Gopher Spinach (1954)

Popeye battles a gopher over his precious spinach plants.

Director:

Seymour Kneitel

Writer:

Carl Meyer (story)

Stars:

Jack Mercer

Cast

Uncredited cast:
Jack Mercer	...	Popeye (voice) (uncredited)

Storyline

Popeye is planting his spinach bed. But just as he finishes, the plants start disappearing. He discovers a gopher filching the little baby plants and starts battling it. They tussle for a while until Popeye gets fed up and fetches his shotgun. He chases the rodent, running past a bull and cornering it, but he doesn't have the heart to shoot. He throws away his gun, hitting the bull, who attacks. The gopher rushes to the spinach patch, eats a plant, and hurls the bull into a ravine. He teams up with Popeye to plant more spinach.

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Plot Keywords:

popeye | bull | gopher | shotgun | swung by the tail | 

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Short | Family

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 December 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Myyräntyötä

Company Credits

Production Co:

Famous Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

6 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

User Reviews

Nice Ending, But Nothing That Much Overall

Popeye is lovingly taking care of his little "hi-bred" spinach plants, taking them for a walk in the stroller, then giving them a shower, drying them carefully ("so you're iron won't rust) and sprinkling them with insect powder. He even puts diapers on them!

Then, we see his big garden: "a peaceful, contended nursery," he calls it.....until plants start suddenly disappearing! Popeye has a gopher problem.

The two battle it out for most of the cartoon but at the end, the two suddenly become allies against a raging bull - an odd ending, but a nice one.