Popeye’s theme song, titled "I'm Popeye The Sailor Man", composed by Sammy Lerner in 1933 for Fleischer’s first Popeye the Sailor cartoon,^[24] has become forever associated with the sailor. As one cartoon historian has observed, Popeye's theme song itself was inspired by two lines of the tune "Oh, Better Far to Live and Die", sung by the Pirate King and chorus in Act I of Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta The Pirates of Penzance: "For I am a Pirate King! (You are! Hoorah for the Pirate King!)"^{[citation needed]} The tune behind those two lines is similar to the "Popeye" song, except for the high note on the first "King". The Sailor's Hornpipe has often been used as an introduction to Popeye's theme song.

A cover of the theme song, performed by Face To Face, is included on the 1995 tribute album Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits, produced by Ralph Sall for MCA Records.