and is pictured on page 83 of the book "Chicken Fat" by Will Elder (Fantagraphics, 2006).
 * In 1990, Popeye appeared in an advertisement warning of the harmful effects of coastal pollution. Bluto is laughing as he carelessly dumps garbage over the side of his boat, to which Olive reacts in horror as seagulls and other sea creatures are caught in six pack ring holders. Popeye punches out Bluto and cleans up his garbage; however, when some more plastic garbage sails by Popeye's boat, he says unsurprisingly, "I can't do it all meself, you know!"
 * In 1995, the Popeye comic strip was one of 20 included in the Comic Strip Classics series of commemorative U.S. postage stamps.
 * From 1996 to 1999, the Darien Lake theme park in Western New York operated a "Popeye's Seaport" in the park. It was rebranded as "Looney Tunes Seaport" after Darien Lake came under the Six Flags banner.
 * In 2006, King Features Syndicate produced a radio spot and an industrial for the United States Power Squadrons featuring Robyn Gryphe as Olive and Allen Enlow as Popeye.
 * In October 2007, to coincide with the launch of the Popeye mobile game, Namco Networks and Sprint launched a Popeye the Sailorman sweepstakes offering the authorized edition four-disc Popeye the Sailor: 1933–1938 Vol. 1 DVD set as grand prize.