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It’s trendy these days to take a character from popular children’s stories and given them a horror twist. Lately we’ve been hearing about horror movies based on the likes of Winnie the Pooh, Mickey Mouse, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Peter Pan, Bambi, Pinocchio, Three Blind Mice, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and now Alpeke Entertainment has revealed that they’ve made a slasher horror comedy called Shiver Me Timbers, which puts a horror twist on Popeye the Sailor.

Directed by Paul Mann and produced by Alpeke Entertainment, Shiver Me Timbers is set to premiere at the American Film Market in Las Vegas, “giving attendees an exclusive preview of a wild ride, the likes of which you’ve not experienced before.” EuroObscura will be handling international sales at the event.

In Shiver Me Timbers, Olive Oyl, her brother Castor and friends, go on a camping trip to see...

Take a look at Fleischer Studios 1936 "Popeye the Sailor " cartoon  short "Never Kick A Woman", directed by Dave Fleischer, starring Jack Mercer as 'Popeye' and Mae Questel as 'Olive Oyl':

"...'Popeye' talks Olive into taking a self defense lesson...

"... but it's Olive who goes on the offense when Popeye take a turn for the pretty instructor..." 

Click the images to enlarge...  </div...

Take a look at Fleischer Studios 1936 "Popeye the Sailor " cartoon  short "Never Kick A Woman", directed by Dave Fleischer, starring Jack Mercer as 'Popeye' and Mae Questel as 'Olive Oyl':

"...'Popeye' talks Olive into taking a self defense lesson...

"... but it's Olive who goes on the offense when Popeye take a turn for the pretty instructor..." 

Click the images to enlarge... ...

According to reports, Chernin Entertainment and King Features are developing a new ‘patriotic’, live-action “Popeye the Sailor” feature, to be scripted by Michael Caleo (“The Sopranos”):

"...created by cartoonist Elzie Crisler Segar, ‘Popeye’ debuted in the 1929 comic strip “Thimble Theater”.

“The comic was then turned into a series of theatrical cartoon shorts by Fleischer Studios for Paramount Pictures…

“…and featured in comic books, video games, advertisements and a whole lot more.

“Robert Altman directed a live-action ‘Popeye’ movie in 1980. Produced by Robert Evans for Paramount Pictures and Walt Disney Productions, it starred Robin Willams as Popeye, Shelley Duvall as ‘Olive Oyl’, Paul L. Smith as ‘Bluto’, Paul Dooley as ‘J. Wellington Wimpy’, Richard Libertini as ‘George W. Geezil’ and Ray Walston as ‘Poopfeck Pappy’…”

Click the images to enlarge…...

Take a look at Fleischer Studios 1936 "Popeye the Sailor " cartoon  short "Never Kick A Woman", directed by Dave Fleischer, starring Jack Mercer as 'Popeye' and Mae Questel as 'Olive Oyl':

"...'Popeye' talks Olive into taking a self defense lesson...

"... but it's Olive who goes on the offense when Popeye take a turn for the pretty instructor..." 

Click the images to enlarge... ...

Fleischer Studios' "Popeye The Sailor" cartoon "Protek the Weakerist" (1937) stars the voices of Jack Mercer as 'Popeye', Mae Questel as 'Olive Oyl' and Gus Wickie as 'Bluto':

"...'Popeye' is asked by 'Olive Oyl' to walk her female dog, 'Fluffy' but is confronted by 'Bluto' and his bulldog.

"Now Popeye and Bluto, plus Fluffy and the bulldog each have a score to settle..."...

Click the images to enlarge...

Gene Deitch, whose film Munro won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1960, died on Thursday in his apartment in Prague, according to his Czech publisher. No cause of death was given.

Deitch was also nominated for the same award twice in 1964 for Here’s Nudnik and How to Avoid Friendship.

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Among his credits was creating the Tom Terrific short, which was presented as part of the Captain Kangaroo children’s television show. Created under the Terrytoons studio and adapted from an earlier Deitch comic strip, Tom Terrific was a black and white,...

Popeye the Sailor: The 1940s – Volume 3

Blu ray

Warner Archive

1948-49/ 1.33:1 / 121 min.

