New York ? Put away the cake. Pass the spinach.

Popeye celebrates his 75th birthday this year, animated evidence that a steady diet of leafy green vegetables and pipe smoking can guarantee you Hulk Hogan forearms as a septuagenarian. To honor the veteran sailor man, the Museum of Television and Radio unveiled a retrospective Saturday featuring rarities and collectibles from the cartoon hero’s career.

“There are very few characters that are that old and still in the public consciousness,” said Barry Monush, curator of the exhibit. “It’s quite impressive to stick around that long and stay recognizable.”

Recognizable? Who could forget that face, with its jutting jaw and permanently squinting right eye?

The exhibit at the midtown Manhattan museum features five flat-screen televisions running a loop of classic cartoons, with Popeye proudly proclaiming, “I yam what I yam.” He’s joined by the usual cast of sidekicks: love interest Olive Oyl, nemesis Bluto, the ever-indigent Wimpy and baby Swee’ Pea.

Popeye was launched in 1929, debuting in a minor role in the comic strip “Thimble Theater.” The sailor was an immediate hit with readers, and artist E.C. Segar made him the star of the strip within two years.