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I have fond memories of Mr. Yuk from my childhood. My parents placed the green-yucky-face stickers on various items under the kitchen sink, and sure enough, I never drank drain cleaner. But where did Mr. Yuk come from?
According to Wikipedia, Mr. Yuk is from Pittsburgh, and was introduced in 1971. Prior to 1971, poison symbols were commonly of the skull-and-crossbones variety, but there was concern that children might associate that “jolly roger” symbol with pirates. This article further explains that in the early 70’s, the skull-and-crossbones was also the logo for the Pittsburgh Pirates, so I can see how kids might not associate it with something they should NOT touch. The poison center at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh designed the Mr. Yuk logo and distributed the stickers (which also typically contain a phone number to reach a local or national poison control hotline — for the record, the national number is 1-800-222-1222), and at least in my experience, these stickers were widespread as late as the mid-1980’s.
Much more — including freaky 70’s videos — after the jump.
Several studies have attempted to measure the effectiveness of Mr. Yuk. Unfortunately, the studies indicate that Mr. Yuk is not very effective at preventing children from handling Yuk-labeled bottles — one indicated that children actually handled the Yuk-labeled bottles more, possibly because of the cartoonish appearance of the sticker. The other showed no significant difference between Yuk-labeled and non-labeled bottles. Well, that’s a bummer. It’s unclear from the study summaries whether education for the kids (explaining not to touch things labeled with Mr. Yuk) would have affected the outcome.
One thing I missed as a kid was this Mr. Yuk Public Service Announcement (slash spooky drug trip) from 1971. Prepare to be freaked out:
For Mr. Yuk superfans, here’s the extended version of the song from the PSA above (you can also download an MP3):
You can get a free sheet of Mr. Yuk stickers from the Mr. Yuk page (warning: plays a brief theme song!) at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. You can also order Lance Armstrong-style green “poison help” wristbands. Um. “Yuk.”
A question for current parents of young kids: is Mr. Yuk on any items in your house?
Comments (17)
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Mr. Yuk is still alive and well. In fact, my brother is a chef, and he asked me to order him some to put on stuff in his fridge so his roommates would leave it alone.
posted by Katie on 7-30-2007 at 7:12 am
That video scared the living hell out of me when I was four. I already knew enough not to drink drain cleaner by that age (though last Saturday I accidentally drank some Formula 409… long story) but I remember running away and crying for hours after seeing that PSA. A few months ago, I looked up the copy on Youtube, and while the front of my brain was saying ‘this is really quite silly’ the back was saying ‘OMG MR YUK IS BACK!!! RUN!!!!!’
posted by CJ Casey on 7-30-2007 at 8:24 am
I have a toddler and a preschooler in my house and no Mr Yuk stickers. Something innovative that works better than cartoon stickers is the drawer/cabinet safety latch, folks.
posted by Lebetho on 7-30-2007 at 8:46 am
It’s emblazoned on a homemade cassette tape in my closet … :)
posted by Ransom on 7-30-2007 at 9:27 am
I don’t remember the video, but we had the stickers when I was a kid.
That said, I find that video terrifying, even as an adult.
posted by Beth on 7-30-2007 at 11:05 am
Creepy
posted by Lindsey on 7-30-2007 at 1:22 pm
Ah, Mr Yuk…We didn’t actually put him on bottles or anything…I think we actually put it on our phone. I never did eat the phone. Coincidence? I think not.
I actually found Mr Yuk rather creepy…not the picture itself, but the idea of being poisoned. I was a rather paranoid child, and whenever I saw a Mr Yuk sticker I would be plagued with worried thoughts about fires and floods and hurricanes and earthquakes for a while after. But now when I look at the sticker I just feel a rather fond rememberance. Strange…
posted by Rosalie on 7-30-2007 at 1:30 pm
I wouldn’t call my Mr. Yuk memories FOND, but maybe that’s because they happened after I drank the rubbing alcohol. I remember walking around the house with my mom and Mr. Yuk-ing things I wasn’t allowed to drink anymore. I never did drink the rubbing alcohol again, so I suppose the stickers were a success?
posted by Alexandra on 7-30-2007 at 2:40 pm
Wow. That was very, very creepy. I remember the stickers but never saw the PSA. I think I’m glad; with all the warnings I might have never left my bed.
posted by Seth on 7-31-2007 at 12:21 am
When I was younger, my family used to shop at a grocery store called Cashwise. For some odd reason, my child brain connected the two so everytime I see a Mr. Yuk sticker I think of that grocery store.
posted by Sally on 7-31-2007 at 8:37 am
Wow. That’s terrifying. The evil cackle is a nice touch, though.
posted by Schneh on 7-31-2007 at 8:58 pm
Ya Know, I’ve had that dang song in my head for several days now! [Ha-Ha-ha]
posted by Tdave on 8-1-2007 at 2:37 am
Hey Chris, weren’t you in a band named after this character in High School?
Starting trouble,
;Will.
posted by Will on 8-12-2007 at 4:05 pm
I actually have a 2 yr old and a 9 month old, and my son listens to the Mr. Yuk theme song in the car all the time (I downloaded it and put it on CD, sue me). He loves it. We recently ordered a page of Mr Yuk stickers, and I look forward to using them. We had them all over the house when I was a kid. Worked for us. Plus he recently got into the rubbing alcohol, so I think it’s time to use Mr Yuk in our home. And the safety latches don’t work for him because he figured them out!
posted by Kristin on 3-23-2008 at 12:35 pm
That’s funny… we didn’t have Mr. Yuk. We had Officer Ugh. He was a little man with a police hat and his hands crossed in front of his mouth. Maybe I’m older??
posted by Lina on 11-12-2008 at 11:53 am
Yay Lina! I tried to describe Officer Ugh to some friends and nobody had ever heard of him! I was beginning to believe I had imagined the whole thing.
posted by Jon on 11-12-2008 at 1:18 pm
My mother, Wendy, created the Mr. Yuk design. As part of a contest held by the poison center of the Pittsburgh Childrens Hospital, she drew the now-familiar face, along with a stick-figure body that was not included in the finished sticker design. Her design won, and she was compensated for her time and talent with a prize: a tape recorder (that she still has). Pittsburgh Children’s Hospital now (unfortunately) owns all exclusive rights to the Mr. Yuk design. I have the original newspaper clipping in my hand dated April 9, 1974. My family and I often wonder how we may be living had the rights to the logo been granted to her. At least I have a good ice-breaker for conversations! “Hey, did you know that my mom created Mr. Yuk?” Awesome. =)
posted by Ashley Brown on 6-25-2009 at 4:17 am