Spinach, corncob pipes and superhuman strength will overtake the streets of Chester this weekend for the 29th annual Popeye Picnic.
Chester, just more than 30 miles northwest of Carbondale, is home to Popeye creator Elzie Crisler Segar. This year's picnic will feature a plethora of activities, including sand sculpting, carnival rides, live music and fireworks.
The festival begins Friday morning with sand sculpting, and the weekend culminates with live music. Professional costumes provided by King Feature Syndicate, the distributor of Popeye, have been provided to the festival to enhance the atmosphere.
Popeye was the brainchild of Segar, who honed his cartoon skills in Chester. Segar was the son of a local handyman; he learned artistic skill from an early age by helping his father paint houses, and much of Popeye's blue-collar mentality is a direct reflection of early 20th century life in southern Illinois.
Debbie Brooks, who serves on the Popeye Picnic board of directors, said she could not remember a particular instance when her love for Popeye began, but the character and his lore have become her passion and her career.
"He was on television as a child and everyone watched him," she said. "He was America's good ol' boy who did what was right long before Superman."
The town cannot get enough of Popeye - the police officers wear him on their uniforms, and both squad cars and fire trucks feature Popeye. There are currently four statues dedicated to Popeye characters and 12 more are planned to be dedicated each year at the annual picnic.
Many people flock to Chester each year to pay homage to their childhood hero. Brooks was one of those people - but she never left.
"My husband and I moved here 14 years ago to open a Popeye memorabilia store. Him and I both love Popeye so much and decided to try to make our passion into a career," she said.
The picnic draws people from many places across the nation. The event has confirmed fans making pilgrimages from places as far as New York and California.
Popeye was first published in 1919, which predates almost all other American cartoon icons. For instance, DC Comics, one of the largest distributors of comic books, did not get its start until 1935.
Although Brooks loves Popeye, the cartoon character hasn't swayed her opinion of cooked spinach.
She noted her appreciation of Chester as a source of inspiration for Segar. The building out of which she runs her store was built in 1875 and owned by a man who was the inspiration for Wimpy, a character who appeared regularly in Popeye. The character of Popeye was also inspired by Chester locals, Brooks said.
"Popeye is immortal like Disney; he is here to stay, unlike most children's characters of today. That is what I like about Popeye - he is a concrete figure in the American landscape," she said.
James Copeland, a junior from Carpentersville studying photojournalism, said he had no idea the creator of Popeye was from southern Illinois.
"I was never a big Popeye fan, but I think it's cool he was from around here," Copeland said.
Chris McGregor can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 275 or at chrism@siu.edu.
