Popeye is one of the longest-running comic strips ever, delighting readers for decades, yet there remains a lot that many may not know about the title character. For a character that has been around for almost 100 years, it is amazing that Popeye still resonates and intrigues people from all over the world. Being the historical pop culture figure he is, Popeye has managed to have different phases and impacts in each decade that he has lived through. That could be the booming spinach sales he caused during the Great Depression or the influence he had on entertainment in the latter half of the 20th century.

Despite Popeye's long-running fame, it can be said that a lot do not know some important things about him, such as his origins and his effect on different aspects of popular culture. Facts that are integral to the comics, like Swee' Pea's parentage, are not widely known even by those who express a fondness for Popeye and his zany adventures. Popeye may not enjoy his Depression-era popularity currently, but he still has a dedicated legion of fans who aim to show readers the original Popeye comics in all their glory, guaranteeing sustained interest in the character for years to come.

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10 Got His Start As A Side Character

A comic strip of Castor Oyl yelling at Popeye.

Popeye is a character who stands on his own, as shown by the many forms of media he has inhabited, whether it be comics, animated cartoon shorts, movies (live action and animated), radio, and even as the face of product endorsements. Interestingly, Popeye started out as a minor side character in a comic strip called Thimble Theatre. Popeye was only meant to be a temporary character, but after his absence, readers demanded him back (via Library of Congress)

Thimble Theatre had been going for 10 years before Popeye's first appearance, but when he did debut he won over readers everywhere and increasingly became the lead of the strip. It was eventually changed to being solely about Popeye, his friends, and his enemies, necessitating the name change from Thimble Theatre to Popeye.

9 He's The First Cartoon To Receive A Statue In His Honor

Popeye Statue in Texas.

During the Great Depression, Crystal City, Texas saw great prosperity due to its boom in spinach production thanks to the roughage-loving sailor who popularized the vegetable. Wanting to pay tribute to the fictional character, the town erected a full color statue of Popeye in his honor in 1937 (via Texas Hill Country).

While the first-ever statue of a cartoon character is that of the comic strip character Andy Gump, it was done to honor the strip's creator. The Popeye statue in Texas, however, is the first of a cartoon dedicated in the character's honor. The town of Crystal City remains grateful for its experienced economic success during a time of widespread hardship thanks to the comic strip titan, as seen in the enduring presence of the statue.

8 He Was Supposed To Have His Own Land At An Orlando Theme Park

Concept art for a Popeye land at Islands of Adventure.

Those who are theme park enthusiasts or Popeye fanatics are familiar with the sailor man's water raft ride in the Comic Strip Landing area of Universal Orlando's Islands of Adventure. What may not be known though, is that Popeye was originally planned to have his own land at the park (via Orlando Park Stop).

In its early stages, Islands of Adventure was instead supposed to be Cartoon World, with regions dedicated to comics, cartoons, and children's book characters. Popeye's Island was going to be its own area and would be split into two sections: Sweethaven Village and The Docks. Certain ideas that were going to be present in the two sections did come to fruition, like a restaurant dedicated to the character Wimpy and a Popeye and Bluto ride, but it still would've been cool to see the other unbuilt concepts come to life as well.

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7 Swee' Pea Is Not Popeye And Olive Oyl's Biological Child

Popeye lifting Swee' Pea out of his crib.

While many casual onlookers to the Popeye franchise (including the Hanna-Barbera version) think that the baby often seen with Popeye and Olive Oyl, either on merchandise or forms of media, is the couple's child, they would actually be wrong in their assumption. Instead, the baby, known as Swee' Pea is Popeye's adopted child (via King Features).

First appearing in 1933, four years after Popeye's own debut in the comics, Swee' Pea was left on Popeye's doorstep by his mother, who knew Popeye would look after the baby and protect him. Bonding with the baby, Popeye was the one to name the child Swee' Pea. For the man who's obsessed with spinach, it's only fitting he would name the baby after another green vegetable.

6 Olive Oyl Came Before Popeye

The original characters of Thimble Theatre.

