This article is about the animated short. For the location, see Goon Island.
Goonland is Popeye's 65th cartoon, released on October 21, 1938 by Fleischer Studios. It features Jack Mercer as both Popeye and Poopdeck Pappy, in the latter's screen debut. It also contains the only theatrical appearance of the Goons who act as the short's main antagonists.
Plot
The story begins with Popeye going on an adventure in search of his father, who had run off shortly after his birth. Upon arriving at his long lost father's location, Popeye discovers that the land he finds himself in is truly strange. The mysterious Goon Island turns out to be the home of an odd race of people known as Goons, that have kept his father prisoner for 40 years.
Upon arriving, Popeye realizes that he needs to fit in among the natives to reach the prison where his father is being held. He quickly notices a bush nearby and uses it as "goony hair" while proceeding to inflate his chest and stretch out his face to resemble a Goon. With his disguise proving successful (save for a few odd looks from some Goons here and there), Popeye is able to safely reach his Pappy's cell, who is seen playing a lonely game of one-man-chess.
Finding Poopdeck Pappy in his cell, Popeye wants his father to escape with him, but Pappy is not convinced, merely dismissing him as an annoying relative. Popeye then tries to remind him of when he last saw him as an infant, but Poopdeck quickly dismisses the memory with a grunt, much to Popeye's grief. Disappointed and heart-broken, Popeye makes his leave, but before he can get far, he is suddenly caught by the Goons, who then take him away to be executed.
At first, Poopdeck finds the whole scene hilarious, but upon hearing Popeye beg for help from his "Pappy", realization suddenly dawns on Poopdeck, with him acknowledging that Popeye is really his only child, and he tries to escape, with no luck. As Popeye is taken away, he attempts to eat his spinach, but one of the Goons knocks it out of his hand. The can then rolls to Pappy, who instantly recognizes his favorite vegetable and uses its power to break out of the prison and help his son.
Meanwhile, the Goons attempt to kill Popeye by dropping a giant boulder on him, but Pappy arrives just in time to punch the boulder back on to the Goons. With his son now freed, the father-and-son duo unite to defeat the remaining Goons in an epic brawl so mighty that it even tears the film reel of the cartoon. With the Goons now soundly defeated, Poopdeck and Popeye escape from the island, happy to be reunited at last.
Color remake
Goonland was remade by Famous Studios in 1952, with some substantial differences, as Popeye's Pappy.
Gallery
External links
- Goonland at the Internet Movie Database