Relationship experts say the marriage of Popeye and Olive Oyl will be long and prosperous – but the nation’s top divorce lawyers say don’t bet on it.
“It goes to show you that Popeye can swallow as many cans of spinach as he wants, but when it comes to love, he’s got to make a commitment,” psychotherapist Dr. Gilda Carle said.
“Popeye is making a statement for all men: ‘I can be cruel, I can be strong, I can go out and slay dragons for Olive Oyl, but when it comes down to it, I’m going back to the basics.'”
Carle, author of “Don’t Bet On The Prince! How to Have the Man You Want By Betting On Yourself,” predicts a very happy union.
“Oh, yes, they’ve known each other for a very long time and they’ve never lived together,” she said.
Famed therapist Dr. Joyce Brothers says the fact that the spinach-eating hero and his pencil-thin girlfriend have been a couple for 70 years is a big plus.
“If they can be going together for such a long time and they haven’t had any fights that I know about and they fit so well, then it should be a great marriage,” Brothers said.
But Dr. Joyce, won’t folks now think the tough-talking, muscle-bound sailor is a wimp for taking the plunge?
“Not at all. It’s much more manly to face up to your responsibilities and make a commitment,” she said.
But a lawyer who has handled some of the nation’s most sensational divorces is less than impressed by the bonding of the comic strip legends.
“It’s kind of late in the game for them, don’t you think? How long have they been going out? Seventy years? They’ve got about 30 seconds left!” lawyer Raoul Felder said.
“This is one of the few marriages in which the people may be getting married strictly for the social security benefits. I just hope that they lace Popeye’s spinach with Viagra.”