Starring Jack Mercer, Mae Questel, Jackson Beck

Directed by Izzy Sparber

E. C. Segar’s Popeye made his newspaper debut in 1929 and his first animated appearance in 1933 with Max Fleischer’s Popeye the Sailor. By the time he reached Famous Studios a decade later the ornery bar-fighter had become respectable – safely homogenized for the delicate sensibilities of an audience that existed only for over-cautious suits in the front office.

None of that should stop Popeye fans and animation completists from scooping up Popeye the Sailor: The 1940s – Volume 3, Warner Archive’s third and final round-up of Popeye’s post-war adventures. The glossy veneer of these brightly colored cartoons was tailor made for high def scrutiny.

The set opens with one of the studio’s most memorable productions, the schizoid feminist fantasy, Olive Oyl for President. What at...

If younger people today know Popeye at all, it’s probably his connection with spinach. The brilliance of the animated cartoons from the 1940s is forgotten as is his Can-Do personality and rich supporting cast. A while back, the classic black and white cartoons were being collected as a three volume DVD so it is most welcome that Warner Archives is releasing the color ones using restored and remastered in HD 4K scans of the original nitrate Technicolor negatives for Blu-ray where we can appreciate the detail.

Popeye the Sailor: The 1940s Volume 1 came out last December and now we have Volume 2 with 15 more in chronological order on a reasonably priced disc ($17.97 if you look around). There were released in 1946 and 1947 just after World War II so the content reflects that euphoria and forward-looking approach.

These are a fanciful collection with adventures under the sea, on Mars, out west,...

In honor of 'Father's Day' take a look @ the orphaned nephews of 'Popeye The Sailor', ''Peepeye', 'Poopeye', 'Pipeye' and 'Pupeye' in the cartoon short "Me Musical Nephews" (1942), directed by Seymour Kneitel and voiced by Jack Mercer:

"...one night, the nephews are practicing playing their music while 'Popeye' is continually falling asleep. He tells them to get ready for bed so he can tell them a story. The nephews are unhappy with the short story , but are sent to bed anyway. 

"The nephews aren't so tired and eventually start playing music with various objects such as mattress springs, suspenders, and medicine bottles. Popeye eventually hears the racket and destroys the radio trying to find what's causing the noise.

"He soon finds out it's coming from the nephews and tries to catch them in the act...."

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "Popeye: Me Musical...

Popeye The Sailor: The 1940s Volume 1

Blu ray

Warner Archive

1943 – 45 / 1.33:1 / Street Date – December 11, 2018

Starring Jack Mercer, Harry Foster Welch (Popeye), Margie Hines , Mae Questel (Olive Oyl), William Pennell, Jackson Beck (Bluto)

Directed by Dan Gordon, I. Sparber, Seymour Kneitel

The most animated of the great philosophers, Popeye relied on his fists to express his unapologetic mantra – “I am what I am.” Created by newspaper cartoonist E.C. Segar in 1929, the cantankerous but big-hearted sailor was brought to the screen by Max Fleischer and his brother Dave in a series of blissfully rowdy cartoons running from 1933 till 1942 – which is when everything went south.

1942 was the year that Max’s relationships with both Dave and Paramount fell apart – leading to the brothers’ exit and the beginning of Famous Studios, an in-house animation factory at Paramount staffed by Fleischer’s former creative team. But it may have been the sailor at the...

Burbank, CA – One of the biggest animated stars in American history returns to prominence in a specially remastered Blu-ray & DVD presentation with the Warner Archive Collection (Wac) release of Popeye the Sailor: The 1940s, Volume 1, a 14-cartoon set that includes many shorts unseen in their original form for more than 60 years. In stunning 1080p high definition created from 4K scans of the original nitrate Technicolor negatives, and never before officially released for home entertainment, the single-disc Popeye the Sailor: The 1940s, Volume 1 will be available December 11, 2018 through wb.com/warnerarchive and your favorite online retailer.

Produced especially for the adult animation collector, Popeye the Sailor: The 1940s, Volume 1 features the first two Technicolor® seasons of Popeye’s animated theatrical shorts (1943-44 and 1944-45) produced by Famous Studios, Paramount’s revered New York-based cartoon studio.

Popeye the Sailor: The 1940s, Volume 1, the first authorized Blu-ray release of the color cartoons,...

