The Real Popeye The Sailor

(Smokingpipes.com) ... As awesome as he was, Popeye didn't gain notoriety right away, though he was popular from his first sarcastic line: "Ja think I'm a cowboy?" In fact, Popeye was introduced as a minor character, a pipe smoking deck hand. In 1929, his creator, Elzie Crisler Segar, introduced him in Thimble Theatre, his syndicated King Features cartoon strip featuring Olive Oyl, Castor Oyl, and Ham Gravy. Someone like Popeye gets a lot of attention, and his popularity with fans soon made him a star. Continued