Elzie Segar, the American cartoonist, was raised the son of a handyman in a small town in Illinois. He made his big break in cartoon art when he moved to Chicago and made connections with the Chicago Herald.
On this day, July 1st, in 1929, Elzie Segar created the character of Popeye. “Thimble Theater,” an established comic strip that had been around for ten years, was the first to feature the animated sailor character.
Popeye the Sailor soon won the hearts of viewers and became the main focus of “Thimble Theater.” Four years later, in 1933, Paramount Pictures adapted the characters into a series of cartoon shorts for the series Popeye the Sailor. Popeye has since starred in comic books, television cartoons, and arcade games, and the character has also made cameo appearances in advertisements and peripheral products. Known for gaining strength by eating spinach, Popeye has boosted sales for the vegetable over the years. He has become a role model for healthy eating, and studies have even shown that children eat more vegetables after watching Popeye cartoons.