Jack Mercer
Occupation / Title:Date of birth:31/01/1910
Date of death:07/12/1984
Birthplace:U.S.A.
Biography
Jack Mercer was born on January 31, 1910.
Mercer today is known as the most iconic voice of Popeye. He was an in-betweener at Fleischer before auditioning for the voice of Popeye, ultimately landing the role and recording the voice for the television series and specials, as well as several audio records that were both Popeye-related or unrelated.
In his later life, he lived in Woodside, Queens. Mercer died in New York City on December 7, 1984. He was 74 years old.
Family and early life
Born to vaudevillian parents, Mercer was already travelling around the country working in show business before joining Fleischer Studios. He had a talent for drawing, which is what got him into working at Fleischer.
In 1939, he married Margie Hines, who voiced Olive Oyl from 1939 to 1944 (she went under the name Majorie Mercer after their marriage). Mercer moved to Miami, Florida when Fleischer Studios relocated there in 1938, however in 1944, he moved back to New York. In 1950, he and Hines divorced. He later married Virginia Caroll and they remained together until his death.
Career outline
He began at the story department, working as an in-betweener for cartoons, but he soon got a calling card to voice acting when the Fleischers began looking for a replacement for the voice of Popeye. The previous voice actor, Billy Costello, greatly suffered under the pressures of fame, causing him to be dismissed by the studio and forced to leave Paramount, Fleischer Studios’s parent company. Mercer liked to imitate the voices of characters and was suggested by a colleague to audition for the voice of Popeye. He got the part of Popeye after auditioning over the phone and doing a few stints at Paramount to prove his voice acting skills.
Mercer also recorded for the voice of Wimpy, Poopdeck Pappy, and Popeye’s four nephews, as well as voicing all characters in 240 Felix the Cat cartoons. He also voiced Popeye in several LP records. In 1946, Mercer and Hines voiced a narrative children’s LP called The Adventures of Buzzy Bear and Peggy Penguin, with Mercer and Hines voicing Buzzy and Peggy, respectively.