When it comes to video games, there are some characters and franchises known by most people. Games like Tetris have left a big impact on society, and titles like Call of Duty have made a big impact on pop culture. One game that has had an impact like few others, however, is Nintendo’s Mario series. This franchise has seen games in almost every genre, including role playing games, puzzle games, racing games, sports games and more. Mario remains the best-selling video game franchise of all time across its multiple entries, but what if I told you that there was a Jewish connection to the origins of the franchise?
This may sound surprising at first, since Mario is made by the Japanese company Nintendo, and while there are Japanese Jews, it does not appear there were any involved with Nintendo at the time, to my knowledge. So, “What is the Jewish connection?”, I hear you ask. Well, it goes back to the 1980’s. Back in 1981 Nintendo had released an arcade game called Radar Scope, it was a hit in Japan and expected to do well in America as well. However, when Radar Scope launched in America, it was to a disastrous reception. The failure of the game threatened to kill the company’s Nintendo of America division in its infancy, and they needed a new hit fast to stay afloat. They had so many unsold Radar Scope cabinets, they needed a game that they could quickly convert the cabinets to just for the American division to even be able to survive.
This is where Shigeru Miyamoto comes into the picture. He was a fan of classic animation by Disney and of cartoons like Popeye. He had hoped for the company to get the license for Nintendo to make an arcade game based on the sailor’s adventures. Popeye the Sailor is sadly not as well known today, but at one point was a major star in comics and animation. It was created by the cartoonist E.C. Segar (Elzie Crisler Segar), Popeye first appeared in the comic strip Thimble Theatre ten years into the comic’s run and quickly took it over. He was an instant hit and was soon adapted into multiple cartoons by the likes of the Fleischer brothers and more. The early cartoons often had a distinct Jewish influence in terms of storytelling, and the Fleischers would have Popeye slip in some Yiddish every now and then, and allegedly included some language not fit for young ears.
E.C. Segar himself was a Jewish American cartoonist and his impact on the comics industry cannot be overstated. But to get back to the point of Nintendo and Mario, when Nintendo approached King features Syndicate to negotiate the rights to Popeye for an arcade game, the hoped-for deal could not be reached for numerous reasons. Shigeru Miyamoto then went to work on what became a spiritual adaption of Popeye in many ways, with a big lumbering brute based on Bluto kidnapping a woman based on Olive Oyl and a hero based on Popeye rescuing her. The brute would now be a giant ape reminiscent of King Kong and the hero would go through some names, including Mr. Video and Jumpman before the name Mario was decided on. There is a common myth that the character was named Jumpman in the game and only named Mario with the release of Mario Bros. but both names were used in promotional material at the same time. Nintendo developed this new game for the American market and released it as Donkey Kong.
To say Donkey Kong was a hit would be an understatement, as it proved to be Nintendo’s breakthrough game. Most of the company’s games beforehand were derivatives of games from other companies and while there were some original ideas mixed in, they were very much chasing trends. Donkey Kong changed all that and was the first true game in the platformer genre. Donkey Kong would soon gain a sequel in the form of Donkey Kong Jr. where Mario was the villain, which was an exceedingly rare exception for the character. It is not an exaggeration to state that without Donkey Kong’s success, Nintendo would not have lasted as long as they have and all of gaming would be quite different.
In that sense, all of gaming and not just Mario and Nintendo owe a debt to the work of E.C. Segar. It is often thought that Donkey Kong was just a rip-off of King Kong, but while the name was borrowed, everything else was Popeye. This means that means Nintendo’s most well-known mascot character himself is modelled after the characters of E. C. Segar, even if the Mario franchise later deviated from this origin and went in its own direction that we all know and love today.
It should be noted that a year after Donkey Kong’s release and subsequent success, Shigeru Miyamoto got his wish and Nintendo got the license to make a Popeye arcade game. Perhaps King Features Syndicate saw the success Donkey Kong had and felt they had missed out on a substantial amount of money by walking away from the deal. Whatever the reason was, what resulted was a game that, while not as well known today, is considered a true gem by those who have played it. The game is modelled on the Donkey Kong style of gameplay but does have some notable differences to set itself apart.
Nintendo would make a few more Popeye video games, including one for their Game & Watch line of handhelds before the license expired. Popeye has continued to have a presence in video games though, and it is good to see that the franchise that influenced modern gaming still endures in some way. There are even many pushing for Nintendo to find a way to get the license to re-release the arcade version of Popeye in some way. Much like Michael Kogan, who as we previously discussed, founded Taito, which kicked off the Golden Age of arcades with their hit Space Invaders, E. C. Segar had a profound impact on pop culture even decades after his death from cancer at a young age. This is another story of a Jewish person who had a profound influence on video games, through the work they created and is something that deserves to be acknowledged more. The impact Jews have had on the industry has been incredible, but it is not something that many are aware of it seems.
