Bes o' Luck Always

DraftsmanDrawn by George Wildman American

Date2003

MediumDrawing; black felt tip pen on wove paper

DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (image height x width): 9 x 7 5/8in. (22.9 x 19.4cm)
Sheet (height x width): 11 x 8 1/2in. (27.9 x 21.6cm)

ClassificationsGraphics

Credit LineGift of George Wildman

DescriptionA balloon above the head of Popeye, a cartoon figure with a large nose and chin with a corncob pipe protruding at the left, reads: "BES O' LUCK / ALWAYS!"

Object number2003.227.0

InscribedOn verso, lower right, in pencil: accession numberNotesHistorical Note: Elzie Segar's comic strip "Thimble Theatre" came out in 1919. Originally, it did not center around the character "Popeye the Sailor Man," but rather, around the Oyl family. Popeye first appeared in 1929. After Segars' death, the newspaper series "Thimble Theatre" was written by Tom Sims, then Ralph Stein; the artwork was drawn by Doc Winner, then Bill Zaboly. Joe Musial and Bud Sagendorf later produced the series, and Sagendorf drew the comic-book version until George Wildman and Bill Pearson took over in the 1970s. This drawing was made for the CHS Interpretation Department staff during an interview for "Heroes, Heart-throbs and Horrors: Celebrating Connecticut's Invention of the American Comic Book" (October 2003-September 2004).

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