| Wimpy | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Real name |
J. Wellington Wimpy |
|
First appearance |
The Thimble Theatre (May 3, 1931) |
|
Original publisher |
King Features Syndicate |
|
Created by |
E. C. Segar |
Origin[]
Wimpy is named on panel for the first time.
Wimpy, is a character in the comic strip Popeye, created by E. C. Segar, and in the Popeye cartoons based upon the strip. Wimpy debuted in the strip in 1931 and was one of the dominant characters in the newspaper strip, but when Popeye was adapted as an animated cartoon series by Fleischer Studios, Wimpy became a minor character; Dave Fleischer said that the character in the original Segar strip was "too smart" to be used in the film cartoon adaptations.
Following his introduction as a minor character during the Popeye/Tinearo bout in May 1931, Wimpy initially appeared primarily in relation to narratives concerning Popeye's prize-fights (then confined to the Sunday continuity) in the capacity of a nonchalant-yet-dishonest referee (with his earliest request for a "hamburger on credit" emerging as early as June 21 of that year). As Segar increasingly shifted the Sunday continuity's primary setting to the Rough House Cafe in the spring of 1932, however, Wimpy's habitual mooching correspondingly became his primary narrative function, thus modifying his manner of speech from its initial gruffer and more colloquial state to a more eloquent and convoluted form.
Wimpy in Popeye the Sailor Meets Ali Baba's Forty Thieves (1937)
Upon his introduction into the daily strip in March 1933, Wimpy effectively became a full-time major character alongside Popeye and Olive Oyl, although his prominence would progressively decrease following Segar's death in 1938.
Wimpy in "Popeye Meets Sinbad the Sailor'
Wimpy is Popeye's friend, and he plays the role of both a "straight man" and a self-centered foil to Popeye. Wimpy is a soft-spoken romantic, intelligent and educated, a lazy coward, a miser, and a glutton. He is a scam artist, and frequently bereft of either cash or lodging (due to both his lethargy and voracious appetite), but frequently feigns high social status (sporadically, and possibly inaccurately, referring to himself as a former college alumnus). Besides mooching hamburgers, he also picks up discarded cigars. Popeye often tries to reform Wimpy's character, but Wimpy never reforms.
In Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor, Wimpy is seen grinding meat or eating burgers almost the entire time – however, he is usually too cheap or bankrupt to pay for them himself.
Public Domain Appearances[]
Public Domain Comic Strip Appearances[]
- Thimble Theater Comic Strip (May 3, 1931-November 28, 1936)
Public Domain Animated Appearances[]
- Popeye meets Sinbad the Sailor (Fleischer, 1936)
- Popeye the Sailor Meets Ali Baba's Forty Thieves (Fleischer, 1937)
- Customers Wanted (Fleischer, 1939)
- Big Bad Sindbad (Famous, 1952) (archived footage)
- Assault and Flattery (Famous, 1956) (archived footage)
- Spree Lunch (1957)
- Barbecue for Two (TV pilot, 1960)
Notes[]
- It was discovered that the copyright to Wimpy's first appearance in the May 3, 1931 comic strip was not renewed 28 years later in 1958 or 1959.
- King Features Syndicate owns the trademark for the name Wimpy, so his name can only appear in the interior of any story.
- Despite many Popeye cartoons being in the public domain, some elements of the shorts will remain under copyright until 95 full years after their original publication.