Service with a Guile

Olive runs a service station. The admiral pulls in and asks Olive to put some air in his tire, as he heads off to a cigar store. Meanwhile, the boys stop by on a 24-hour leave, and start to be "helpful" - which of course means that the tire, then the entire car, are in serious trouble. Not that Popeye doesn't do some amazing things to save the car; he carries it, atop a hoist, to the top of a very tall building under construction, then outruns it as it falls, and catches it, unscathed; the car is demolished, however, when Bluto snatches the hoist away and lets the car fall the remaining couple of meters onto Popeye. Spinach time: He manages to rebuild the car, apparently good as new, in the time it takes the admiral to walk back from the cigar store, so Bluto shoves him away to take credit. But the car falls to pieces when it's started, and the admiral puts Bluto on rust-scraping duty as Popeye and Olive float by in a rowboat.

Directed by Bill Tytla, Service with a Guile leans on a strong ensemble — Harry Welch, Mae Questel, Jackson Beck — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about animation titles of 1946.