April 12, 2001

7:54 PM

Today at work I noticed we were running a little low on stickers, and mentioned that we didn't have enough of Mr. Yuk around. My poor, freakish coworkers had never seen or heard of the funny face from Pennsylvania. Although I seem to have doubts about how effective it is at steering young ones away from potentially deadly everyday items and other dangerous materials.
posted by salsamander (11 comments total)

A sheet of twelve for a $1 donation? Sounds like a bargain to me!
posted by amanda at 8:00 PM on April 12, 2001

I LOVE MR. YUK!
posted by Zettai at 8:01 PM on April 12, 2001

The first job I ever had was "folding" Mr. Yuk stickers for the hospital my mom works at in Pennsylvania. Years later I still had a box of them in the closet and sold them for 3 sheets for a dollar at the local record store I worked at in collge. Netted a $150 profit!
posted by punkrockrat at 8:06 PM on April 12, 2001

I had only ever vaguely remembered that CHospPgh stood for the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh until my older sister's freshman year of college at Pitt found her in a dorm room waaaay up in the air.

Directly across from the helicopter landing pad on the roof of the Hospital. I am still uncertain if she slept more than a dozen hours that entire year.

I knew that it must have been a relatively localized phenomenon, though, as I've yet to see significant presence of pop-culture takeoffs on Mr. Yuk. Does anyone have an MP3 of the song?

Lyrics: "Mis-ter Yuck is Meeeeeean. Mis-ter Yuck is Greeeen." I hope somebody got paid a lot for that.
posted by anildash at 9:01 PM on April 12, 2001

I grew up with Mr Yuk, I never realized that it started as a PA thing. Remember the song? Check poison.org, you'll remember - have to wait for audio to load w/ page. (couldnt find mp3 w/ napster)
posted by tomplus2 at 9:11 PM on April 12, 2001

Ask your local drugstore if they have any stickers -- I asked at my Giant and about a month later there they were sitting on the pharmacy counter. It looks great on my cell phone. (Makes a nice AIM icon, too. You're welcome.)
posted by sudama at 9:53 PM on April 12, 2001

I was so excited when I brought them home; I wanted to stick them everywhere. That evening as I watched our 3-month-old watch me pour a glass of water, I decided that sticking one on the Brita wasn't the best idea I'd ever had.
posted by sudama at 9:57 PM on April 12, 2001

My brother and I were already too old, but when we stayed with family friends, all the young'uns knew the song by heart. I think it definitely depended on where you grew up: we heard it in Janesville (Wis.), but they got it all the time in Green Bay, and there was even an enormous billboard near their house.
posted by dhartung at 10:33 PM on April 12, 2001

Did I mention that there were T-shirts available at Poison.org. ROCK ON!
posted by tomplus2 at 8:25 AM on April 13, 2001

Wow. I remember those from when I was a kid (living in Philadelphia) but had no idea they were a local phenomenon. I just figured it was one of those pop culture ephemera that disappear before you get old enough to really take a good look at them...
posted by Mars Saxman at 10:41 AM on April 13, 2001

Mr. Yuck is an American Cutural icon. To writ:

This is the Shrine to the Image of Dick Van Dyke Frowning into Space while Holding his Watch in the Air Springing from the Head of Mr. Yuck
I want a t-shirt, too!
posted by sixdifferentways at 12:29 PM on April 14, 2001