William Arnold Costello (February 2, 1898 – October 9, 1971), commonly known as "Red Pepper Sam", was an American actor and the original voice of Popeye the Sailor in animated cartoons.

[2] Although he never received onscreen credit, Costello knew of Popeye's international popularity and reputedly became difficult to work with, demanding more money and days off in the middle of a recording session.

[3] However, Costello wasn't prepared to give up the fame associated with voicing Popeye and, billed as "The Original Voice of Popeye", he voiced the character on a European stage tour and made several recordings for the Columbia, Decca, and Rex labels, including "I'm Popeye the Sailor Man" (1935), "Blow the Man Down" (1935), "Tiger Rag" (1936), and "The Merry Go Round Broke Down" (1937), which, to avoid copyright problems in the US, were only marketed overseas.

[5] Carpenter was a ukulele player of note during the 1920s, known for his performances in the "eefin" style, which was also practiced by Cliff Edwards.

With the start of World War II, Costello returned to the United States, where for a short period he toured the dinner theatre circuit.