Poopdeck Pappy

Poopdeck Pappy
Popeye character
Popeye finds his father, Poopdeck Pappy, 1936.
Created by	E. C. Segar
Portrayed by	Ray Walston (1980 film)
Voiced by	Jack Mercer Billy West (Popeye's Voyage: The Quest for Pappy)
Information
Gender	Male
Occupation	Sailor
Family	Popeye (son)
Children	Popeye (son)

Poopdeck Pappy is a fictional character featured in the Popeye (Thimble Theatre) comic strip and animated cartoon spinoffs. Created by E.C. Segar in 1936, the character is Popeye's father, who is between the ages of 85 and 99.

Pappy first appeared in Thimble Theatre not long after Popeye acquired Eugene the Jeep in 1936. Popeye decided to use the creature's supernatural knowledge to find his father. An expedition was set up to go to Poopdeck's home on Barnacle Island, which included Toar the caveman and Olive Oyl. The ungrateful father answered Popeye's greeting with, "You look like something the cat dragged in... I don't like relatives." He came to Popeye's home anyway, followed by some mermaids whom he had flirted with.

Poopdeck Pappy made his first animated appearance in the Popeye the Sailor short Goonland (1938). In this cartoon, it is revealed that Popeye has a long-lost father, not seen since infancy, who is being held captive in the bizarre realm of Goon Island. When he goes to rescue the "ol' goat" in the Goon prison, his father refuses to acknowledge Popeye as his son, but when Popeye himself is captured by the Goons, he eats Popeye's mislaid can of spinach to rescue his only child. In the mêlée that ensues, the filmstrip is broken and the animator must safety pin it back together to finish the cartoon.

Popeye is the spitting image of Poopdeck Pappy, though Pappy has a white beard. He is far less principled than his son, stealing from Popeye's bank account and trying to sell water for $5,000 in Death Valley. (To which, Popeye, while pouring water to the parched traveler, tells Poopdeck, "I yam disgustipated wit' ya!") There is no love lost between him and Olive Oyl, whom he calls a "lath-legged bean pole." (This stemmed from Poopdeck slugging Olive when they first met). However, while he is grumpy and somewhat hostile, he is quite protective of Popeye, and does have a hidden soft side.