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Architect
Max Sandfield's proposed statue of Popeye.
Sketch courtesy Norman Sandfield |
Of
the many whimsical statues
around the state of Texas - Popeye, of
Crystal City
is one of the most photographed. Or it would be if Crystal
City was a little closer to a major highway.
Not only has Popeye been the unpaid spokesman for spinach for 75 years,
his statue has also become the unofficial ambassador for Crystal
City, Texas.
Standing in Zavala County,
far from his beloved coast hasn’t been easy for the sailor without
a surname, but his facsimile takes this inland imprisonment with characteristic
stoicism. In his slightly belligerent pose, with his famous anorexic
biceps and pumped-up forearms, he seems to be silently saying, “I
yam what I yam!” (What else would he say?)
Looking as shiny as a spray-painted pinata, this fiberglass effigy
shares a secret with museum statuary in Rome, Paris and London. The
secret is: (they are reproductions). To protect Popeye from vandals,
the “real” statue stands safely within the walls of the Crystal City
Hall. This duplicate is placed as an offering to whatever rival high
school teams might want to defame or insult the Crystal City team
by defacing the now-famous landmark.
Once the most recognizable sailor in the world, Popeye’s popularity
has dipped in recent years. Despite a severe (and unique) speech impediment;
he managed to get the message across to millions of children world-wide,
that (given a chance) iron-rich spinach could cure everything from
pellagra to bullies. And, if you ate enough of the stuff, you wouldn't
even need a can-opener.
The statue is not actually a monument to Popeye, but to his creator,
E. C. Segar, of Chester Illinois. Segar, who made the astounding sum
of $400,000 a year in the 1930s, died [mysteriously] at the age of
38. Mr. Segar’s signature on the statue’s base today might be appearing
on a very different statue if the vote of a design committee had gone
differently. |
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The statue of
Popeye in Crystal
City
TE photo, November 2001 |
The
contest was held back in 1937 to award the contract. A man named Max
Sandfield saw the announcement and entered the fray. Sandfield, a
native of Lithuania, had been raised in San
Antonio and was residing there when he read of the competetion.
He was already a practicing architect, having earned his degree from
MIT in 1925. He practiced in both San
Antonio and New York before moving to Dallas
in 1945.
Sandfield’s entry shows a statue far different from the one standing
today in Crystal
City. In his sketch, Mr. Sanfield has Popeye sitting on a can
of spinach about the size of a 55-gallon drum with a more-to-scale
second can held against his chest, ready to be opened in case of an
emergency - or upon the arrival of Bluto. The pipe is there of course,
along with the familiar squint and tattoo, but the one thing that’s
different - really different - is the proposed material.
Max Sandfield suggested that Popeye be carved from native Texas limestone.
Today the suggestion would’ve won him the contest hands-down, but
back in 1937 limestone might have been considered too dignified for
a mere cartoon character - despite whatever contributions to nutrition-awareness.
Medina, Texas
has since erected an oversized limestone apple - and courthouses around
the state are carved with a variety of flora, fauna, and limestone
cowboys. It appears Mr. Sandfield’s proposal was ahead of its time.
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A
1937 announcement in Design Magazine (Volume XVIII Number 3) shows
Mr. Sandfield’s drawing with the text reading:
Spinach Growers Honor Popeye
A statue of “Popeye” will be erected in the Winter
Garden Section in Crystal
City, Texas in honor of E.C. Segar, creator of the “Popeye” comic
strip if an idea proposed by O. P. Schnabel, San Antonio manager of
the Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company, is carried out.
A drawing of the proposed statue has been made by Max M. Sandfield,
San Antonio Architect.
The statue, to be carved of Texas limestone, will be in the form of
a large can of spinach as a base with Popeye sitting on the can eating
out of another can. The erection of this statue in the heart of the
world’s greatest spinach-growing country will be a fitting tribute
to the man who has made both young and old alike “Spinach-conscious”!
If Mr. Sandfield was disappointed that his proposed design was not
used, it didn't discourage him. In collaboration with Howard Meyer,
Max Sandfield’s design of Dallas’
Temple Emmanu-el was hailed at its 1957 dedication as “one of the
handsomest synagogues in the United States.” The quote comes from
the Encyclopedia Britannica.. The temple was also awarded a 1957 Merit
Award from the American Institute of Architects and Mr. Sandfield
received a 25-Year Award from the Dallas
branch of the AIA, an organization he once served as president.
Sandfield was also a noted home designer and sculptor and several
pieces of his work accent the courtyards at the temple. The Columbian
Country Club in Carrolton,
Texas was another noted Sandfield design. |
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Not
much is known of the design competetion or the judging. Any information
would be appreciated, including any details of (alleged) Spinach-eating
contests held in the 30s. The Crystal City chamber of commerce was
unavailable for comment - but a recording assured us our call would
be returned.
Other Popeyes - Other States
One bronze statue of Popeye stands in E. C. Segar's hometown of
Chester, Illinois. Vandals have pulled it down on at least one occassion
(no damage).
Two others stand in Arkansas about 70 miles apart. In Alma, Arkansas,
off I-40, the paper-mache statue was stolen so often that it had
to be covered in fiberglass and chained in place. The other Arkansas
statue is near Springdale about 60 miles North. Considering this
recent hostility toward cartoon statues, Crystal
City is wise to keep a spare.
Our thanks to Mr. Norman Sandfield of Chicago for making us aware
of his father's design and for providing the content used in this
article.
© John Troesser
"They shoe horses,
don't they?" September
11, 2004 Column
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