Spinach Fer Britain
Encyclopedia
Spinach Fer Britain is a 1943, anti-nazi propaganda
cartoon, produced by Famous Studios
and distributed by Paramount Pictures
. The film centers around Popeye the Sailor trying to deliver a shipment of spinach to 10 Downing Street
in London, while fighting off Nazi Kriegsmarine
soldiers pursuing him in a U-boat
.
Like its predecessor, You're a Sap, Mr. Jap
, Spinach Fer Britain was kept out of distribution for several decades, due to its propagandistic nature and frequent display of Nazism
, until it received an official release on November 2003 in a DVD collection of Popeye cartoons produced between 1941-1943. It also had limited airings on Cartoon Network
as part of The Popeye Show
.
in a U-boat
, destroying everything they encounter. Each time they defeat an enemy, one of them jumps onto the bow of the U-boat and the Nazi captain emerges as they shout "HEIL HITLER" while exchanging salutes
.
Meanwhile, Popeye the Sailor is heading for Britain
with a shipment of spinach to donate as a war ration; his ship is attacked and sunk by the Nazi patrol before he can reach Britain. Popeye manages to escape with his spinach in a rowboat but is pursued by the Nazis. Popeye flips the U-boat upside-down and quickly withdraws.
But Popeye rows into a minefield and his boat is destroyed before he can escape. Popeye quickly collects all his spinach before the U-boat catches up with him. The Nazis ready their U-boat's turret but smoke from Popeye's tobacco pipe causes it to sneeze and fire uncontrollably, knocking Popeye out cold and sending his spinach flying into the air. The Nazis, believing Popeye to be dead, emerge from their U-boat and salute; all of Popeye's spinach falls through the U-boat's bulkhead door
. Popeye, dazed and unconscious, topples down to the ocean floor; taking the U-boat's propeller
with him. Popeye quickly regains consciousness and takes out a can of spinach; swallowing its contents causes his arm to grow a depth charge
. Using the propeller for transportation, he blows a hole in the Nazis U-boat. One-by-one, four Nazi soldiers emerge from the ruined sub as Popeye delivers them each a single uppercut, causing them to fly up into the minefield to their deaths.
Popeye rows the half-destroyed U-boat to 10 Downing Street
in London; he goes into fogginess and ends up crashing into traffic, he is greeted with many cheers upon his arrival. Popeye exits the sub along with the Nazi captain, shouting "HEIL HITLER" and saluting once he exits. Popeye stuffs him back into the U-boat and puffs his tobacco pipe four times before the short irises out.
DVD collection.
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
cartoon, produced by Famous Studios
Famous Studios
Famous Studios was the animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was founded as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount acquired the aforementioned studio and ousted its founders, Max and Dave Fleischer, in 1941...
and distributed by Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
. The film centers around Popeye the Sailor trying to deliver a shipment of spinach to 10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street, colloquially known in the United Kingdom as "Number 10", is the headquarters of Her Majesty's Government and the official residence and office of the First Lord of the Treasury, who is now always the Prime Minister....
in London, while fighting off Nazi Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
soldiers pursuing him in a U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
.
Like its predecessor, You're a Sap, Mr. Jap
You're a Sap, Mr. Jap
You're a Sap, Mr. Jap is a 1942 one-reel animated cartoon short subject released by Paramount Pictures. It was the first cartoon featuring Popeye the Sailor in a series produced by Famous Studios, which took over the Popeye theatrical franchise from the Fleischer Studios. It is one of the...
, Spinach Fer Britain was kept out of distribution for several decades, due to its propagandistic nature and frequent display of Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, until it received an official release on November 2003 in a DVD collection of Popeye cartoons produced between 1941-1943. It also had limited airings on Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....
as part of The Popeye Show
The Popeye Show
The Popeye Show is a Cartoon Network TV show that premiered on November 11, 2001. Each episode would include three unedited Popeye theatrical shorts from Fleischer Studios and/or Famous Studios. The show was narrated by Bill Murray , would give the audience short facts about the history of the...
.
