While hamburgers are among America’s most popular foods, there’s few that love them to the obsessive levels exhibited by Wimpy. Like Popeye and Olive Oyle, J. Wellington Wimpy first debuted in E. C. Segar’s “Thimble Theatre” comic strip before making his first animated appearances in the Fletcher Studios “Popeye” cartoon series. In these classic short films, the mild-mannered Wimpy is known for scamming hamburgers out of anyone and everyone, often by using his catchphrase of “I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.” However, a small hamburgers stand in Universal’s Islands of Adventure also shows that he has a more entrepreneurial side, albeit one still focused on his favorite food.
Located in Toon Lagoon, “Wimpy’s” serves hamburgers and offers outdoor seating with views of “Popeye and Bluto’s Bilge Rat Barges.” That being said, this particular establishment is considered seasonal and is only open during the very busiest times of the year. Perhaps it’s fitting that Wimpy rarely opens his own restaurants given the character’s slothful nature, and anyone craving a burger can fortunately still find one only a few steps away at Toon Lagoon’s largest restaurant, “Comic Strip Cafe.” Whether “Wimpy’s” is open or closed, it’s signage is the ideal way for Universal’s Islands of Adventure to salute one of Popeye’s funniest co-stars.
Ink and Paint in the Parks 