Fleischer Studios (1933)

Popeye the Sailor with Betty Boop is a 1933 animated short produced by Fleischer Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures. While billed as a Betty Boop cartoon, it was produced as a vehicle for Popeye the Sailor in his debut animated appearance.

In 1933, Max and Dave Fleischer’s Fleischer Studios adapted the Thimble Theater characters into a series of Popeye the Sailor theatrical cartoon shorts for Paramount Pictures. These cartoons proved to be among the most popular of the 1930s, and Popeye at one time rivaled Mickey Mouse for popularity among audiences. It was for this short that Sammy Lerner’s famous “I’m Popeye the Sailor Man” song was written. I Yam What I Yam became the first entry in the regular Popeye the Sailor series.

Though originally billed as a Betty Boop cartoon, Popeye the Sailor were the first screen appearances of Popeye, Olive Oyl, and Bluto. William “Billy” Costello was the voice of Popeye. Animated by Seymour Kneitel and Roland Crandall.