--- title: "Popeye the Sailor was based on a real person – and this is what he looked like" description: "Cartoonist E.C. Segar created Popeye the Sailor in 1919 after taking a correspondence course on drawing from a guy in Cleveland." date: "2022-06-08" modified: "2023-06-09" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake.md" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/popular/popeye-the-sailor-was-based-on-a-real-person-and-this-is-what-he-looked-like/" categories: - "Entertainment" - "History" - "Navy" --- # Popeye the Sailor was based on a real person – and this is what he looked like ![popeye]() Cartoonist [E.C. Segar]() created Popeye the Sailor in 1919 after taking a correspondence course on drawing from a guy in Cleveland. Segar's hometown of Chester, Ill. was chock full of characters that Segar easily adapted to print. Dora Paskel, the owner of a local general store, was unusually tall and thin, wearing her hair in a loose bun at the nape of her neck. J. William Schuchert was the local theater owner who had a voracious appetite for hamburgers. And Frank Fiegel was a one-eyed, pipe-smoking brawler who never turned down a fight. ![the real popeye the sailor]() *Frank Fiegel died in 1947 and was originally buried in an unmarked grave. Popeye fans rectified this in 1996.* Fiegel was more likely to down a few bourbons instead of a can of spinach to get his super fighting prowess, but the rest of his caricature fit the Sailor Man to a T. He had the same jutting chin, built frame, and trademark pipe as his cartoon counterpart. But kids were rather scared of Olive Oyl's real-world inspiration, as she was more apt to stay inside her store. Wimpy's rotund figure was based on *Popeye* creator E.C. Segar's old boss at the local theater. When Segar wasn't lighting lamps, he was sent out to pick up burgers for the owner. Popeye's real-life inspiration is sometimes attributed to a photo of an old sailor who really does resemble Popeye the Sailor Man, but this is just internet folklore. ![real life popeye the sailor]() *(Imperial War Museum)* The sailor in the above photo is really a sailor, but he's a British sailor. His name is lost to history, but the Imperial War Museum lists him as "A Leading Stoker nicknamed 'Popeye,'" with 21 years in service and fighting aboard the HMS *Rodney* in 1940. Fiegel would have been at least 70 years old when this photo of the battleship sailor was taken. Frank "Rocky" Fiegel was actually a bartender and not any kind of sailor, but he did love the kids around Chester, and they used to love to play pranks on the old barfly. Fiegel would impress them with his feats of strength as well as his telltale corncob pipe – something young Segar would never forget. "Popeye" was an homage to an unforgettable man who lived to know his image was soon in 500 newspapers nationwide, the symbol of sticking up for the little guy. ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]() ## More - [Celebrating 90 years of Popeye’s patriotic service]() - [Popeye the Sailor Man was originally Popeye the Coast Guardsman]() - [What life is like for Nicolas Maduro in his Brooklyn MDC jail cell]() - [The Navy decommissioned Littoral Combat Ship USS Freedom after 13 years]() - [Here’s what it’s going to take to upgrade the Blue Angels to Super Hornets]() - [Navy fires fleet commander after string of ship collisions]() - [How this heroic sailor earned 12 medals for valor]() - [Why ‘Devil Doc’ is the unofficial name of elite Navy Corpsmen]()