Number 550!!!! Robert Evans Week: Popeye

Welcome readers of mine!!!  YOU LIKE ME!!! YOU REALLY, REALLY LIKE ME!!!   Ahem* sorry Sally Fields rents a place in my frontal lobe and there is some overlap now and again.   Back to Day 4 of Robert Evans Week as we see a wonderful musical based of the works of cartoonist E.C. Segar , penned by writer Jules Feiffer and brought to life by legendary director Robert Altman (MASH, The Long Goodbye, Thieves Like Us, Nashville, A Perfect Couple, The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, The Player, Pret-a-Porter and Gosford Park) starring the late and great Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall.   This is Popeye.

Me sailor suit is riding where it not need be.

Popeye: Another thing I got is a sensk of humiligration. Now, maybe you spoils can pool your intelligensk and sees that I'm axking you for an apologeky.




Set in the town of Sweethaven, a fishing village (that looks an awful lot like Malta) our story revolves around hot tempered sailor Popeye (Robin Williams from Mork & Mindy,  Moscow on the Hudson, Club Paradise, Good Morning, Vietnam, Dead Poets Society, Hook and Aladdin) and his assorted friends.  This town is buzzing with activity as Popeye looks for his long lost pappy.  Popeye plans to rent a room at the boarding house when he is smitten by the landlord's daughter Olive Oyl (Shelley Duvall of Annie Hall, 3 Women, The Shining, Time Bandits, Roxanne, The Underneath and Dreams in the Attic) who is engaged to Captain Bluto (Paul L. Smith of Going in Style, Return of the Tiger, When I am King, Jungle Warriors, Crimewave, Red Sonja, Gor and Outlaw Force)  who taxes on behalf of the Commodore of the town.

Yes, a sailor's life for me... Yargh.

People are bled dry and Popeye is not one for bullies of any shape or size.   Finding an abandoned baby in a dingy, Popeye adopts (scoops up and claims as his own) the lad naming him Swee'Pea.   Not exactly the most creative of souls.  With dealing with ruffians in town and winning a boxing match for the sake of the town, the folk start to accept Popeye as one of their own and try to aid him in finding his pappy.   Will Bluto tax the town to turmoil?  Will Popeye persevere?

A few bits of trivia about the film now.  Paramount and Columbia got in a bidding war over Annie for a film adaptation of the Broadway musical and Paramount lost.  To retaliate, Robert Evans went to see what comic strip characters they had the rights to in order to create a movie musical.   This film was Robin William's first top billing and the first film for actress Linda Hunt (Fame, The Year of Living Dangerously, Dune, Silverado, Kindergarten Cop, If Looks Could Kill, The Relic and NCIS Los Angeles)

It took a crew of 165 men seven months to construct the set consisting of 19 buildings as well as a hotel, schoolhouse, general store, post office, a church and local watering hole.   8 seaworthy ships were bought to be sunk in the harbor and here is hoping the owners got their penny's worth.    Around 1977 as the script was being written, Robert Evans wanted Dustin Hoffman to play Popeye but was blown away by Robin Williams' comedic timing, energy and performance and changed his mind for the better.

Got more than tobaccy in this here pipe. Ug gug gug!