The claim
Popeye the sailor is said to be based on a man who actually existed and from whom the comic and cartoon character is said to have inherited many characteristics. A widely shared photo is said to show Frank “Rocky” Fiegel from Chester, Illinois, who served as a model for creator EC Segar.
Our conclusion
Popeye the Sailor is actually based on Frank “Rocky” Fiegel from Chester, the hometown of EC Segar.
However, it is difficult to say today whether the wild stories surrounding the notorious bully are actually true. Segar added the canned spinach detail later when parents complained that Popeye was such a bad role model for their children. However, the widely shared photo is not of Fiegel, but shows a British sailor during the Second World War who was nicknamed “Popeye”.
There has been a picture floating around the internet for a while that is supposed to show the man on whom EC Segar's cartoon character Popeye the Sailor is supposed to be based:
“Few people know that the character Popeye actually existed. His real name was Frank “Rocky” Fiegel,…
Posted by Free thinker system at the Wednesday, June 9, 2021
The man in the picture is said to be the Polish emigrant Frank "Rocky" Fiegel, who not only served in the US Navy, but also served as a model for the young Segar's famous character Popeye. The story is often embellished even further: a pipe in the corner of the mouth, a squinted eye, spinach and a penchant for solving problems with violence were also inspired by Fiegel.
While some of the details are correct, others are made up. However, the photo is not by Frank Fiegel.
___STEADY_PAYWALL___
Photo of an unknown sailor nicknamed “Popeye”
The widely shared image was taken on the Royal Navy ship HMS Rodney . It is part of a series of photographs by Reginald George Guy Coote, who photographed the battleship's crew in September 1940. In the Imperial War Museums , the image with catalog number A 849 has the following image description:
ON BOARD THE BATTLESHIP HMS RODNEY. SEPTEMBER 1940, OFFICERS AND MEN ON BOARD THE BATTLESHIP.A Leading Stoker nicknamed “Popeye”, with 21 years service.
A leading stoker, nicknamed “Popeye,” 21 years of service.
Unfortunately, nothing more is known about the British sailor pictured. But one thing is clear: Frank “Rocky” Fiegel from the story was born in 1868 and joined the US Navy in 1887. This means that the man would already be 72 years old in 1940 and would either have 53 years of service behind him or would have long since been retired. That just doesn't fit with the picture and existing information. It is much more likely that the stoker in the photo knew the popular figure from the newspaper or the cinema:
Popeye first appeared on Elzie Segar's syndicated newspaper strip Thimble Theater on January 17, 1929. Popeye's popularity exploded, and within five years he had become one of the most popular comic book characters, with reprints of comic strips, theatrical cartoons, radio programs, and commercials popularizing the character among fans.
Library of Congress
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The “real” Popeye, Frank Fiegel
When E.C. Segar began working on his Thimble Theater in 1919, he sought inspiration from the residents of his small town of Chester, Illinois . For example, the tall, lanky Olive Oyl, who would later become the sailor's lover, was based on the owner of a local general store, Dora Paskel. The hamburger-addicted Wimpy, on the other hand, was inspired by Segar's first employer, the managing director of the Chester Opera House, William Schuchert. He was known for his friendly manners, but also notorious for wild tall tales and his preference for hamburgers.
Popeye and Olive Oyl take top prize and Wimpy comes in a close second in a hamburger/spinach eating competition. #TBT
Posted by Popeye at the Thursday, April 17, 2014
The supporting character Popeye was only added years later, in 1929, and would soon steal the show from the other characters. Segal once again drew inspiration from a notorious local Chester hero: Frank “Rocky” Fiegel. Popeye biographer Fred Grandinetti had his story told by a resident of Chester: the man of Polish descent is described as “tall and strong,” “always ready for a fight and always a winner.”
