FISCHER: Popeye goes public

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

It’s a new year and that means a new wave of classic media has entered into the public domain.

Aspiring creatives in the United States are now legally free to offer their own takes on a slew of copyrighted work from 1929 however they see fit.

However, there is a catch. When it comes to long-running characters and concepts, only aspects of those characters originating from the public domain materials can be utilized freely. Traits from subsequent works remain off-limits until their own copyrights expire.

Sherlock Holmes, for example, in spite of being one of the most frequently adapted public domain characters to ever exist, historically had several stories that were off-limits until 2023 when the last of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s work entered into the public domain.

Likewise, Mickey Mouse officially became public property last year with the expiration of the copyright for the animated short, “Steamboat Willie.” However, the red and black donned squeaky voiced character we all know and love today is not simply the product of a near-century old black and white short and those works are still firmly secured by Disney.

Though less and less secure every year.

A dozen more Mickey Mouse cartoons joined “Steamboat Willie” in the public domain in 2025, including “The Karnival Kid,” which features Mickey’s first speaking appearance.

So if you decide to make a Mickey Mouse animation of your own and give him the voice of a early 20th Century carnival barker, you’re probably in the clear.

The big catch of this year’s public domain haul, though, is Popeye.

Created by E.C. Segar in 1929 as a new character for his comic strip, “Thimble Theater,” the beloved sailor-man is now free and clear of copyright.

And unlike Mickey Mouse, Popeye hasn’t changed all that much in the last 95 years. Everything from his personality to his outfit is more or less identical back then to what you would think of today.

Even attributing his great strength to eating spinach is on the table, though due to a technicality.

According to the Duke Center for the Study of Public Domain, though the first reference of Popeye eating spinach happened in 1931, no records can be found renewing the copyright of those comics at the time.

So, if you so choose, you can freely make the Dracula vs. Popeye crossover the world has been waiting for. So long as you steer clear of the still copyrighted elements of works from 1930 onward.

Which includes the “Popeye” syndicated comic strip that continues to this day. Coincidentally that comic has, since 2022, been written and drawn by R.K. Milholland, a webcomic artist that I’ve been following for 20 years.

Beyond that, Halloween lovers will be thrilled to know that Disney’s “The Skeleton Dance” has also entered the realm of the public domain. Not that there’s really much of the animated short that was inherently copyrightable anyway, but you can project it on the side of your house on loop for this year’s Halloween without worrying too much about Disney lawyers.

— Travis Fischer is a news writer for the Charles City Press and wonders if Popeye entering the public domain will bring more awareness that the “official” comic still exists.