In honor of 'Father's Day', from SneakPeekTV, take a look @ the nephews of 'Popeye The Sailor', namely  'Peepeye', 'Poopeye', 'Pipeye' and 'Pupeye' in the cartoon short "Me Musical Nephews" (1942), directed by Seymour Kneitel and voiced by Jack Mercer with his 'Popeye' voice sped up:

"...one night, the nephews are practicing playing their music while 'Popeye' is continually falling asleep. He tells them to get ready for bed so he can tell them a story. The nephews are unhappy with the short story , but are sent to bed anyway. 

"The nephews aren't so tired and eventually start playing music with various objects such as mattress springs, suspenders, and medicine bottles. Popeye eventually hears the racket and destroys the radio trying to find what's causing the noise.

"He soon finds out it's coming from the nephews and tries to catch them in the act...."

Click the images...

Popeye, the 89-year-old spinach-powered mariner, will be launching his first new adventures in more than a decade in new animated originals slated to debut on the brand’s YouTube channel.

The new material will come under a pact between WildBrain, a digital kids’ network and studio, and Hearst’s King Features Syndicate, which handles licensing for the Popeye franchise. WildBrain will create new animated content in the “squash-and-stretch” animation style of Popeye, in collaboration with King Features.

Also under the agreement, WildBrain will take over management of the “Popeye and Friends Official” channel on YouTube, launched in January 2017, with an eye toward boosting its audience. Initially, WildBrain plans to produce new compilations of Popeye classic cartoons, drawing from shows including “Popeye,” “Popeye and Son,” and “The Continuing Adventures of Popeye.”

It’s worth noting that King Features is focusing on YouTube and digital platforms to serve as Popeye’s anchor — not TV.

Bob Givens, the animator who officially designed the cartoon character Bugs Bunny, has passed away. The artist was 99-years-old, and he lived a very long and successful life who has left behind quite an incredible legacy. After all, he did help create one of the most iconic cartoon characters of all time.

After givens worked on Disney's 1937 animated filmed Snow White and the Seven Dwarves he went to work alongside Chuck Jones and Tex Avery at Warner Bros. and that's where Bugs Bunny was born. 

Givens also worked on classic TV cartoon series like Popeye the Sailor in 1960s and Alvin and the Chipmunks and He-Man during the 80s. Writing on Facebook, Professor of Animation at the University of Southern California Tom Sito talked about his time with Givens, saying: 

I just heard from Mariana about the passing of her dad, animator Bob Givens, at the age of 99. Bob began at Walt Disney,...

In honor of 'Father's Day', from SneakPeekTV, take a look @ the nephews of 'Popeye The Sailor', namely  'Peepeye', 'Poopeye', 'Pipeye' and 'Pupeye' in the cartoon short "Me Musical Nephews" (1942), directed by Seymour Kneitel and  voiced by Jack Mercer with his 'Popeye' voice sped up:

"...one night, the nephews are practicing playing their music while 'Popeye' is continually falling asleep. He tells them to get ready for bed so he can tell them a story. The nephews are unhappy with the short story , but are sent to bed anyway. 

"The nephews aren't so tired and eventually start playing music with various objects such as mattress springs, suspenders, and medicine bottles. Popeye eventually hears the racket and destroys the radio trying to find what's causing the noise.

"He soon finds out it's coming from the nephews and tries to catch them in the act...."

Click the...

Director Genndy Tartakovsky is back in the animator’s chair with the new video test from his upcoming film, Popeye.

Popeye the Sailor Man was created by Elzie Crisler Segar and first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929 and hit the silver screen first in 1934 in a series of Paramount animated shorts produced by the Fleischer Brothers and later with a live-action feature film, Popeye, directed by Robert Altman with Robin Williams in the lead role in 1980.

Sony Pictures Animation’s film is the CG adaptation of the famous sailor man’s origin story.

In addition to Popeye, Tartakovsky is also returning to the director’s chair for Hotel Transylvania 2, scheduled for September 2015, which will bring back Adam Sandler’s Dracula.

Tartakovsky himself says, “It’s good to be back at the Hotel Transylvania, and I’m very excited to work on Popeye,...

Sneak Peek Fleischer Studios' 1937 "Popeye The Sailor" cartoon "Protek the Weakerist" restored to its original 'Stereoptical' process, starring the voices of Jack Mercer as 'Popeye', Mae Questel as 'Olive Oyl' and Gus Wickie as 'Bluto':

"...'Popeye' is asked by 'Olive Oyl' to walk her female dog, 'Fluffy' but is confronted by 'Bluto' and his bulldog.