Once five young people are said to have ambushed him in order to beat him up. But the fight ended differently: Fiegel knocked down three of them and the last two fled. After working in a saloon, Frank liked to drink a few beers and take a nap in the sun with his pipe in his mouth. School children then enjoyed scaring him and running away. “Rocky” is said to have then jumped up, arms flailing, ready for a fight.
The New York Times quotes the great-nephew of the owner of the Chester Opera House, Ernie Schuchert, who also remembers Frank Fiegel. As a child, he had always found the man scary: “He was sitting on the stairs in front of his house, which was really dilapidated. I don't know if he ever knew he was Popeye." Schuchert describes him as a “little guy like Popeye, but without a hint of sweetness in his demeanor.” He was often involved in bar fights, although he is not said to have lost many of them.
Even more stories about Frank “Rocky” Fiegel
On the occasion of Popeye's 50th birthday, the daily newspaper The Southern Illinoisan a one-page feature about the comic book character and his role model Frank Fiegel. “Rocky” was never a sailor, liked to drink hard liquor and had a reputation for being just as tough and fearless as the cartoon character. The legend's nephew, Clyde Feegle, also has his say in the article: "He was never afraid of anything that walked on two legs."
Feegle was just a young boy at the time, but he believes it was Frank's reputation as a thug that convinced his mother that it would be better for the family to move to St. Louis and change the family name. Nevertheless, stories of Frank's misdeeds still reached the family in exile. He also remembers a story about when his uncle was visiting St. Lois:
Frank went to a bar on the dike. “There were two big guys inside who said you had to buy drinks on the house or put on your boxing gloves. They had a big thug that was just waiting for a fight, but he (Fiegel) put the gloves on and knocked the guy out,” Feegle said.
In another story, he helped boys who knew about his reputation: There was a dance event in the country where the locals had to pay 25 cents to enter, but the city boys had to fork over 50 cents. “Some of the boys came to Rocky and asked him to come with them, but he didn’t want to go. The boys bought him whiskey until he finally agreed. When they got there, a big guy told Rocky he had to pay 50 cents or he couldn't dance. Rocky said, "I'll pay a quarter or there won't be any dancing." A scuffle broke out. Rocky turned out to be right. When the police finally arrived, no one was dancing anymore.
From bully to hero and spinach-eating role model
“Rocky” was said to be very popular with the children, says Clyde Feegle. He always gave them sweets and told them stories. Once he came to the aid of a neighbor boy who was being beaten by a man. Even when he pulled out a knife and injured Fiegel, he didn't give in until the man pulled away. The original Popeye inherited these characteristics.
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Southern Illinoisan 's anniversary article, EC Segar's nephew, Louis Segar, also has his say and tells the story of how the can of spinach came about: "Popeye was a fighter, and when parents complained that their children were fighting to get Popeye To imitate it, my uncle toned things down and added a can of spinach, hoping the kids would eat it.”
Frank Siegel only learned after Elzie Segar's death in 1938 that he had been the model for the famous comic book character. local newspaper published a photo that showed Fiegel in a rocking chair and smoking a pipe. He himself was considered a wild bully in Chester all his life. It was only long years after his death that his simple grave was converted into a memorial .
Find a GraveConclusion: Chester, Illinois bully Frank “Rocky” Fiegel was truly the inspiration for Popeye, EC Segar’s sailor.
However, the various sources contradict some details of his story: sometimes Fiegel himself emigrated from Poland, sometimes he is simply of Polish descent. Some call him a former sailor, others deny it. Some see him as a local hero who came to the aid of others with his fists, others speak of a sinister drunkard. One thing is certain: the photo of the sailor smoking a pipe was not taken by Fiegel, but rather by an unknown British stoker who was nicknamed “Popeye”.
Sources: The Southern Illinoisan , Library of Congress , Imperial War Museums , Snopes , New York Times , newspapers.com , chesterill.com , findagrave.com
Fred M. Grandinetti (2004) Popeye: An Illustrated Cultural History, Second Edition, McFarland. ISBN: 978-0-7864-1605-9
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