Jack Mercer (
1909-
1984) began his work in
cartoons as an inbetweener, an apprentice
animator at
Fleicher Studios. When
William Costello[?], the original cartoon voice of
Popeye (1933-35), became difficult to work with, he was dismissed. Several individuals filled the role of Popeye until
Lou Fleischer[?] heard Mercer singing the Popeye song. Mercer's first cartoon was
King of the Mardi Gras[?]. Mercer continued to voice the one-eyed sailor for the Fleischers, for Paramount's Famous Studios cartoons (1942-57), for a series of television cartoons for King Features, and for a Saturday morning cartoon show (1978) produced by Joe Barbara and Bill Hanna. Mercer also did other cartoon voices, including all the voices for a series of
Felix the Cat cartoons produced in 1959-60. Mercer also did the voices of Wimpy, Poppdeck Pappy, Popeye's nephews, King Little in Fleischer's Gulliver's Travels, and a number of voices for Fleischer's Mr. Bug Goes To Town.