"Now Popeye and Bluto plus Fluffy and the bulldog each have a score to settle..."

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "Popeye The Sailor: Protek the Weakerist"... ...

This week’s Short Starts column was already going to be different by focusing on the first film for a particular story’s adaptation rather than for a director or actor. J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit‘s first time on screen was as a short film in 1966 from the team of producer William L. Snyder and director Gene Deitch (Popeye the Sailor). I wouldn’t exactly call it an animated film any more than I’d call a Ken Burns documentary animated. It’s more of a slide show of illustrations, some of them zoomed in on or panned across for some visual stimulation, plus an occasional spot of psychedelic effects. The short was kind of a throwaway work (an “ashcan” production), similar to Roger Corman’s 1994 Fantastic Four film in that it was only made, and in such half-assed fashion, to retain rights to the property. Simply pointing to this curiosity is not enough, though...

Ever since being canned in 2003 and placed on a two-year hiatus, adult animation Family Guy has gone from strength to strength.

In the years that have followed, a comic book series has been spawned, along with a “trilogy” of spoof films and even a series of video games.

And, just last month, an incredible 12th series of Family Guy started, while there’s even a crossover featuring The Simpsons planned for next year.

Taking a step back from the silver screen, show creator Seth MacFarlane has also achieved a series of plaudits, such as hosting Saturday Night Live and even the Academy Awards, two of the biggest honours in showbiz.

In honour of MacFarlane, and the show that has helped him realise much of his successes, we’ve put together a list of the 10 Greatest Cutaway Gags from Family Guy.

*Note that cutaway gags are defined as a break from...

“Guess who?! Ha ha ha hah hah! Ha ha ha hah hah! Hahahahah!” Looks like another iconic cartoon character from Hollywood’s Golden Age is finally returning to the silver screen! He joins the ranks of Mickey Mouse in the theatrical short subject “Get a Horse’ that will be paired with Disney’s Frozen, the Loony Tunes Warner Brothers gang recently seen in the “I Tawt I Taw a Putty Tat” short preceeding Happy Feet 2, and Popeye the Sailor Man (technically a comic strip star) in his very own CGI feature from director Genndy Tartakovsky (Hotel Transylvania) in production at Sony Pictures. Why it’s that fine feathered frantic fury, Woody Woodpecker! Animation reporter and historian Jerry Beck reported over at the website Indiewire that animator Bill Kopp (TV’s “Eek the Cat” and “Dan Vs.” amongst many credits) has been signed to bring that red-headed rascal back to theatres...

January 1929 was a very good month for comic strip readers. On the 7th they got to see the arrival of Tarzan and Buck Rogers while ten days later, fans of Thimble Theater met a brand new character named Popeye. The sailor was never intended to take over the strip but his popularity with readers encouraged E.C. Segar to keep him around until he finally shoved the Oyl family from the spotlight.

Burnishing his reputation were the brilliantly execute black and white theatrical shorts produced by Max and Dave Fleischer. After they shuttered operations, others took over the cartoon production, keeping Popeye a mainstay for generations of fans. Many of my generation were treated to the somewhat inferior Associated Artists Productions cartoons which completed their run in 1957. Not to be undone, King Features Syndicate hired Al Brodax to oversee a new round of cartoons aimed for the burgeoning television syndication market.

Suri Cruise isn't Hollywood's only mini stylist. Jennifer Hudson's 3-year-old son David Jr. (with fiance David Otunga) is equally fashion-forward, the American Idol alum reveals, offering his mother totally unsolicited fashion advice. "We call him Boss Baby!" Hudson tells Lucky mag's January issue (on stands December 11.) "He says, 'Mommy, I don't like that,' or 'Momma, you look very pretty.'" Confesses the Oscar winner, "I totally dress for my child! I have T-shirts with Popeye the Sailor Man on it, ones with different animals, comic book characters . . [...]...

Pop open a can of spinach and get an anchor tattooed on your massive forearm, because Popeye the Sailor Man is heading back to theaters courtesy of Sony Pictures, and the studio reportedly will have Popeye in theaters on September 26, 2014. But Robin Williams doesn.t have to dust off his sailor suit from Robert Altman.s surreal 1980 family comedy. According to the THR story where the release date news was announced, Popeye will be back in animated form through the Sony Pictures Animation branch, with Genndy Tartakovsky in the director.s chair. Tartakovsky is riding a high right now, having delivered a massive (and fairly original) hit in Hotel Transylvania, which has earned more than $141 million to date. But as the trade notes in its story, the director is passing on an opportunity to helm the inevitable Hotel Transylvania sequel to he can pour his heart into Popeye. As we...