Plot
The short opens with five Nazi soldiers patrolling the coast EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in a U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
, destroying everything they encounter. Each time they defeat an enemy, one of them jumps onto the bow of the U-boat and the Nazi captain emerges as they shout "HEIL HITLER" while exchanging salutes
Nazi salute
The Nazi salute, or Hitler salute , was a gesture of greeting in Nazi Germany usually accompanied by saying, Heil Hitler! ["Hail Hitler!"], Heil, mein Führer ["Hail, my leader!"], or Sieg Heil! ["Hail victory!"]...
.
Meanwhile, Popeye the Sailor is heading for Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
with a shipment of spinach to donate as a war ration; his ship is attacked and sunk by the Nazi patrol before he can reach Britain. Popeye manages to escape with his spinach in a rowboat but is pursued by the Nazis. Popeye flips the U-boat upside-down and quickly withdraws.
But Popeye rows into a minefield and his boat is destroyed before he can escape. Popeye quickly collects all his spinach before the U-boat catches up with him. The Nazis ready their U-boat's turret but smoke from Popeye's tobacco pipe causes it to sneeze and fire uncontrollably, knocking Popeye out cold and sending his spinach flying into the air. The Nazis, believing Popeye to be dead, emerge from their U-boat and salute; all of Popeye's spinach falls through the U-boat's bulkhead door
Bulkhead
Bulkhead may refer to:* Bulkhead, a compartment of a building for preventing spread of fires, see Compartmentalization * Bulkhead , a retaining wall used as a form of coastal management, akin to a seawall, or as a structural device such as a bulkhead partition* Bulkhead , a wall within the hull of...
. Popeye, dazed and unconscious, topples down to the ocean floor; taking the U-boat's propeller
Propeller
A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...
with him. Popeye quickly regains consciousness and takes out a can of spinach; swallowing its contents causes his arm to grow a depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
. Using the propeller for transportation, he blows a hole in the Nazis U-boat. One-by-one, four Nazi soldiers emerge from the ruined sub as Popeye delivers them each a single uppercut, causing them to fly up into the minefield to their deaths.
Popeye rows the half-destroyed U-boat to 10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street, colloquially known in the United Kingdom as "Number 10", is the headquarters of Her Majesty's Government and the official residence and office of the First Lord of the Treasury, who is now always the Prime Minister....
in London; he goes into fogginess and ends up crashing into traffic, he is greeted with many cheers upon his arrival. Popeye exits the sub along with the Nazi captain, shouting "HEIL HITLER" and saluting once he exits. Popeye stuffs him back into the U-boat and puffs his tobacco pipe four times before the short irises out.
Availability
Spinach Fer Britain is available on Popeye the Sailor: 1941-1943, Volume 3Popeye the Sailor: 1941-1943, Volume 3
Popeye the Sailor: 1941-1943, Volume 3 is the third of a series of DVD sets released by Warner Home Video collecting, in chronological order, the theatrical Popeye cartoons originally distributed by Paramount Pictures...
DVD collection.
See Also
- You're a Sap, Mr. JapYou're a Sap, Mr. JapYou're a Sap, Mr. Jap is a 1942 one-reel animated cartoon short subject released by Paramount Pictures. It was the first cartoon featuring Popeye the Sailor in a series produced by Famous Studios, which took over the Popeye theatrical franchise from the Fleischer Studios. It is one of the...
- Seein' Red, White 'N' BlueSeein' Red, White 'N' Blue"Seein' Red, White 'N' Blue" is a 1943 American cartoon short featuring Popeye, directed by Dan Gordon. It's a World War II propaganda cartoon featuring Bluto trying to escape the draft and fighting along with Popeye against some Japanese spies, Hirohito and Adolf Hitler.-Plot:While Bluto is busy...
- Popeye the Sailor: 1941-1943, Volume 3Popeye the Sailor: 1941-1943, Volume 3Popeye the Sailor: 1941-1943, Volume 3 is the third of a series of DVD sets released by Warner Home Video collecting, in chronological order, the theatrical Popeye cartoons originally distributed by Paramount Pictures...
External Links
- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0152556/
- http://www.bcdb.com/cartoon/15707-Spinach_Fer_Britain.html