In the early days of the Popeye comic strip, back when it was still Thimble Theatre, the dysfunctional relationship between Olive Oyl and her boyfriend Ham Gravy, as well as the adventures and zany personalities of Olive Oyl's family, were the main source of content and humor of the comics (via The Comics Journal). Along with the Oyl family and Ham Gravy, the strip had minor side characters that would come and go. Popeye was designed as one such character, but his immense popularity made him the fixture of Thimble Theatre before it became completely Popeye-centric.

Much like how Mickey Mouse was created before his gal pal Minnie, it's easy to think that Popeye was created first and then Olive Oyl. However, the opposite is the case, as Olive Oyl has been around since the inception of Thimble Theatre in 1919, whereas Popeye came a decade later.

5 Spinach's Popularity Skyrocketed During The Depression Thanks To Popeye

An image of Popeye holding a can of spinach on his bicep.

The eventual Superman-fighting Popeye was introduced to audiences at the beginning of the Great Depression and his popularity would only continue to grow throughout the historic period of economic downturn. The comics provided a great source of escapism, making them a favorite source of entertainment for kids and adults alike.

Popeye's love of spinach was contagious, too, as seen in the increase in spinach sales during the Depression. It was especially persuasive to young audiences, causing spinach to be the third most popular kids' food after ice cream and turkey during this period (via Today I Found Out). It's clear people during the 1920s and 1930s could not get enough spinach, all thanks to the one-eyed sailor man who was born in a typhoon.

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4 The Popeye Comics Popularized The Insult "Goon"

Popeye hiding behind a skull.

By now it's clear that Popeye had a huge effect on spinach popularity and on comic strips in general. Yet, Popeye has affected popular culture in ways that are particularly surprising.

The word "goon" isn't the most modern insult, so for those who aren't aware, it is used to insult someone by insinuating that they are dumb, aggressive, or weird-looking. Oddly enough, the Popeye comics popularized the use of the word through the strip's Goon family characters ,who were a group of odd-looking individuals (via Today I Found Out). Likewise, the name of the character Wimpy is thought to have been the source of the insult "wimp," meaning cowardly.

3 He Didn't Always Get His Strength From Spinach

Popeye rubbing a hen's head in the comics.

Popeye can't be separated from spinach; it's completely synonymous with him. Surprisingly, though, in Popeye's earliest days in the comics, he didn't get his strength and powers from spinach at all. Instead, he originally got it from rubbing a whiffle hen's head (via Geek Stop).

Bernice the whiffle hen belonged to Olive Oyl's brother, the forgotten comics character Castor Oyl, who believed the hen was lucky and would be a good luck charm to him while he gambled at a string of casinos. The whiffle hen does prove to be a source of good luck, but to Popeye rather than Castor. When Popeye gets shot in his first comics appearance, he rubs the whiffle hen's head and survives the shooting while simultaneously gaining superhuman strength to knock out the bad guy who shot him. It's not clear why there was the change from whiffle hen to spinach, but it's safe to say that it was a good decision.

2 Donkey Kong Was Originally Going To Be A Popeye Video Game

An image of the 1981 graphics of Donkey Kong.

Donkey Kong is one of the most well-known Nintendo properties as well as one of the most recognized figures in gaming. Debuting in 1981, the Donkey Kong arcade game also introduced one of the most adored figures in pop culture: Mario.

Yet, Donkey Kong and its iconic characters almost never happened because of Popeye. When developing the game, Nintendo intended for it to be based on the Popeye comic strip (via Official Nintendo Magazine). The developers were unable to get the license for the comic strip property, so they decided to make up their own characters for the game instead, culminating in the Nintendo icons everyone knows and loves today.

Popeye and Olive Oyl dancing.

The character of Popeye has a variety of idiosyncrasies that fans love to replicate, whether it be his voice, catchphrases, or typical mannerisms. This is especially seen in a fun tidbit that shows how mainstream the character of Popeye has been for decades.

In the '60s, before the trippy psychedelic era, Popeye inspired a popular dance, appropriately called the Popeye (via Sixties City). The dance's steps and moves were done in a way that mimicked Popeye. For instance, one step of the dance required alternately sliding in a way that looked like ice skating, which was done to replicate something Popeye did in the comics. Likewise, another step of the dance called for raising one's hand so that it looked like a pipe was being raised to the mouth, again, copying Popeye. The idea that so many people would want to take part in a dance modeled after the movements of the Sailor Man prove what a huge and enduring impact Popeye has had on popular culture.