Vintage Popeye the Sailor & Friends Character Watches

It's always time for character watches...Watches with Character.

Vintage Popeye the Sailor & Friends Character Watches 

Vintage Brutus, Olive Oyl, Popeye the Sailor, Swee' Pea character watches.

Popeye the Sailor was a cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar in 1929 and was very popular in the 30’s. A good hearted sailor who loved his spinach and ate it when he needed extra strength. In 1960, he went from comics to television when King Features Syndicate commissioned a new series of cartoons titled "Popeye the Sailor" and in 1978, Hanna-Barbera Productions (see their watches) along with KFS produced a new Popeye television series, "The All-New Popeye Hour".

In 1935, New Haven created the first Popeye watch for KFS. Marked King Features Syndicate Inc. at the bottom & marked copyrighted at the top. This large watch shows Popeye walking with his pipe and white cap wearing blue and black with a red collar and his tattooed arms as the hands to tell the time all on a white background with black minute and black minute marks.  It has faces of Olive Oyl, Bluto, Castor Oyl, Rough House, Toar, Brutus, Oscar, Geezil pics around the dial and J. Wellington Wimpy at the bottom which almost looks like a secondhand sub dial wheel, but its not. It came with a blue leather band. Hard to find today.

Olive Oyl, Bluto, Castor Oyl, Rough House, Wimpy, Toar, Brutus, Oscar, Geezil

In 1948, Varsity Watch Company with a Sperina marked movement produced this unlicensed Popeye watch (that also came in an unmarked box often known as the unknown maker watch) with Popeye the Sailor squinting as usual with his pipe in his mouth wearing his red sailor hat and blue sailor top with a white collar along with a pic of smiling Olive Oyl (in a red top) for the number three,  Swee' Pea for the number six and sleepy eye'd Wimpy for the number nine on a white background with black numbers for the rest of the numbers and black poorly depicted Popeye hands to tell the time.  These unlicensed (no marking on the dial (or box) except "Swiss") are highly sought after and hard to find today.

About 1962, Bradley created this Popeye watch for King Features Syndicate with their standard Swiss made movement at the time. Popeye is seen in a blue shirt with regular red collar, with his white cap and pipe and an open spinach can in his hand on a white background with black numbers, black minute marks and black hands to tell the time. Marked KFS Swiss made at the bottom.

In 1969, Sheffield produced this nicely detailed Popeye watch with him walking along in his regular black shirt with a red collar detailed with black, blue pants with a belt and red shoes. He's smoking his pipe and wearing his white cap on a white background with black numbers, black minute marks and his tattooed arms are used to tell the time with one holding an open can of spinach. Marked KFS Swiss made with original red vinyl band AND with a glass back (see below). This beauty is hard to find today.

This watch has a unique glass back feature and is clearly marked (inside) Sheffield Watch Corp 1969 unadjusted Swiss one jewel.You can see the movement and its color-coded parts which the back of the box explains what does what.

These Sheffield watches, along with

 (Daffy Duck & Porky Pig were others, see Warner Brothers blog) 

came in these simple cardboard boxes 

with a round opening on the back to 

show the glass back feature of the watch.

 

 

 

The back of the box explains 

what part of the watch does what and they came 

with a small plastic magnifying glass.

 

Box is extremely hard to find today.

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 In the 70's, Basis created several Popeye characters for King Features Syndicate. Here is Brutus walking along in a yellow shirt, brown pants with a belt. He has his red hat and red shoes on a white background with black numbers and his arms to tell the time along with a red second hand. Marked KFS and Swiss movement at the bottom and the back marked stainless steel water-protected anti-magnetic. Super rare today.

Basis also produced this Olive Oyl & Swee' Pea for King Features Syndicate. Olive Oyl is in her standard long black dress with yellow accents, a red top and her large brown boots standing next to Swee' Pea who is wearing red baby clothes and a yellow cap on a white background and black numbers. Olive Oyl has a bracelet on each hand and her long skinny arms are used to tell the time. Marked KFS Swiss movt with original red vinyl band. Hard to find today.

Basis also produced this Popeye & Swee' Pea MISMATCH watch with a pic of Olive Oyl. The pic of Olive Oyl's face is at the 10 position with just her head and a smile. Popeye is wearing his regular red collared black shirt, blue pants, belt and red shoes with his pipe and white cap on a white background with black numbers and black minute marks and again his tattooed arms to tell the time with a can of open spinach on the hour hand and a thin red second hand. Marked KFS Swiss movt. SUPER RARE as this is a  mistake with the picture of Olive Oyl and not Swee' Pea.

  Basis also produced this PROPER Popeye & Swee' Pea watch. Swee' Pea's smiling face is at the 10 position. Popeye is wearing his regular  red collared black shirt, blue pants, belt and red shoes with his pipe and tan cap on a tan background with black numbers and again his tattooed arms to tell the time with a can of open spinach on the hour hand and a thin silver second hand. Marked KFS Swiss movt for this hard to find beauty.

 

Remex LTD produced this Olive Oyl by herself for King Features Syndicate. Olive Oyl is in a red dress and white top with her large black boots looking coyly on a white background and black numbers, sadly with Mickey Mouse hands as often the way Remex did and a red second hand to tell the time. Marked KFS in light red (hard to read) Swiss movt. Not seen very often so well worth it even with the Mickey hands. Internally marked Remex LTD Hong Kong, one jewel adjusted.

In the 1970's Bradley produced this nicely detailed Popeye watch for King Features Syndicate. Here is Popeye standing awkwardly with his white cap flying off still smoking his pipe of course. He's wearing his blue pants and black shirt with blue trim, a belt and shoes on a white background and his tattooed arms are used to tell the time, always a plus. There is an open can of spinach sitting on top of his name which is in yellow, with yellow numbers trimmed with blue and the 60-minute intervals marked off in black along with a black second hand. Marked 1979 King Features Syndicate Inc. at the bottom and Bradley Time Division on the back.

 
For more Information on Watches see:
The National Watch and Clock Museum:  https://nawcc.org/index.php/museum

The West Coast Clock & watch museum https://www.agsem.com/West-Coast-Clock-and-Watch-Museum.php which is located at the Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum http://www.agsem.com/
 

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It's always time for character watches...Watches with Character.