Bogart and Mr. Popo are similar in that they are local businessmen who never seem to do much work. Bogart is supposed to be a tailor, but there's not much evidence that he gets any work done. Too busy with trying to cultivate the image of a movie tough guy, he's often absent from his store and never seems to have made a single suit.

As for Mr. Popo, he's supposed to be a carpenter, but there's precious little evidence of any actual work being done in his workshop. Popo is a laid-back character, someone who'd much rather sit back and watch the world go by than spend all day working. He's also much more talkative than Bogart, though admittedly, that's not saying much. The narrator finds him to be a good conversationalist, someone capable of discussing a variety of important topics.

The main difference between the two men lies in their popularity on the street. Simply put, Bogart is popular, and Mr. Popo isn't. On the face of it, this makes no sense whatsoever. Bogart is described as a boring man who barely speaks a word to another living soul and never laughs audibly. And yet Bogart gets to hang out with "the big men of the street," Hat, Howard, and Eddoes.

Mr. Popo, despite being much more open and friendly than the would-be tailor, only becomes popular on Miguel Street after he's released from prison. When we first meet him, he's decidedly unpopular, regarded by the denizens of the street as proud and haughty due to his unfortunate tendency to show off. Hat also finds him to be somewhat effeminate, as he has no child that could stand as a mark of virility.