From Popeye to Pacman — classic pop cultural juggle gyming from the man on his way to mighty morphing mobility era. Happy New Year to the greater Pure Invention universe indeed.
Some might say One Piece is the new Popeye. Luffy the Sailorman? Given how much of an impact Akira Toriyama had on Eiichiro Oda, there's at least an indirect influence.
When I first started to get to know the Japanese, a girlfriend of mine was super into Tom and Jerry. Of course Snoopy (which is everywhere in Japan) is much more relevant here than in the US.
Taking the illustration concept the other way, I have a great book about how painters like Toulouse-Lautrec and many of the European moderns borrowed from Japanese layout concepts.
This was really interesting! Thanks for posting!
Great piece, Matt! Love these explorations of little known pop culture connections. Enjoyed the read!
To quote Popeye, I yam what I yam!
From Popeye to Pacman — classic pop cultural juggle gyming from the man on his way to mighty morphing mobility era. Happy New Year to the greater Pure Invention universe indeed.
What better way to open the year, than with this celebration of cultural appropriation that benefited the entire planet!
First off, I wasn’t aware of the connection to proto-karaoke sing-alongs… how cool!
Let me say this was a great piece and it speaks to how intertwined yet distinct the U.S. and Japan’s animation creative has been over time.
So it’s something like:
1. Popeye inspires Tezuka for Astro Boy
2. Tezuka later makes Kimba
3. Kimba serves as the basis for Disney’s Lion King
4. Lion King is a pillar of the Disney Revival
5. Disney Revival has a strong impact on anime (including Disney co-productions)
6. That wave of anime now is inspiring modern animation in the currently popular “anime adjacent” look
All we need now is a proper Popeye anime for the next step!
Some might say One Piece is the new Popeye. Luffy the Sailorman? Given how much of an impact Akira Toriyama had on Eiichiro Oda, there's at least an indirect influence.
Always a pleasure to read your newsletter!
Thanks for reading!
Amazing to learn about the connection between Popeye and Mario Mario.
Great piece, Matt.
When I first started to get to know the Japanese, a girlfriend of mine was super into Tom and Jerry. Of course Snoopy (which is everywhere in Japan) is much more relevant here than in the US.
Taking the illustration concept the other way, I have a great book about how painters like Toulouse-Lautrec and many of the European moderns borrowed from Japanese layout concepts.
Great writeup once more, Matt! How popular is Popeye in modern-day Japan? Is there a lot of doujinshi based on the character?