As mentioned previously, I was big into Popeye cartoons as a kid. This sentiment was mostly based on the black and white cartoons produced by the Fleischer brothers, Max and Dave, and not the color cartoons done by Famous, after Paramount took over the studio. But I watched those too, and last night my FiOS TV DVR caught one that I haven’t seen in 40 years.
It’s “Peep in the Deep,” from 1946. Watch and see how the cartoonists set up a particular gag and got away with what they did, still earning a “G” rating by today’s standards. I got a real cheap thrill out of this one as a kid.
Even as a little kid I was bugged by the logical lapses in underwater cartoons. For example the air hoses go nowhere (I knew about SCUBA gear from Sea Hunt), and Popeye blows smoke from his pipe, etc.
Eric made that comment as we were leaving a movie theater, having just seen Peter Jackson’s “King Kong,” which neither of us liked very much. We had questioned the improbability of anybody escaping the dinosaur stampede, while accepting the very existence of dinosaurs in modern times. If the quote was borrowed, that’s all right — it’s a good one!
Um…I don’t remember ever saying that. If I did, I was quoting someone.
Of course, there are a couple of small items missing from the mermaid’s, er, chest, and the fact that she was a costume got her by the censors, of course.
The extremely popular “Spongebob” on Nickleodeon is another example. The have underwater beaches, fer crying out loud. Everything they handle stays dry underwater! Weird! Two prominent characters, Mermaid Man (voiced by Ernest Borgnine, our Mother’s old friend!) and Barnacle Boy (Tim Conway) seem to be able to breath underwater, even though they are human! However, one character, Sandy, is a squirrel, and must wear an elaborate space suit to survive underwater. She has a pressurized underwater home, even! Gets confusing.
Trivia: the voice of Spongebob, Tom Kerry, was born in 1962 and grew up in Syracuse, NY. He worshiped Popeye. From the time he could talk, he KNEW he wanted to be a cartoon voice..I heard all this a couple of years ago on an interview with Terry Gross on NPR’s “Fresh Air.” Tom said one day he was in the grocery store (of course, nobody recognizes him, even when he talks). He saw the TV Guide. It was the special issues of the 100 greatest cartoon characters of all time. There were four different covers to choose from, each featuring two major characters, one from the past, and one more contemporary. With trembling hands, Tom picked up the one that had Popeye lifting an anchor that had caught Spongebob. He said he broke down and sobbed right there in the store.