Bluto disguises himself as Superman in order to impress the comic book hero's biggest fan, Olive Oyl. A jealous Popeye becomes a real superhero by eating his spinach.Bluto disguises himself as Superman in order to impress the comic book hero's biggest fan, Olive Oyl. A jealous Popeye becomes a real superhero by eating his spinach.Bluto disguises himself as Superman in order to impress the comic book hero's biggest fan, Olive Oyl. A jealous Popeye becomes a real superhero by eating his spinach.
- Directors
- Writers
- Stars
Photos
Jackson Beck
- Bluto
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
Jack Mercer
- Popeye
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
Mae Questel
- Olive Oyl
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- Directors
- Seymour Kneitel
- James Tyer(uncredited)
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaMost popular superheroes of the time promoted the U.S. war effort in one way or another. But Clark Kent was rejected as 4F by the Army because his super vision caused him to read the eye chart in an office next door. Instead, he and his alter ego encouraged Americans to buy war bonds and contribute to other patriotic endeavors.
- GoofsThe Superman sign on Bluto's Superman costume disappears after the scene in Olive's apartment. Also, the P on Popeye's costume disappears when he bursts in on Bluto tying Olive to the train tracks.
- Crazy creditsCopyright date is given as 1945, despite a 1944 release date.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Spinach vs Hamburgers (1948)
Featured review
Popeye meets Superman...sort of
"She-Sick Sailors" (1944) opens with shots of Olive Oyl reading Superman comics and swooning over the superhero's image. Popeye comes by for a visit and Olive puts him off for interrupting her comic book reading. Bluto happens by and overhears Olive pining for Superman, so he bursts onto the scene, newly clean-shaven, in a Superman costume. When Popeye protests, Bluto promptly throws Olive out the high-rise window and challenges Popeye to rescue her. Bluto has his own rescue plan, though, and he and Olive laugh at Popeye's failed attempt. So it goes, Bluto battles Popeye over Olive's affections until Popeye gets a burst of super power in his own time-honored fashion and shows Olive who the real superhero is. There are a few good gags on Bluto's part, including the ingenious way he uses a commuter train to "prove" his super-strength, but for a cartoon match between Popeye and "Superman," there should have been a little more effort made throughout. The story is credited to Bill Turner and animation pioneer Otto Messmer, who was recognized late in life as the genius behind the silent-era Felix the Cat. (Check out John Canemaker's documentary, "Otto Messmer and Felix the Cat.")
The depiction of Superman in the comic book Olive reads is quite unusual. The images certainly match what we know of the Superman comics of the era, but the dialogue balloon we see has Superman say, "Now to foil the dastardly curs and rescue the fair damsel," an odd and archaic turn of phrase to put into Superman's mouth, but one presumably guaranteed to appeal to Olive. Interestingly, when Bluto first appears as Superman in Olive's apartment, his blue costume has a red "S" on the front. When he leaves the apartment, and in all subsequent scenes, the "S" is gone. Curiously, in the opening credits, there is no mention of Superman or any acknowledgment of the rights owner. This cartoon was made a year or so after the last theatrical Superman cartoon short, "Secret Agent" (also reviewed on this site), was made by Paramount/Famous Studios, which also produced this cartoon. It's doubtful the studio still held the rights a year later to use the character in a cartoon. Even the Superman cartoons they made carried an acknowledgment: "By arrangement with Action Comics and Superman magazines/Superman comic strip created by Jerome Siegel and Joe Shuster." I would think some mention would have been required in this case also.
The depiction of Superman in the comic book Olive reads is quite unusual. The images certainly match what we know of the Superman comics of the era, but the dialogue balloon we see has Superman say, "Now to foil the dastardly curs and rescue the fair damsel," an odd and archaic turn of phrase to put into Superman's mouth, but one presumably guaranteed to appeal to Olive. Interestingly, when Bluto first appears as Superman in Olive's apartment, his blue costume has a red "S" on the front. When he leaves the apartment, and in all subsequent scenes, the "S" is gone. Curiously, in the opening credits, there is no mention of Superman or any acknowledgment of the rights owner. This cartoon was made a year or so after the last theatrical Superman cartoon short, "Secret Agent" (also reviewed on this site), was made by Paramount/Famous Studios, which also produced this cartoon. It's doubtful the studio still held the rights a year later to use the character in a cartoon. Even the Superman cartoons they made carried an acknowledgment: "By arrangement with Action Comics and Superman magazines/Superman comic strip created by Jerome Siegel and Joe Shuster." I would think some mention would have been required in this case also.
helpful•10
- BrianDanaCamp
- Jun 13, 2010
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Två kära sjömän
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime7 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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