Here's an artists interpretation of what Popeye the sailor man would look like if he was real. I kind of see a Jason Statham resemblance in there, and now that I think about it, I'd love to see Statham play Popeye in a movie! That thought would have never crossed my mind had I not come across this art, but I can totally see Statham being a badass Popeye.

The image comes from Deviant Art artist axlsalles, and it's a fun character design. Could you see Statham playing Popeye?...

Popeye the sailor man is headed to the big screen, and he's got an esteemed cartoon director to take him there.

We've already seen the live action take on the beloved "sailor man with the spinach can" in Robin Williams' and Robert Altman's 1980 flick, but now "Samurai Jack" creator Genndy Tartakovsky is going tell the story with his own particular brand of animation. Variety is reporting that Sony has hired Tartakovsky to develop and direct a planned 3D take on the familiar story.

Tartakovsky just wrapped his first feature film, "Hotel Transylvania," which is due in theaters later this year. But he's already made a name for himself on Cartoon Network through shows like "The Cartoon Cartoon Show," "Dexter's Laboratory," "Star Wars: Clone Wars" and, most memorably, "Samurai Jack."

The shows don't have much in common thematically, but they do showcase Tartakovsky's specific animation style. He's all sharp edges and strange,...

Samurai Jack creator and Hotel Transylvania director Genndy Tartakovsky is officially attached to bring Popeye the sailor man to life on the big screen for Sony Pictures Animation.

This is a film that's been trying to get made for years, but with Tartakovsky on board, I'm sure it will actually gain some traction. I love the stuff Tartakovsky has worked on that also includes Star Wars: Clone Wars and Dexter's Laboratory. His first feature film, Hotel Transylvania, looks like it will be a lot of fun as well. The artist just has a cool style. He's also attached to direct a feature film version of Samurai Jack, and I hope that movie gets made before Popeye. 

Avi and Ari Arad are producing the CGI 3D film with Sony Pictures Animation. David Ronn and Jay Scherick were attached to pen the script, which doesn't spark much confidence. These are the guys that wrote The Smurfs movies,...

Was it worth the wait for Wilco? The answer is on the way, guaranteed to arrive a lot sooner than the band's next scheduled visit to Denver.

One of America's finest and hardest-working alternative rock/country acts is back on the road this month, resuming their tour in support of their Grammy-nominated 2011 album, The Whole Love.

The first stop of the 2012 leg that began 10 consecutive sold-out dates was the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver on January 19. For frontman Jeff Tweedy, it had a familiar, uh, smell to it.

With the emphasis on playing rock idol instead of making idle chatter, Tweedy (right) finally addressed the sellout crowd seven tunes into the lively, 26-song set.

"Hey! How's it going?" he asked, seemingly relaxed but reserved. "Is pot legal here? Sort of? Somewhat? It smells legal. It smells very legal."

The smoke signals were evident in a state where medical-marijuana dispensaries have flourished...

Popeye the Sailor will be making his triumphant return to comic books this April with the launch of a new monthly series by writer Roger Langridge and artist Bruce Ozella.

In honor of the salted sailor’s return, Idw will be releasing it’s first issue with a special Action Comics #1 cover by Bruce Ozella as well as a special variant cover by artist Jules Feiffer.

via [Idw]...

Out of all the ridiculously cheesy “Bruceploitation” flicks that came exploding out of the bowels of China’s film industry after the death of Bruce Lee, director Kei Law’s 1977 kung fu comedy “Dragon Lives Again” (aka “Deadly Hands of Kung Fu”) is probably the most offensive of the bunch. The film follows the otherworldly adventures of the iconic martial arts hero as he goes about his business in the busy streets of Hell. Yes, dear readers — Hell. Like all good sinners who are unstoppable masters of kung fu, Lee opens a school and promptly begins instructing students, including Kain from “Kung Fu” and Popeye the Sailor Man. I kid you not. As per usual, not everyone is happy with our hero’s do-gooder ways, and he soon finds himself running afoul of a peculiar group of sinister thugs who are looking to take control of the underworld. His adversaries — which include Zatoichi,...